Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Prep 15 mins
Cook 55 mins
Total 1 hr 10 mins
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These classic Garlic Mashed Potatoes are simply the best mashed potatoes that you will make again and again. There’s nothing better than a forkful of extra-fluffy, creamy mashed potatoes with smooth roasted garlic flavor!

Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes

When I think comfort food sides, I immediately think potatoes. Specifically, these smooth and creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes. (Mashed sweet potatoes are pretty good too, though!) They’re loaded with butter, heavy cream, and rich garlic flavor – are you still reading, or are you dreaming of these mashed potatoes?

All kidding aside, I really do love these homemade mashed potatoes for so many reasons. They’re relatively simple to mix together, they go with a bunch of different dinners – especially meat-based main courses – and, best of all, they’re picky-eater approved!

Plate of garlic mashed potatoes with melted butter.

Recipe Ingredients

Let’s go over ingredients. Besides the obvious, potatoes and garlic, you’re going to need to gather a couple more items before you begin:

  • Garlic: You’ll need a whole head of garlic.
  • Olive Oil: Or your favorite cooking oil; canola, etc.
  • Potatoes: Russet or Yukon Gold, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks.
  • Seasoning: Salt and pepper.
  • Heavy Cream: You can also use evaporated milk.
  • Salted Butter: Melted.

What kinds of Potatoes to use

I find that Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes work best for these mashed potatoes because they yield the creamiest results. You could also try small red potatoes if you’ve got some of those.

Plate of mashed potatoes with butter.

How to Make Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Making garlic mashed potatoes isn’t all that different from making your regular classic mashed potatoes recipe. There’s just a couple of extra steps, mainly roasting the garlic, and then you proceed as normal.

Preheat Oven to 400°F: Then remove any loose, papery, outer layers of the head of garlic, leaving the full head intact with all cloves still connected.

Coat Garlic with Olive Oil: Cut the top 1/4 inch off the top of the head of garlic to expose the tops of the cloves of garlic. Thoroughly and generously coat full head of garlic in olive oil and wrap in foil.

Head of garlic coated with olive oil.

Bake the Garlic: Bake garlic in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Open foil and check if the cloves feel soft and are beginning to brown. If they aren’t, cook an additional 10 minutes and check again.

Roasted head of garlic.

Let Garlic Cool and Boil Water: Once garlic is soft, remove from oven and let cool. In the meantime, bring a large stock pot of salted water to a boil.

Cook the Potatoes: Add potatoes and cook for about 15 minutes, until fork tender. Drain potatoes and return to the stove over low heat to dry for 1 to 2 minutes. (This step removes excess water from the boiled potatoes and keeps your potatoes extra creamy in the end!)

Pot of chopped potato cubes.

Add Heavy Cream, Butter & Garlic: Add in the heavy cream, melted salted butter and squeeze in the roasted garlic into the mashed potatoes and mash until desired consistency. (Toss the leftover outside of head of garlic once you have squeezed out the roasted cloves!)

Season and Serve: Taste the mashed potatoes and add salt and pepper, to taste as needed!

Pot of mashed potatoes.

Tips for the Best Mashed Potatoes

See what I mean about simple? Here are a couple of extra tips, though, to ensure the best possible results with your mashed potatoes:

  • Don’t Over-Mash the Potatoes: You want them to be nice and smooth, but over-mashing them can make the texture sticky or gummy.
  • How to Mash Potatoes: Some people like to use an electric mixer and some people prefer to do it by hand with a potato masher or a fork – either will work, so it’s really up to you!
  • Add Room Temp Heavy Cream: Cold cream mixed with hot potatoes will do funky things to the texture of your potatoes – its best to let the heavy cream come to room temperature, or at least warm up a little before you add it.
Garlic mashed potatoes with butter.

Serving Suggestions

What can you serve mashed potatoes with? Easy – anything! Well, maybe not quite, but there are a lot of options:

  • Chicken: My personal favorite is this Chicken Fried Chicken!
  • Turkey: You can serve these mashed potatoes with your Thanksgiving turkey, or just your weeknight turkey and gravy recipe.
  • Barbecue: Anything that goes on the grill and gets slathered in barbecue sauce will go well with these mashed potatoes.
  • Green Bean Casserole: Mashed potatoes and this Green Bean Casserole are a duo that you don’t want to miss out on.
  • Fish: Grilled fish goes especially well with mashed potatoes.

How to Store and Reheat Leftovers

The best way to store these mashed potatoes is to refrigerate them in an airtight container for 3-4 days.

When you want to reheat them just put them in the microwave, or use the oven, covering the mashed potatoes with some aluminum foil until they reach the desired temperature.

Wooden spoon in a plate of garlic mashed potatoes.
Yield: serves 6

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Garlic mashed potatoes with a pad of butter.

Homemade Garlic Mashed Potatoes are totally creamy and smooth! Filled with rich garlic flavor, there's no better side dish to serve with your chicken, turkey, or fish.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 head of garlic
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 pounds potatoes (russet or Yukon Gold), peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
  • Salt
  • 1/3 cup heavy cream (or evaporated milk)
  • 4 tablespoons salted butter, melted
  • Salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Remove any loose, papery, outer layers of the head of garlic, leaving the full head intact with all cloves still connected.
  2. Cut the top 1/4 inch off the top of the head of garlic to expose the tops of the cloves of garlic. Thoroughly and generously coat full head of garlic in olive oil and wrap in foil.
  3. Bake garlic in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Open foil and check if he cloves feel soft and are beginning to brown. If they aren’t, cook an additional 10 minutes and check again.
  4. Once garlic is soft, remove from oven and let cool. In the meantime, bring a large stock pot of salted water to a boil.
  5. Add potatoes and cook for about 15 minutes, until fork tender. Drain potatoes and return to the stove over low heat to dry for 1 to 2 minutes. (This step removes excess water from the boiled potatoes and keeps your potatoes extra creamy in the end!)
  6. Add in the heavy cream, melted salted butter and squeeze in the roasted garlic into the mashed potatoes and mash until desired consistency. (Toss the leftover outside of head of garlic once you have squeezed out the roasted cloves!)
  7. Taste the mashed potatoes and add salt and pepper, to taste as needed!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 281Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 35mgSodium: 274mgCarbohydrates: 34gFiber: 4gSugar: 2gProtein: 5g

Categories

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5 Responses
  1. April

    While we’re at it,
    How about baking several head of Garlic and Freezing for future batches of Garlic Mashed Potatoes.
    That will save a step

    1. A woman holding a camera standing in front of some shelves.
      Jessica

      Both will work in this recipe! However, here is the answer to your question: “According to the labeling standards of the Food and Drug Administration, heavy cream is a cream with no less than 36% milk fat. It may also be called heavy whipping cream (1). In contrast, whipping cream has a slightly lower milk fat content, 30–36%. It may also be called light whipping cream.”

Welcome!

Jessica
I'm a trial & error, self taught, sugar addict who thankfully learned how to survive in the kitchen! I am also a wife, mama of 3.
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