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These garlic mashed potatoes are creamy, garlicky, and the perfect side for Thanksgiving and Christmas! It’s made with soft fluffy potatoes, garlic infused heavy cream, and finished with a drizzle of sauteed garlic butter for extra garlic flavor!
If you’re a garlic lover, you’ll love these creamy garlic mashed potatoes! It’s made with Yukon gold potatoes, garlic infused heavy cream, then finished with a drizzle of garlic butter!
It’s great for the holidays since this can be made ahead of time and frozen. Garlic mashed potatoes are one of our go to recipes for Thanksgiving and Christmas!
Garlic butter mashed potatoes make an excellent side for any meal because it can be served with steak, chicken, seafood, or pork.
I recommend using creamer potatoes such as Yukon gold potatoes for that creamy texture. But you can also use a combination of Yukon gold and russet potatoes.
Russet potatoes have a lighter, fluffier texture, which when combined with Yukon gold potatoes, give you the best mashed potatoes.
Ingredients
Yukon gold and russet potatoes – I prefer the creaminess of Yukon gold potatoes but you can use a combination of half russet potatoes and half Yukon gold for lighter, fluffier mashed potatoes that are still creamy.
Garlic – I used 6 cloves or garlic but use as much or as little as you’d like. You can also use roasted garlic if you have that ready.
Heavy cream – Heavy cream makes this rich and creamy but if you prefer something lighter, replace half the amount with milk, stock, or half and half.
Butter – Butter is a must for any mashed potatoes. Reserve a few pats of butter to place on top right before serving.
Herbs & flavorings – I used chives but you can use green onions, onion powder, garlic powder, or dried herbs such as parsley, thyme, or basil.
How to Make Garlic Mashed Potatoes
- Wash and peel the potatoes then cut them into 1 inch pieces for faster cooking. Cover with water and boil until fork tender, about 10 minutes.
- Drain the potatoes very well then place them back into the hot pot to get rid of excess water. Mash the potatoes using a potato ricer, masher, fork, or whisk.
- In a sauce pan, make the garlic butter by sautéing garlic with butter and vegetable oil. Reserve a tablespoon for later. Add the heavy cream into the sauce pan and heat until warm and infused with garlic flavor. Add the garlic cream to the potatoes and mix through.
- Transfer the garlic mashed potatoes to a serving bowl and drizzle with the reserved garlic butter. Garnish with chopped herbs and serve immediately. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips & Variations
- For skin-on mashed potatoes, be sure to remove any eyes or sprouts and scrub the skin well.
- Substitutes for heavy cream – For a lighter taste, replace a portion of the heavy cream for milk, half and half, or stock. Add less liquid if you prefer thicker mashed potatoes. If you prefer thinner mashed potatoes, add more liquid depending on your preference.
- Drain potatoes well – You want to drain the potatoes well so they absorb more of the cream and butter. If the potatoes cool down, heat the pot on low heat while adding the ingredients.
- Cheesy garlic mashed potatoes – Add parmesan cheese or other cheeses after adding the warm garlic cream. This will help the cheese melt into the mashed potatoes.
- Roasted garlic mashed potatoes – Mash the roasted garlic into a paste and add to the cream to infuse it with garlic flavor.
Make Ahead and Freeze
Freeze: Transfer the mashed potatoes to an airtight, freezer safe container. Place a layer of plastic wrap on the surface pressing against the potatoes. Freeze for up to 2 months. For easier thawing, divide into separate containers.
Thaw: The day before, place the potatoes in the fridge to thaw overnight.
Reheat
Oven: Transfer mashed potatoes to a casserole dish and heat in a preheated 350 degree F oven until heated through, about 20 minutes. Stir halfway through.
Stovetop: Add mashed potatoes to a large pot heated over medium low heat. Continue to stir until heated through.
Microwave: Place mashed potatoes in a large microwave safe bowl. Cover and heat on 50% power until warmed through, about 4 to 5 minutes. Stir halfway through.
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More recipes:
Garlic Mashed Potatoes with Garlic Butter
Ingredients
- 3 lbs potatoes, Yukon gold, creamer, russet potatoes
- 1⅓ cups heavy cream, start with less, adjust to your liking
- 1 Tablespoon chopped herbs, chives, green onions, or parsley
- salt & pepper, to taste
Garlic Butter
- 4 Tablespoons butter
- 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
- 6 cloves garlic, finely minced
Instructions
- Prep and boil potatoes: Wash and peel the potatoes then cut them into 1 inch pieces. Cover with water and boil until soft and fork tender, about 10 minutes. Drain very well and place back into the hot pot to remove excess water. Mash the potatoes using a potato ricer, potato masher, or other tool. See Note 2.
- Make garlic butter and cream: Heat a sauce pan over medium low heat and add the garlic, butter, and vegetable oil. Saute until garlic is soft and fragrant, about 1½ to 2 minutes. Reserve a tablespoon of garlic butter for later. Add the heavy cream to the sauce pan and heat until cream is warm and infused with garlic flavor. Do not boil the cream.4 Tablespoons butter, 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil, 6 cloves garlic, 1⅓ cups heavy cream
- Add remaining ingredients: Add the garlic cream to the potatoes and mix until smooth and creamy. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Note: Start with ⅔ of the amount of cream and add more if you want a smoother consistency. See Note 3 for more details.
- Serve: Spoon mashed potatoes into a serving bowl and drizzle with the reserved garlic butter. Garnish with herbs and serve immediately. Enjoy!
Notes
- I recommend using Yukon gold potatoes or other creamer potatoes for the best texture. But you can use a combination of half russet potatoes and half Yukon gold for lighter, fluffier potatoes that are still creamy.
- Tools for mashed potatoes – If you don’t have a potato masher, you can use a potato ricer, fork, whisk, stand mixer (if the motor is powerful enough). Note: if using a potato ricer, pass the potatoes through right after boiling (before adding garlic cream).
- Heavy Cream – Adjust the amount of cream based on your preference for how smooth you want the mashed potatoes. If you want a smoother/thinner consistency, add more cream. If you want stiffer/thick mashed potatoes, start with 2/3 of the amount. For a lighter taste, replace a portion of the heavy cream for milk, half and half, or stock.
Make ahead and Freeze:
- Freeze: Transfer the mashed potatoes to an airtight, freezer safe container. Place a layer of plastic wrap on the surface pressing against the potatoes. Freeze for up to 2 months. For easier thawing, divide into separate containers.
- Thaw: The day before, place the potatoes in the fridge to thaw overnight.
Reheat:
Oven: Transfer mashed potatoes to a casserole dish and heat in a preheated 350 degree F oven until heated through, about 20 minutes. Stir halfway through. Stovetop: Add mashed potatoes to a large pot heated over medium low heat. Continue to stir until heated through. If too thick, add milk, stock, or butter if desired. Microwave: Place mashed potatoes in a large microwave safe bowl. Cover and heat on 50% power until warmed through, about 4 to 5 minutes. Stir halfway through.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
A classic for sure. The heavy cream makes these potatoes so good and rich! The garlic touch was nice for a little change 😉
Even though we love garlic, I’ve never added it to mashed potatoes before. Goodness how good. The garlic butter really makes these mashed potatoes special!
Easy and super tasty. Burst of garlic flavors. Love the combination of Butter and garlic. Perfect for Thanksgiving and Christmas!
I am getting a start on my holiday menu, and am very pleased to have found your blog, as I have worked out all of my side dishes! These delicious potatoes and your mac and cheese will be featuring on our table this year 🙂 And judging from my family’s response to dinner over the weekend, I suspect we will be enjoying them many times otherwise too. The cream really makes these potatoes so delicious, and we all loved the garlic butter!
This is the recipe I chose for Thanksgiving and it was so good! I’m making double for Christmas because we’ll have relatives over this year. Very good and garlicky. Amazing!
This was a perfect side dish for our Nut loaf, it was packed with flavour and super garlicky, which we really enjoyed!
I found your recipe just in time for Thanksgiving dinner and everyone loved these mashed potatoes so much, I’ll be making them again at Christmas. My family is already requesting them!
Extremely flavorful and garlicky! The garlic butter on top just takes it to another level! Perfect for garlic lovers. Highly recommended!
These garlic mashed potatoes are the BEST side dish for so many meals. And they taste so wonderfully creamy.
These garlic mashed potatoes are delicious! I served them with some pork chops. Will definitely make these potatoes again!
This was the first time I added garlic to mashed potatoes. Wow what a difference. I could have just eaten that for lunch and skipped the meat! Great recipe!
A delicious, classic mashed potato recipe! Always a great idea for a side dish! Thanks for the recipe share!
These mashed potatoes are very tasty and are a very versatile side that can pair well with a wide variety of recipes. Thanks for sharing.
I love these homemade easy to make recipes! This was a perfect dinner side dish with great flavor. My kids loved the added parmesan 🙂 Thanks!
My family loves these garlic mashed potatoes and request them all the time. Thanks for sharing!
These easily could be a meal for me! So creamy and that garlic flavor is incredible!!! Thank you for the amazing recipe!
I love garlic potatoes! So much better than any other traditional mashed potato recipe. This is great!
These were the best mashed potatoes ever! My family raved about how good they were.
This is so creamy rich and a burst of Butter Garlic flavor. Perfect to have it with other toppings or as a spread or side dish too.
These taste perfect! Nothing beats creamy mashed potatoes…love how easy it is to make too!