Mashed potatoes have to be one of my favorite foods, and I have been working on perfecting my mashed potato recipe since I was a teen. I created some really great mashed potatoes, which are now (unfortunately) off limits for a low sodium diet. But the big diet change did not mean that we had to abandon mashed potatoes entirely. In fact, I took it as a challenge and started crafting and recrafting my recipe until I came up with this. You get richness from the butter and a bit of tang from the sour cream (just a hint, which is essential in the perfect mashed potatoes).
I have two tips that I never stray from when I make mashed potatoes. First, I never boil the potatoes for any longer than they absolutely need, and I drain them immediately. This means there’s less water in the potatoes so they won’t be watery when they are mashed. Instead they will be rich and creamy. Second, I don’t overmash the potatoes. If you beat and beat and beat the potatoes, they can get a little gummy. I like the texture when I mash them by hand and then stir in the milk, butter, and sour cream by hand.
Oh and one more note – I use nutritional yeast in these mashed potatoes. For those of you who don’t know, nutritional yeast is a favorite of many vegetarians and vegans because it is high in stuff that you usually get from meat (like protein and B vitamins). I like it because it sort of has a cheese-like flavor and has no sodium. We usually buy it in the bulk section of our grocery store, but you can also buy it in an easy to use shaker from Bragg. I use it to make a fake parm topping for spaghetti, put it on popcorn, and I even like it in scrambled eggs.
Creamy Low Sodium Mashed Potatoes
NUTRITIONAL SUMMARY:
47.2 mg sodium per serving
914.4 mg potassium per serving
177.8 mg phosphorus per serving
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
Ingredients
- 2.5 pounds russet potatoes
- ¼ cup milk or cream*
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- 3 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 cup sour cream
Instructions
- Peel, wash, and quarter the potatoes. Place the potatoes in a pot and cover with water.
- Bring potatoes to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and boil for about 20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Remove from water as soon as the potatoes are tender. (This prevents the potatoes from becoming water logged, which makes a huge difference in the creaminess of the potatoes.)
- Put the milk and butter in a microwave safe bowl or measuring cup. Heat until the mixture is warm and the butter is completely melted.
- While the cream and butter are heating, mash the potatoes. (I used an old-school hand masher because overbeating potatoes can make them gummy.) Once mashed, add the hot cream and butter mixture and stir vigorously.
- Stir in the nutritional yeast and sour cream.
Notes
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION Yield: 6 servings (about 3/4 cup each). 177.8 mg phosphorus per serving.
* 1% milk was used to calculate the nutritional information
How much is 3 T nutrional yeast?
Not sure what unit of measurement that is. Thanks.
3 T = 3 Tablespoons. Thanks for the comment; I will update the recipe so it’ll be more clear. 🙂
Hey thanks for that info. I have a disease where if I have too much salt I can get very sick. Your site is very helpful.
★★★★★
So glad to know that my site is helpful! That’s what I hoped.
Me as well. So happy for these low sodium favorites🙂
Hello, would these taste the same without the yeast? Making a dinner for a friend who has to be on a low sodium diet, but wasn’t sure if I can get the yeast? Thanks!
You can make them without the nutritional yeast. The yeast adds a bit of flavor, but they are okay without it if you can’t find it.
Capital T is tablespoon
Thank you for sharing your recipes. My husband is low sodium and I’m hoping these recipes will give us back some normalcy.
You’re very welcome! I know all about that struggle for normalcy. I hope these recipes help you out. 🙂
Thank you for this site! I was recently diagnosed with Meniere’s disease and have had to totally change my diet so it’s low sodium. This has been a life saver!
I am soooooo happy to hear that! I know that when Joe was diagnosed, we went through a definite rough patch with the diet change. I was really hoping that we could help people through their diet-transition rough patches with this site, so hearing from you makes my day. 🙂
I was wondering. What does the nutritional yeast add to these recipes? I’ve never used it. Does it add flavor, or is it for consistency? And where in the grocery can it be found? Thanks!
I plan to try your recipes, as I was recently told I may have Meniere’s. It’s really frustrating to look at the labels on all the food I love and find that everything is so high in sodium! So far the few things I’ve tried to make myself and the low sodium foods I’ve found in the store are pretty bland. It’s pretty disheartening because I love food so much, lol. But my guess is I’ll get used to the lack of salt eventually, and when I do eat something “normal” I’ll probably think it’s too salty. But for now the transition sucks. D:
Hi Jesia- the nutritional yeast is for flavor. It has sort of a cheese-like flavor. I add it to mashed potatoes, popcorn, scrambled eggs, and even homemade broth to boost the flavor a bit. It can be a bit of an acquired taste, so start small and add more if you like it. I find it in the natural food section of my grocery store. They sell it in the bulk food section AND with seasonings. One common brand name is Bragg (it comes in a yellow shaker bottle and if you look at their website they have a store finder). Another brand name I’ve seen is Bob’s Red Mill (this one comes in a teal bag).
Good luck with your transition to a low sodium diet! It is tough, but it will get better. You will get better at learning tricks and finding new favorite flavors. It’ll take a little time for your tastes to shift, but it’ll happen. In the meantime, lots of things will taste bland but it gets better.
Wishing you good health,
Kathy
I am planning to make these for Christmas dinner. Curious, can you keep them warm in a crock pot? Thank you.
I haven’t tried to keep them warm in a crock pot so I can’t guarantee the results. That said, I believe they would be fine to keep warm in a crock pot.
Best,
Kathy
Could you make this recipe in a slow cooker? If so, how?
I’ve never made mashed potatoes in a slow cooker, so I’m not sure how you’d do that. I’ve made them ahead and then kept them warm in a slow cooker. In that case, I just made them like normal and then put them in a slow cooker on warm.
These are the best mashed potatoes I’ve every made. Nutritional yeast is found in grocery stores even in Montana. Might be in organic section of your store.
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I just made this for my husband who is now on a low sodium diet. Can I use an electric mixer next time? We both loved it.
You can definitely use and electric mixer if you prefer. I tend to stay away from them for mashed potatoes because they can get kind of gluey if they are over mixed. But i know some people like their mashed potatoes really smooth (I like a few lumps).