Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes (Easy!)

These delicious mashed potatoes have a creamy and smooth texture and very rich flavor due to the sour cream and butter. The best addition to roasted chicken or pork chops!

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Why You Will Love This Recipe

– Texture. These mashed potatoes are super creamy and smooth!

– Flavor. Sour cream and butter add richness and a sour flavor to the potatoes.

– Easy recipe. Mashed potatoes are probably one of the simplest and most customizable recipes out there.

Tools You Might Need

– A potato masher OR

– A potato ricer OR

– An immersion blender OR

– A fine mesh strainer;

– A good potato peeler.

– A knife;

– A cutting board.

Ingredients

Potatoes – Yukon Gold and russet potatoes are considered the best choice but if you don’t have either, feel free to use other types.

Sour cream – generally the higher the fat % the better. If you want to lower the sourness in the dish, use some high-fat % milk instead of some sour cream.

Substitutes and Swaps

Sour Cream – it adds a sour flavor to the potatoes. If you would like less sourness, add milk in place of sour cream. There is no specific formula – you can add milk and sour cream until the texture is right for you and the flavor is good. The basic rule of thumb is the more milk/sour cream, the thinner the potatoes will be.

Seasoning – I am only using salt and pepper but feel free to experiment and add some nutmeg, rosemary, thyme, or other herbs and spices.

Green onion – if you don’t like green onion you can add dill, chives, or any other greens you have on hand! Or you can just skip this ingredient altogether.

How to Make Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes

Step 1 – peel and boil the potatoes

Peel all the potatoes, place them into a medium-sized pot, cover them with cold water, and bring them to a boil.

Pro Tip: boiling potatoes whole ensures a better flavor but if you are short on time, slicing the potatoes into smaller bits will help them boil faster.

Boil for 20-30 minutes or until a fork pierces the potatoes easily. Discard the hot water. While the potatoes are boiling, mince the garlic and chop the green onion!

Pro Tip: starting with cold water ensures that the potatoes are evenly boiled through.

Step 2 – mash the potatoes

You can use a potato masher, potato ricer, immersion blender, or a fine mesh strainer. I personally prefer the fine mesh strainer as it yields a very creamy and smooth texture. With a potato masher it is easy to skip some potato bits, an immersion blender is easy but it makes potatoes gluey, potato ricer might actually be better than a strainer but a strainer is what I have, so I find that it creates the best texture.

Add sour cream, salt, pepper, minced garlic, and chopped onion. You can add butter now or directly to the bowl when serving. Mix, taste, and adjust the seasoning. If you would like a thinner texture, add more sour cream!

Serving suggestions

You can probably serve mashed potatoes with pretty much everything! I personally really like mashed potatoes with roasted chicken or breaded pork chops along with some fresh salad.

Expert Tips

– Use a Y-shaped potato peeler. I tried a few different types and this one is an absolute winner!

– Start with cold water to make sure the potatoes are evenly cooked through.

– Boil the potatoes whole for more flavor and less water in the potatoes (although if you are short on time go ahead and slice them up, it won’t make that big of a difference after all).

– Mashed potatoes are best fresh but you can place them in the fridge or even freezer for later use. Make sure to adjust milk/sour cream/butter when reheating for the best flavor!

FAQ

Do You Need to Salt Water When Boiling Potatoes?

No, there is no need to boil the water. The potatoes absorb very little water so you will mostly just waste the salt.

Can I Freeze These Mashed Potatoes?

Yes! Place the potatoes into an airtight container and cover them with plastic wrap before placing the lid on top to prevent ice from forming. To reheat you can place the mashed potatoes into the oven at 375F (170C) for 20 minutes, in a saucepan (make sure to stir often), or in a microwave. Adjust the sour cream and milk levels as needed!

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