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These buttermilk mashed potatoes are rich, creamy, flavorful, and easy! Your family and friends will love the buttery, thick, and slightly tangy side dish that comes together with just 3 basic ingredients. Serve the best mashed potato recipe alongside classic comfort food dinners like meatloaf, fried chicken, Swedish meatballs, and pork chops!
Table of Contents
If you love mashed potato recipes, be sure to try these make-ahead garlic mashed potatoes, a pot of red skin mashed potatoes, mashed potatoes with sour cream and chives, and these flavorful mashed sweet potatoes, too!
Best Mashed Potatoes
These easy buttermilk mashed potatoes are the only mashed potato recipe that you’ll ever need! They’re fluffy, creamy, smooth, and rich — and a practical option that pairs nicely with almost any entrée. The make ahead side dish is even convenient for potlucks, entertaining, or big holiday meals when you don’t want to be stuck in the kitchen. Just assemble them in advance and pop them in the oven or slow cooker when you’re ready to enjoy!
The Best Potatoes for Mashed Potatoes
Yukon Gold potatoes are the best potatoes to use for creamy mashed potatoes. They have a dense, uniform texture, an inherently “buttery” flavor, and don’t turn grainy, watery, or mushy when cooked. Russet potatoes will also work for mashing, but the gold potatoes have less starch, which means they absorb less water when boiled and stay super creamy when mashed.
Do you cut the potatoes before boiling?
Yukon Gold potatoes tend to be fairly small and uniform in size, so you might not need to cut them at all. Peel the potatoes first, and the cut any larger potatoes in half so that all of your potatoes are about the same size (which will help them cook evenly).
Ingredients
This is a quick overview of the simple ingredients that you’ll need for a batch of buttermilk mashed potatoes. As always, specific measurements and complete cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Potatoes: peeled Yukon Gold are the top choice here. You’ll need 2 pounds total.
- Butter: salted butter adds flavor and richness to the mashed potatoes.
- Whole buttermilk: just enough liquid to bring the potatoes together into a smooth mash. Buttermilk has a rich, thick texture and a tangy flavor, but you can substitute with half-and-half, whole milk, or even heavy cream.
Plus plenty of kosher salt and ground black pepper to enhance the other flavors in the dish!
How to Make Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes
Allow plenty of time for the potatoes to cook, but otherwise this recipe is about as easy as it gets!
- Peel the potatoes and cut any large potatoes in half.
- Place the potatoes in a large pot or Dutch oven and add enough water to cover the potatoes by about 2 inches.
- Bring to a low boil over medium-high heat.
- Cover the pot, reduce the heat, and simmer the potatoes for about 30 minutes, until they’re very tender when pierced with a fork or the tip of a knife.
- Drain the potatoes in a colander and return them to the warm pot.
- Add the butter, cover the pot, and let them sit off of the heat until the butter melts.
- Stir in the well-shaken buttermilk.
- Use a potato masher or an electric mixer to mash the potatoes until creamy.
- Season liberally with salt and pepper.
- Transfer to a large bowl, garnish with green onions, fresh chives, or other herbs, and serve warm!
What to Serve with Homemade Mashed Potatoes
From a holiday table to a weeknight dinner, this versatile side dish goes well with just about any of your favorite entrées. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Beef: such as meatloaf, Swedish meatballs, BBQ meatballs, Mississippi pot roast, Dutch oven pot roast, red wine braised beef short ribs, braised beef with red wine and tomatoes, grilled steak, beef tenderloin, London Broil, steak tips, filet mignon, and flank steak.
- Chicken: such as crispy roast chicken, rosemary oven roasted chicken, fried chicken cutlets with country gravy, oven bbq chicken breast, crispy fried chicken, coq au vin, and grilled chicken.
- Pork: such as grilled pork chops, pork schnitzel, Dutch oven pork roast, grilled pork tenderloin, pulled pork, baked pork tenderloin, glazed ham, ham steaks, pork roast, oven fried pork chops, and smothered pork chops and gravy.
- Turkey: such as maple-glazed roasted turkey breast, garlic and herb roast turkey breast, smoked turkey breast, turkey meatloaf, ground turkey stuffed peppers, or slow cooker turkey breast.
- Seafood: such as grilled salmon, blackened salmon, oven fried fish, grilled scallops, marinated grilled shrimp, and 5-ingredient parmesan crusted tilapia.
Make Ahead and Storage Tips
It’s really convenient to prepare mashed potatoes in advance, and then just reheat them when you’re ready to enjoy. Here are a few tips:
- Peel and dice the potatoes up to 4 hours ahead. Keep them covered in cold water to prevent browning until you’re ready to boil and mash.
- Prepare the mashed potatoes as instructed, cool to room temperature, cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. When ready to serve, allow the potatoes to come to room temperature on the counter for at least 30 minutes. Reheat the mashed potatoes in a slow cooker on HIGH heat for 1 hour, or cover the dish and bake them in a 350°F oven just until warmed through (about 30 minutes).
- You can freeze the mashed potatoes in an airtight container for up to 3 months; however, be aware that this is not always ideal. The thawed potatoes may have a grainy, less-desirable texture.
Recipe Variations
- Instead of buttermilk, use whole milk, half-and-half, or heavy cream. These other liquids will not have the same tangy flavor as buttermilk, but the potatoes will still be great.
- Add roasted garlic to the mashed potatoes, or even just a subtle hint of garlic powder or onion powder.
- Use unsalted butter if that’s what you have available. You’ll just need to add more salt at the end.
- Loaded mashed potatoes: add grated sharp cheddar cheese and crispy bacon to the potatoes.
- Cooking for a smaller family? Cut all of the ingredients in half to prepare about 2-3 servings. The rest of the cooking instructions remain the same.
Tips for the Best Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes Recipe
- Whole buttermilk has a much thicker texture and a richer taste than low-fat buttermilk. Make sure to shake it really well before adding it to the potatoes.
- Use Yukon Gold potatoes for the creamiest, smoothest, most buttery mashed potatoes.
- Don’t overmix the potatoes. Mash or whip them until smooth, and then stop! Too much stirring and mixing makes the potatoes gummy.
- Garnish the mashed potatoes with scallions, chives, or fresh herbs like parsley or thyme right before serving. This gives them a touch of bright, fresh flavor!
More Potato Recipes to Try
- Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream and Chives
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Twice Baked Potatoes
- Easy Au Gratin Potatoes
- Cheesy Sour Cream Potato Casserole
- Chunky Skin-On Mashed Red Potatoes
- Baked Potatoes
- Sweet Potato Casserole with Marshmallows
- Baked Potato Wedges
Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes
- 6 tablespoons (¾ stick) salted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup well-shaken whole buttermilk, at room temperature
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- Optional garnish: chopped fresh chives, scallions, parsley, or thyme
Instructions
- Peel the potatoes. Cut any large potatoes in half so that they’re all roughly the same size.
- Place potatoes in a large pot and add enough cold water to cover the potatoes by about 2 inches.
- Bring to a low boil over medium-high heat, cover, and then reduce the heat. Simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife.
- Drain the potatoes; return to the warm pot. Add the butter, cover the pot, and let the potatoes sit (off of the heat) until the butter melts.
- Add buttermilk, then mash with a potato masher or with an electric mixer until the potatoes are creamy. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish with optional fresh chives, scallions, thyme, or parsley; serve warm.
Notes
- Whole buttermilk has a much thicker texture and a richer taste than low-fat buttermilk. Make sure to shake it really well before adding it to the potatoes.
- Use Yukon Gold potatoes for the creamiest, smoothest, most buttery mashed potatoes.
- Don’t overmix the potatoes. Mash or whip them until smooth, and then stop! Too much stirring and mixing makes the potatoes gummy.
- Garnish the mashed potatoes with scallions, chives, or fresh herbs like parsley or thyme right before serving. This gives them a touch of bright, fresh flavor!
- Instead of buttermilk, use whole milk, half-and-half, or heavy cream. These other liquids will not have the same tangy flavor as buttermilk, but the potatoes will still be great.
- Add roasted garlic to the mashed potatoes, or even just a subtle hint of garlic powder or onion powder.
- Use unsalted butter if that’s what you have available. You’ll just need to add more salt at the end.
- Loaded mashed potatoes: add grated sharp cheddar cheese and crispy bacon to the potatoes.
- Cooking for a smaller family? Cut all of the ingredients in half to prepare about 2-3 servings. The rest of the cooking instructions remain the same.
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