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This one pot Baked Chipotle Cheddar Sweet Potato Chowder is the coziest bowl to warm up to on cold fall and winter nights. Made with crispy bacon, sweet potatoes, canned chipotle in adobo, and sharp cheddar cheese. This chowder is mildly spicy, creamy, full of wonderful color, and so delicious. Top each bowl of creamy soup with plenty of cheddar cheese, fresh cilantro, lots of green onions, and crispy homemade bacon bits! Great on its own, but even better with a side of homemade beer bread. Yum!
I recently took a look back through some of my oldest recipes. The recipes I first shared in 2012 and 2013. It feels crazy to say this, but as of today, we’ve been creating new recipes and writing this website for 11 years. I feel so old, but also, wow, how cool!
I love to look back at the crazy ideas I shared back then. Some of them are so fun. I love that the first recipe I ever shared was the cutest bowl of ghostly butternut squash soup. And I’m thankful that I’m still that same girl who loves October and gets excited about the spooky season.
I also noticed that one of the flavors I often used was chipotle mixed with sweet potatoes. I still LOVE this spicy, sweet combination, especially during the fall and winter months. These flavors are so cozy.
I haven’t made a sweet potato soup in a while so I was really excited about this idea! A creamy sweet potato soup with chipotle and sharp cheddar cheese, kind of similar to a more classic baked potato soup, but different with the use of sweet potatoes. They add such a uniqueness and I love the twist.
Details
step 1: crisp the bacon
Cook the bacon up first in a soup pot. You’ll want to get it really crispy and crunchy before pulling it out of the pot. Then basically everything else goes in.
If you don’t eat pork, feel free to omit the bacon entirely. I do kind of love the salty, smoky flavor it adds, but the smoked paprika will help to make up for the loss.
Step 2: cook the potatoes
Next mix in an onion, some garlic, butter, and flour. The flour is used to thicken and create a thick, creamy chowder. This is a REAL dinner-style soup, thick, creamy, and so delish.
Add the chicken broth, then add a splash of cider. The cider adds a warm, sweet, fall flavor. I think the taste pairs so wonderfully with the spicy chipotle, the sweet potatoes, and the cheddar cheese. A great mix of flavors!
Step 3: mash, mash, mash
When the potatoes are soft, you can use a potato masher to mash them up. I love to leave the soup chunky, but you could also puree the soup if you prefer.
At this point, you can add all the remaining ingredients: milk, chipotle, chili powder, paprika, yogurt, cheddar cheese, and cilantro.
The chipotle adds a wonderful chili flavor with just the right amount of smokiness and spice. It’s subtle yet such a delicious addition!
Step 4: serve
For serving, I add a dollop of yogurt, extra cheddar cheese, then lots of fresh cilantro and green onions. I always finish with the crispy bacon.
I love serving this along with beer bread, crusty bread, or salty homemade soft pretzels are great too. This chowder is so yummy for dipping some kind of bread, it’s kind of a must if you ask me.
Looking for other dinners with a little kick? Here are a few ideas:
Healthy Slow Cooker Turkey and White Bean Chili
Healthy Slow Cooker Chipotle Bean Chili
Spicy Buffalo White Chicken Chili
One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake
Healthy Chipotle Chicken Sweet Potato Skins
Slow Cooker Chipotle Chicken Tortilla Soup with Salty Lime Chips
Lastly, if you make this Baked Chipotle Cheddar Sweet Potato Chowder be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Baked Chipotle Cheddar Sweet Potato Chowder
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 492 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 6 slices thick-cut bacon chopped
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 1/4 cup all-purpose or gluten free flour
- 4 cups bone broth or vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup apple cider
- 4 sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped (3-4 cups, chopped)
- 2 cups milk
- 1-2 tablespoons chopped chipotle in adobo (1 tablespoon chipotle chile powder)
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/3 cup plain greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- chopped green onion for serving
Instructions
- 1. Cook the bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove from the pot and reserve the bacon. If there's excess bacon grease, drain off all but 1 tablespoon. 2. To the same pot, add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, until fragrant. Add the garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the butter and flour, cook for 1 minute. Pour the broth and cider over and stir in the sweet potatoes. Partially cover and simmer over medium heat for 15-20 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are very soft. Use a potato masher or fork to mash the potatoes. I like to leave my soup chunky and do 1/3 of the potatoes.3. Stir in the milk, chipotle, chili powder, paprika, yogurt/sour cream, and cheddar cheese. Cook for 5-10 minutes, until the cheese is melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro. Season with salt and pepper. If needed, thin with additional broth.4. Ladle the soup into bowls. Top, as desired, with yogurt/sour cream, cheese, cilantro, and green onions. Adds lots of bacon. Eat and enjoy!
This post was originally published on October 12, 2023
In love. Some of these reviews shocked me lol
This recipe is so easy to sub, omit, or even add things too. It’s a soup consistency so not “too thin” lol that comment made me laugh.
She says 4 sweet potatoes guys – just get 4. Worked out perfectly for mine.
I used the bacon but SO easy to just skip that since it’s just for topping anyways.
I also used almond milk instead of normal since my tummy doesn’t like the real thing. I did use cheese and yogurt tho cause I can’t say no to all the good stuff. Sorry tummy 🙂
I smashed half the potatoes and it was perfect and I also left out the adobo since I’m not big on Smokey flavor but I kept the seasonings and added some cayenne for a lil kick and it’s my new fav soup.
Queen Tieghan – you can do no wrong. This recipe made my fall loving heart so happy ♥️♥️
Wow thank you so so much Danielle! I’m so glad you loved this soup! xT
This chowder sounded delicious … even though I am a vegan and have to eat gluten-free. I adapted it to make it vegan/GF (almond milk, vegan cheddar cheese, vegan sour cream, GF flour, and a few other things). I used a tempeh smoky bacon. This chowder was INCREDIBLE! I LOOOOOVE it! I will definitely be making it again. Thank you for creating and sharing this recipe!
Thank you so so much for trying out this recipe! So glad you enjoyed it! xT
I’m sorry to leave a poor review but this soup was really disappointing. I used 4c of diced sweet potatoes, as in the comments, and followed the recipe exactly except I skipped the bacon. The finished soup is very thin, tastes vaguely of sweet potato and chipotle, and nothing else.
Hey Katelyn! I’m so sorry about that! Thank you for letting me know! xT
The recipe calls for FOUR sweet potatoes, not cups. This could be why your soup is thin and missing that robust flavor?? And you really must use bacon!! LOL We are trying the soup tonight and looking forward to a tasty, fall treat.
Just made this soup! Delish! Nice chunky spicy and full of taste! Enjoyed every spoonful
Thank you so so much for trying out this recipe! So glad you enjoyed it! xT
Yum yum! Made this soup for dinner tonight, it’s absolutely delicious! You sure know how to put flavors together, it’s a party in my mouth. I used 4 large potatoes so it turned out nice and thick. I have about 10 1&1/2 cup servings so I was able to freeze half. I’ll definitely be making this again. Thanks for all your wonderful recipes.
This was amazing!! I only had two small sweet potatoes but it still tasted amazing. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Thank you so so much for trying out this recipe! So glad you enjoyed it! xT
Made this last night and it will definitely be made again. The flavor is smoky spicy with a side of sweet, so good! And paired perfectly with beer bread. Thanks for another delicious recipe!
Thank you! So glad to hear you’re enjoying this recipe! xT
This was absolutely luscious and amazing on a cold and rainy day! I made it a little spicier with my favorite habanero ancho chili powder. This recipe is definitely a keeper.
Thank you so so much Cindy! xT
Just made it today for lunch and it was absolutely delicious! Great new soup to add to our rotation. Little bit of heat and great flavor. A keeper.
Thank you! So glad to hear you’re enjoying this recipe! xT
Vegetarians would appreciate it if you could mention bacon in the description so we don’t both get excited and then click the link to recipe. Or if possible, suggest an option for substituting the meat for another ingredient. I usually love the recipes I’ve tried from this site and will continue visiting it often. Thanks.
She already has 10 word recipe tittles. No need for more words.
Does anyone know why “Baked” is in the recipe title? …I can’t find the Baked step. Is that supposed to say Bacon? maybe?
Bake the sweet potatoes
She literally boils them lol.
baked potato soup is basically this recipe so she just did a twist on it and did “baked sweet potato”
The titles are long enough LOL. Joking aside, I don’t think the bacon is essential and you’d make a fine soup even if you leave it out.
Same question! Made this and it is delicious!!!
I don’t like bacon, so I left it out and did not substitute it. She did mention you could just leave it out and the paprika would still give it that smoky flavor. I think it tasted fantastic!
Hi there! I am so sorry if this recipe was misleading! Thanks for the feedback! You can absolutely omit the bacon in this and it will still be delicious! 🙂 xT
what could you sub for apple cider…???
I made this chowder with a couple modifications due to necessity. First off, I didn’t use bacon at the start–instead, I added bacon pieces with the other garnishes at the end. I didn’t have apple cider, so I substituted a little rice vinegar to taste. I only had frozen sweet potatoes, which worked well. I also used bourbon smoked paprika and bourbon smoked sea salt. The chowder tastes rich, cheesy, tangy, savory, spicy–it checks ALL the boxes. My husband, who isn’t crazy about sweet potatoes, loved it and asked for it again soon!
Thank you so much! Hope you have a great fall season! 🙂 xT
Bravo to Linda for pointing out the variations we often see in sweet potatoes. She even worded her question exactly like it would have.
Tiegan, it would be helpful if you expressed how much sweet potato to use in either pounds and ounces, so we can simply weigh what we buy in the grocery, or in volume (e.g., “…approximately 4 cups of peeled and chopped sweet potatoes.” I can’t wait to try this recipe but I don’t have near the experience you do in just somehow knowing how much to use.
Sigh. Do you have a suggestion on what to replace the sour cream or yogurt with? After having Covid, I developed parosmia, which is basically the damage of olfactory nerves causing some foods to smell and taste like rotting meat. Yogurt, sour cream and coffee are 3 of the worst offenders!
This might sound weird, but maybe a Yukon Gold potato, especially if you purée the soup instead of mash. I have a different soup recipe that has sweet potatoes and regular potatoes and it comes out beautifully creamy with no cream added.
Oh no!! I am so sorry about that!! Hmmm…maybe some cream cheese? xT
Since sweet potatoes come in different sizes, about how many cups of chopped sweet potatoes would you use for this soup? Looks delicious!!
Hi Linda! I would say about 3-4 cups of sweet potatoes! xT
Wondering if anyone has used almond milk or coconut milk in this recipe?
I feel like coconut milk would be awesome in this – it would make it kind of like curry
I used oat milk and it turned out great.