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These crockpot mashed potatoes are unbelievably creamy and buttery, made with Russet potatoes cooked right in the slow cooker with chicken broth, then mashed with warm cream, butter and cream cheese. They’re ready in about 5 hours and give you rich, fluffy mashed potatoes without taking up valuable stovetop space.
Table of Contents
- Ingredients You’ll Need
- Best Potatoes for Mashed Potatoes
- How to Make Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
- Tips for the Best Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
- Troubleshooting Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
- What to Serve with Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
- Can You Make Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes Ahead of Time?
- How Long Can You Keep Mashed Potatoes Warm in a Crockpot?
- Variations and Substitutions
- Storing and Reheating
- Crockpot Mashed Potatoes FAQs
- More Potato Side Dishes
- Watch How Crockpot Mashed Potatoes are Made
- Crockpot Mashed Potatoes Recipe
That alone makes them a lifesaver for Thanksgiving and Christmas! Get the potatoes going early, let the crockpot do its thing, then mash everything right in the slow cooker and keep them warm until dinner is ready.
Why You’ll Love This Crockpot Mashed Potatoes Recipe
- Frees up the stovetop: One less giant pot fighting for space on Thanksgiving or Christmas.
- Extra creamy: Butter, warm cream and cream cheese make these potatoes incredibly rich and creamy.
- Big-batch recipe: Five pounds of potatoes makes plenty for holidays, Sunday dinner or feeding a crowd.
- Easy to keep warm: Once they’re mashed, leave them right in the crockpot on warm until you’re ready to eat.
- Minimal hands-on work: No standing over a boiling pot. Let the slow cooker do most of the work!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Russet Potatoes: Their high starch content makes wonderfully light, fluffy mashed potatoes.
- Kosher Salt: Seasons the potatoes from the beginning and brings out their flavor.
- Butter: Added while cooking and again while mashing for rich, buttery flavor.
- Chicken Broth: The potatoes cook right in the broth instead of water, adding savory flavor from the very beginning.
- Cream: Warm it before adding so the potatoes stay hot and absorb it easily. Half-and-half or milk also works.
- Cream Cheese: Our secret for extra-rich, creamy potatoes that hold their texture beautifully.
- Salt and Pepper: Add to taste at the end so you can get the seasoning just right.
Best Potatoes for Mashed Potatoes
Russet potatoes are our favorite for crockpot mashed potatoes. They’re high in starch and naturally fluffy, so they break down easily and absorb all that butter and cream beautifully.
Yukon Gold potatoes also work and will give you a slightly denser, naturally buttery and creamy mashed potato. You can even use a combination of Russets and Yukon Golds if you want the best of both worlds.
How to Make Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
The best part? There’s no big pot of water to boil or babysit on the stove. The potatoes cook right in the slow cooker, which is especially handy when your stovetop is packed for Thanksgiving or Christmas.
- Prep the potatoes: Peel the Russet potatoes and cut them into even 1-inch chunks.
- Add to the crockpot: Place the potatoes in a 6-quart slow cooker. Top with cubed butter, salt and chicken broth.
- Cook: Cover and cook on HIGH for 4-5 hours, or until the potatoes are completely fork tender.
- Drain: Carefully drain off any excess broth and return the potatoes to the crockpot for a few minutes to allow excess moisture to evaporate.
- Warm the dairy: Melt the remaining butter and warm the cream. Don’t add cold dairy straight to hot potatoes!
- Mash: Begin mashing the potatoes with the melted butter. Halfway through, add the softened cream cheese and continue mashing just until smooth.
- Make them creamy: Gradually stir in the warm cream until the potatoes reach your desired consistency. Season generously with salt and pepper.
- Keep warm: Cover and leave the mashed potatoes on the WARM setting until you’re ready to serve.
Tips for the Best Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
Cut the potatoes evenly. Keep the chunks around 1 inch so they finish cooking at the same time.
Cook until completely tender. A fork should slide into the potatoes easily before you start mashing.
Warm the cream. Cold dairy cools the potatoes and doesn’t incorporate as easily.
Don’t overmix! Overworking potatoes releases too much starch and can make them gummy.
Add the cream gradually. It’s much easier to thin thick potatoes than fix mashed potatoes that are too runny.
Season at the end. Potatoes need plenty of salt, so taste after adding the butter, cream and cream cheese and adjust as needed.
Keep them warm, not cooking. Once mashed, switch the crockpot to WARM rather than leaving it on LOW or HIGH.
Troubleshooting Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
The potatoes were probably overmixed. Russet potatoes are high in starch, and working them too aggressively releases that starch and creates a gluey texture. Use a potato masher or ricer and stop as soon as they’re smooth.
They simply need more time. Slow cookers vary quite a bit, so continue cooking until a fork slides easily through the center of the potatoes. Also make sure your potato chunks are roughly the same size.
Stir in a little additional warm milk or cream, a few tablespoons at a time, until they reach your preferred consistency.
Too much liquid was probably added. Leave the crockpot uncovered on WARM for a little while to allow some of the excess moisture to evaporate. Next time, add the cream gradually rather than all at once.
They probably need more salt! Five pounds of potatoes can handle quite a bit of seasoning. Taste them after adding all the butter, cream and cream cheese, then add salt until the flavors really pop.
Mashed potatoes continue to thicken as they sit. Stir in a splash of warm cream and a little extra butter before serving to bring back that creamy consistency.
What to Serve with Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
For Thanksgiving: turkey, gravy, stuffing, corn casserole, green beans, rolls.
These are honestly creamy and flavorful enough to eat straight from the crockpot, but pile on the turkey gravy and I certainly won’t stop you!
For Sunday dinner: pot roast, meatloaf, roast chicken, pork chops, Swedish meatballs.
Can You Make Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes Ahead of Time?
Yes! You can make these earlier the same day and keep them warm right in the slow cooker until dinner. See our tips below for keeping them creamy while they sit.
You can also peel and cut the potatoes up to 24 hours ahead. Keep them completely submerged in cold water in the refrigerator, then drain well before adding them to the crockpot.
If you’re looking to make your mashed potatoes ahead of time, check out our make ahead mashed potatoes recipe!
How Long Can You Keep Mashed Potatoes Warm in a Crockpot?
This is one of my favorite reasons to make crockpot mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving! Once they’re mashed, switch the slow cooker to WARM and keep them covered for up to 2 hours. Give them an occasional stir, and if they start to thicken, stir in a splash of warm cream and a little butter before serving.
Variations and Substitutions
- Yukon Gold Potatoes: Swap some or all of the Russets for Yukon Golds for denser, naturally buttery potatoes.
- Garlic Mashed Potatoes: Add roasted garlic when you add the cream cheese.
- Extra Rich: Use heavy cream or half-and-half instead of milk.
- Herb Mashed Potatoes: Fold in fresh chives, parsley, rosemary or thyme just before serving.
- Cheesy Mashed Potatoes: Stir in freshly grated Parmesan or sharp cheddar after mashing.
- Vegetarian: Use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
Storing and Reheating
Store leftover mashed potatoes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Reheat individual servings in the microwave or larger portions in a covered baking dish or slow cooker. Add a splash of milk or cream and a little butter as they reheat to restore that creamy texture.
Want to freeze mashed potatoes? Head to our Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes recipe for our favorite method for freezing and reheating mashed potatoes without ruining their texture.
Crockpot Mashed Potatoes FAQs
No, but I recommend peeling Russets for the smoothest, creamiest mashed potatoes.
Yes! Whole milk, half-and-half or heavy cream all work. Heavy cream will give you the richest potatoes, while whole milk makes them a little lighter.
You can, but I prefer a potato masher or ricer because it’s much easier to accidentally overmix potatoes with an electric mixer.
Once you make crockpot mashed potatoes, you may never want to babysit a giant pot of boiling potatoes for the holidays again! They’re buttery, ridiculously creamy and can hang out right in the slow cooker until everyone finally makes it to the table. One less pot on the stove at Thanksgiving? I’ll take that win every single year!
More Potato Side Dishes
- Loaded Sweet Potatoes
- Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
- Cheesy Potato Casserole
- Oven Baked Potatoes
- Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Watch How Crockpot Mashed Potatoes are Made
Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 5 Pounds Russet Potatoes
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1 Cup Butter, cut into cubes, divided
- 2 Cups Chicken Broth
- 2 Cups Cream, or milk (half and half or any combo works)
- Salt and Pepper, to taste
- 4 Ounces Cream Cheese, full fat, softened and cut into cubes
- ¼ Cup Milk
Instructions
- Peel and cut 5 pounds russet potatoes into 1-inch chunks.5 Pounds Russet Potatoes
- Place the cut potatoes into the bottom of a 6-quart crock pot.
- Dot the potatoes with 1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, cut into cubes and sprinkle with salt.1 Cup Butter, 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- Pour the chicken broth on top of potatoes.2 Cups Chicken Broth
- Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hours. Potatoes are ready when fork tender.
- Carefully drain any excess broth from cooked potatoes. Place potatoes back into the crock pot to dry out a little.
- In a saucepan, melt the remaining 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter.
- In a glass measuring cup, warm the milk or cream.2 Cups Cream
- Add in the melted butter, while mashing the potatoes. Halfway through add cream cheese and continue mashing.4 Ounces Cream Cheese
- Stir in milk (or cream) gradually until the potatoes reach your desired consistency. Add more salt and pepper to taste.Salt and Pepper, ¼ Cup Milk
- Cover and keep potatoes on the warm setting until ready to serve.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
