Poor Man's Potato Soup

My mother had a large family to feed. Her soup was water, potatoes, celery, salt, pepper, butter and milk added at the end. She served it with grilled cheese sandwiches. I had the bright idea one day to thicken the broth with potato flakes. It's wonderful. I kept the rest of the package for next batch of soup. Thanks for sharing your recipe.

Just found you! My Danish gram made huge pots of mashed potatoes for the next day. Her soup, mashed potatoes, lots of diced onion and scrap bacon fried in bacon fat, bone broth, salt and white pepper, more milk if needed, or roux if too thin. Big knob of butter and chives before serving. Toasted bread and home canned fruit. Everything but the milk and flour came out of the land. Absolutely delicious to a kid. Poor to us meant being hungry, so we weren't poor.

My mother was born during the depression, one of 13 children, and all my life she made the recipe her mother used, which was even more poor than this one. They seldom had chicken broth, so the recipe is water, potatoes, celery and onions from the garden and salt and pepper, nothing else, I grew up eating this and still do to this day and really like it. I once asked her why some people use milk and a little flour to thicken it, and she said because anyone using anything other than water back then had more than most families. She said with 13 kids, one milk cow, and not enough chickens to butcher often, once a chicken was butchered, it didn't lay anymore eggs, so you had less future meals, you made do. I enjoy seeing videos like this, letting people know you can make meals with less if you need to. Thanks.

OMG. This is how I grew up!!! We didn't drink the cornbread milk quite the same, we had milk over our cornbread as if it were cake, due to our Mom adding sugar to the cornbread. It was our dessert. I can't believe some people still do this at your young age!! Thanks for sharing sweetie. Just subscribed.

I just started watching you found you through Amanda Im a single dad with a son who has disabilitys so your frugal meals give me alot if help. everything is so expensive here in california Thanks to you and Amanda

Chopped onion is a must. Never Tryed with dried onion. If u don't have chicken stock. Water with Chicken Boulion will work. Its a depression soup.

I was raised on this, of course mom only used water and onion. Now with my own kids I fix it for them, but they like to call it loaded baked potato soup as I put cream in place of water then add sour cream, green onion, bacon bits, and cheese in each of the bowls. Now the milk and cornbread my Pap got me hooked on when I was 4-5, my dad, my oldest daughter and I still to this day eat it 🤗. Great memories.....

Lovely video.  Fun to see how Americans in different states cook. In France we always would make a roux with the butter and flour and cook over heat to rid the flour taste, than add to soup.  We make potato soup almost weekly come winter and we use unpeeled diced red potato, a large diced yellow onion, six cloves of peeled diced garlic, some diced stalks of celery and two peeled diced carrots.  Never have added meat or cheese.  Then I serve with homemade croissants and butter.

I make a simple potato soup by boiling potatoes in water with salt and pepper. When they are cooked I add milk then serve with some fresh diced onions and shredded cheese. Just the way my mama made :)

My Dad from Oklahoma used to "drink" cornbread Milk we thought he was crazy until we tried it. It's strangely good.

I have thicken mine with various flavors of instant mash potatoes. I also do that with anything I need to thicken. Really adds flavor, as opposed to flour. Nice video. Yummy. Shows people you can eat very well no matter their budget. Potatoes are very healthy. Thanks for video.

I'm from Iowa but live in Georgia now and we ALWAYS had fresh onion with meals! I grew up scooping my food on to a big piece of onion, lol! My very southern gentleman of a husband never heard of this and thinks I'm crazy! Hahaha! We made this soup to! I want some! Thanks for the memories! Its been 40 years since I had this!

You can also thicken with instant mashed potato flakes!

Awe! My Daddy used to eat milk over crumbled cornbread for dessert a lot. That was 50 years ago and I've never seen anyone else do that. Thanks for the memory. Love your videos. ~Donna

We had this once a week growing up. My mother was raised during the depression, so that is what they ate. Also, she made cornbread in a cast iron skillet like you did. It was simple and delicious.

HAD TO SUB. ENJOYED THE VIDEO AND IT IS VERY TIMELY FOR PEOPLE BECAUSE OF THE ECONOMY RIGHT NOW. THE ECONOMY MAY BE GROWING BUT ALONG WITH THAT WE GET INFLATION. COULD YOU DO MORE POOR MAN RECIPES FOR US POOR FOLKS. LOVE YOUR DOWN TO EARTH PRESENTATION STYLE. GOD BLESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY.

If you had a container of saved bacon drippings (grease), a spoonful of it added to the potato soup plus some parsley flakes and some celery flakes would definitely add to the flavor of the soup.

Yes.....cooking just like momma made.  Grew up eating like this along with lots of beans and potatoes.

Love this recipe. I made poor mans potato soup for my husband today. Water, salt, pepper, potatoes and ranch dressing.

I love simple potato soup, it's so comforting! Also I use cold buttermilk and hot cornbread. That is excellent! I remember when we didn't have buttermilk my dad would ask for some "sweet" milk and cornbread. Great memories.