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Ready to upgrade your mashed potatoes? Nothing beats a classic potatoes-butter-milk recipe except the addition of sour cream. As a classically-trained chef, I tested all the ratios to ensure your Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes are fluffy, flavorful, and extra creamy. You’ll savor every bite!
Meggan’s notes
I’m a big believer in the simplest mashed potatoes possible. My gold standard is nothing but potatoes (high-starch like russets), butter, milk, and salt (in that order). But for the sake of variety, I wanted to play with adding something extra, and I reached for sour cream first.
Sour cream is a great choice because I already know it’s delicious atop classic baked potatoes, stirred into the filling for twice-baked potatoes, or elevating your next twice-baked potato casserole. Potatoes and sour cream go together like peas and carrots!
Things go south fast, though, if you don’t have the right ratios. Nothing is worse than watery mashed potatoes or gluey spuds, so I tried it out a few different times to make sure this is the best possible version.
Sleep easy and cook with confidence with this recipe! The sour cream elevates your mashed potatoes without weighing them down or overwhelming the fluffiness factor. Every bite is buttery with a delicious tang, the perfect side dish for your holiday table.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Potatoes: For the fluffiest, smoothest, and most flavorful mashed potatoes, choose high-starch potatoes like Russet, Idaho, or Yukon gold potatoes. Waxy potatoes (such as new, red, or white varieties) require more mashing to become creamy which could result in gluey, pasty spuds.
- Butter before milk: Always add the butter first so the butter fat coats the potato starch molecules. Then, add the hot milk to make them creamy. If you mix up the order, you could end up with gluey spuds. (Thanks Cook’s Illustrated for this tip!)
- Sour cream: I wanted to try this popular variation on mashed potatoes, but I didn’t know if it would actually be good. Turns out that creamy, sour tang works perfectly!
Step-by-step instructions
- In a Dutch oven or large stockpot, add potatoes and 2 tablespoons salt. Add cold water to cover potatoes by 1 inch.
- Over medium-high heat, bring to boil and partially cover pot. Cook until potatoes are fork tender and a fork can be easily slipped into the center, stirring once or twice, about 10 to 15 minutes. Drain well, tossing in colander to remove excess water.
- Wipe pot dry. Return potatoes to pot and mash to a uniform consistency.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold in melted butter until just incorporated.
- Slowly stir in 1 cup hot milk and sour cream. Add more milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, to adjust the desired consistency. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipes makes about 10 cups sour cream mashed potatoes, enough for 10 (1-cup) servings.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: Peel and cube the raw potatoes up to 24 hours in advance. Cover with water and chill in the refrigerator.
- Freezer: Standard mashed potatoes don’t freeze well. They separate and become watery after thawing. My Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes are a freezer-defying recipe that uses cream cheese and egg whites for more staying power in the cold, and it’s part of my complete Make Ahead Thanksgiving menu.
- Speed: For faster cooking, cut the potatoes into smaller, 1-inch pieces.
- Assisted mixing: If you don’t want to mash your potatoes by hand, add them to the bowl of a stand mixer fit with the paddle attachment or an electric mixer.
- Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes: Add the peeled, cubed potatoes and 1 ½ cups milk to the bottom of a crock pot. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon salt, cover, and cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours, stirring every hour or so. Mash to a smooth consistency and stir in ½ cup (1 stick) butter until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes: Add the peeled, cubed potatoes to the bottom of a pressure cooker. Add cold water to cover and 1 teaspoon salt. Close the lid, set the valve to seal, and cook on manual pressure for 8 minutes. Turn off the instant pot and quick-release the pressure. Drain potatoes well, return to pot, and mash well. Stir in remaining ingredients.
- Garlic Mashed Potatoes: Toast garlic in a skillet (or roast whole bulbs of garlic in the oven), peel, mince, and add to your mashed potatoes. You’ll need about 2 bulbs (40 cloves garlic) for every 5 pounds of potatoes.
- Cauliflower mash: For a low-carb, highly satisfying side dish, try Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes (without a potato in sight).
- Boursin Mashed Potatoes: Soft-skinned small red potatoes mixed with fresh herbs and a block of Boursin cheese. You don’t even have to peel the potatoes!
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes: These mashers are flavored with fresh thyme and a touch of brown sugar. Or try Sweet Potato Casserole with a delicious marshmallow topping.
- Small batch: Making mashed potatoes for your next date night in? Try my scaled-down Mashed Potatoes for Two recipe.
- Irish twist: Colcannon is a delicious version of mashed potatoes with cooked kale or cabbage stirred in. You’ll love that extra texture and color!
- Loaded Mashed Potatoes: Top your mashed potatoes with plenty of shredded cheddar cheese, crispy cooked bacon, and thinly sliced scallions.
- Potatoes on top: Delicious mashed potatoes are critical for the best possible Shepherd’s Pie.
Frequently Asked Questions
For the fluffiest, smoothest, and most flavorful mashed potatoes, choose starchy potatoes like Russet or Idaho. Waxy potatoes (such as new, red, or white varieties) require more mashing to become creamy which could result in gluey, pasty spuds. Yukon Golds are a universal favorite but not my top choice – I’ll always reach for the humble russet.
Mashed potatoes wind up watery and unappetizing after thawing from frozen (unless the recipe is created for that purpose such as our freezer-defying Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes recipe which uses cream cheese and egg whites for a little more staying power). I don’t recommend that you freeze regular mashed potatoes.
Bake potatoes faster by taking a microwave shortcut:
1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat oven to 450 degrees. Poke a few holes in each potato with a fork.
2. Microwave on HIGH power for 8 to 12 minutes, flipping potatoes halfway through the cooking time.
3. Remove the potatoes from the microwave and rub each all over with olive oil, then season generously with salt and pepper.
4. Transfer potatoes to preheated oven and bake directly on oven rack until tender when pierced with a small knife, about 20 minutes longer.
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Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 5 pounds russet potatoes peeled and cut into large, uniform sized pieces (see note 1)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup butter melted (2 sticks, see note 2)
- 1 cup milk hot, plus more if desired (up to 1 ½ cups)
- 1 cup sour cream
Instructions
- In a Dutch oven or large stockpot, add potatoes and 2 tablespoons salt. Add cold water to cover potatoes by 1 inch.
- Over medium-high heat, bring to boil and partially cover pot. Cook until potatoes are tender and a fork can be easily slipped into the center, stirring once or twice, about 10 to 15 minutes. Drain well, tossing in colander to remove excess water.
- Wipe pot dry. Return potatoes to pot and mash to a uniform consistency. Using a rubber spatula, fold in melted butter until just incorporated.
- Slowly stir in 1 cup hot milk and sour cream. Add more milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, to adjust the consistency as desired. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Notes
- Potatoes: For the fluffiest, smoothest, and most flavorful mashed potatoes, choose high-starch potatoes like Russet, Idaho, or Yukon gold potatoes. Waxy potatoes (such as new, red, or white varieties) require more mashing to become creamy which could result in gluey, pasty spuds.
- Butter before milk: Always add the butter first so the butter fat coats the potato starch molecules. Then, add the hot milk to make them creamy. If you mix up the order, you could end up with gluey spuds. (Thanks Cook’s Illustrated for this tip!)
- Yield: This recipes makes about 10 cups mashed potatoes, enough for 10 (1-cup) servings.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes: Add the peeled, cubed potatoes and 1 ½ cups milk to the bottom of a crock pot. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon salt, cover, and cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours, stirring every hour or so. Mash to a smooth consistency and stir in ½ cup (1 stick) butter until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THESE MASHED POTOTES. Just like my mother made. I made these yesterday and the whole time I was eating these I had my mom on my mind, Barbara
Such a lovely memory, Barbara! I’m glad you enjoyed them and they brought back some warm memories. Take care! – Meggan