If you are looking for dairy free mashed potatoes that are easy to make (no ricer or food mill required) AND smooth, creamy, and delicious, you’re in the right place. These amazing dairy free mashed potatoes, flavored with garlic and chives, are naturally gluten free, so they are perfect for those of us with multiple dietary restrictions.
With a comforting taste that will bring back many happy memories and lead to many more, I know you’ll love them. Let’s dig in!
The STORY: Dairy Free Mashed Potatoes Just Like Mom Made
I have a very early memory of mashed potatoes. I sat on the kitchen counter of my family home in Iowa, my heels thudding rhythmically against the cabinets below. My mom stood in front of the kitchen sink, arms submersed in warm bubbles, with the view of the small lake where we lived shining through the window in front of her. I’m sure she was telling me to stop kicking the cabinets, fearing I would break them. (My dad made them right before I was born, so we had to care for them specially.) But all I could focus on was the deliciousness of the buttery mashed potatoes I was licking off the beaters of her electric mixer.
My mom, being the great mom that she was (and is), called it my “job” to lick the last bits of mashed potatoes from each beater. Every time she made her amazing mashed potatoes, which was often, she would call to me, and I would come running to the kitchen to do my job.
These days, I get to be the potato masher when I host holiday meals for my mom and the rest of our family. Now that I have figured out how to make dairy free mashed potatoes that taste just like they used to when I was young, I make this dairy free side dish every holiday season. I’m so happy that I can share them with my family and we can all enjoy a nourishing meal together.
The INGREDIENTS: Yukon Golds, a Russet, and Garlic
Here are a few of the recipe’s most important ingredients, with tips on brand suggestions and potential substitutions. Make sure to check the recipe card for a full list of ingredients and quantities.
- Yukon golds: The best rich, creamy flavor comes from these beauties! I also tried the more generically named “gold potatoes” from Trader Joe’s, and they were super yummy too.
- Russet potato: I added one large russet into the mix because russets make a really nice and light, fluffy mashed potato. However (in my opinion, don’t hate me) the flavor is less amazing than the flavor you get from the Yukon golds. So my compromise here is to focus on the golds, but include one russet for a bit of fluff. The large potato I used weighed in at about three-quarters of a pound. If you don’t have a russet, you could substitute for another gold potato.
- Dairy Free Butter: I strongly recommend Miyoko’s Creamery Salted European Style Plant Milk Butter (the kind that is packaged in a block like butter, in the yellow box). This dairy free butter has a richer, more complex flavor than other non-dairy butters (thanks to their use of cultured cashew milk). If you can’t eat nuts, though, you’ll need to substitute with your favorite dairy free butter — preferably one in stick form. Also, if you don’t need to avoid dairy, you can use regular butter here as well!
- Oat Milk: I strongly recommend Oatly Original Oat Milk (the one in the light blue box, not the low fat version). This is the only non-dairy milk I will drink straight — it’s that good! If you don’t need to avoid dairy, you can use regular milk here as well.
- Salt: I use fine pink salt in my kitchen. If you use regular table salt, you might want to reduce the salt a bit depending on your preference. If you use a coarse salt such as kosher salt, you might need to add a bit more.
- Chives: Everyone knows that chives and potato go hand in hand, so this one’s a bit of a no brainer. But also, it adds a touch of green, which can mean more than you might think — especially when making a holiday meal. (If you’re not careful, you can look up at the Thanksgiving table and see a sea of brown, brown, and more brown!)
The STEPS: How to Make Dairy Free & Vegan Mashed Potatoes
The Overview: Making the Mashed Potatoes
Dairy free and vegan mashed potatoes are easy to make, as long as you use high quality ingredients and follow a few simple guidelines:
- Cook the potatoes until they’re soft
- Let them dry out a bit
- Mash before adding any oat milk
- Keep mashing until all the lumps are gone
- Heat your oat milk and vegan butter before adding
The Equipment: A Note on My Potato Masher
- I recommend OXO’s smooth potato masher, as opposed to the more commonly seen mashers that have larger holes or openings. These other mashers let lumps pass through their holes and therefore produce lumpy potatoes. But this “smooth” masher has small enough holes that it makes truly smooth, lump-free mashed potatoes!
The Process: A Visual Step-by-Step
This recipe is quick to pull together and easy to pull off, even for a beginning cook! Here is an overview of the recipe — check out the recipe card for the full instructions.
The Notes: A Few Final Thoughts
- Top with chives and an extra pat of dairy free butter.
- Reheat in the oven or microwave if your potatoes get a bit cold (see the recipe notes for full details).
- Keep your potatoes warm for longer with a slow cooker or a hot water bath (see the recipe notes for full details).
- If you like, make ahead and refrigerate or freeze the mashed potatoes (see the recipe notes for full details).
- The finished result is dairy free mashed potatoes that are rich and creamy, just like the mashed potatoes in your memory. Delish!
More Ideas
Looking for other yummy gluten free and dairy free recipes? Here are a few ideas to consider (not trying to make you hungry or anything):
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread (applesauce + coconut oil)
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins with Chocolate Chips (Dairy Free!)
- Gluten Free Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Dark Chocolate Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies (GF/DF)
Leave a comment to let me know how it goes, have fun, and remember:
Cooking is an act of love — be proud of yourself for creating joy & healing in the world!
Dairy Free Mashed Potatoes – so creamy! (gluten free & vegan)
Equipment
- Potato masher, ricer, or food mill
Ingredients
- 3 pounds gold potatoes – about 5 potatoes
- 1 large russet potato
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1 cup oat milk – see notes for recommendations
- 1/2 cup dairy free butter – see notes for recommendations
- 1 t salt – to taste
- chives – optional
Instructions
Prep
- Wash and peel potatoes. Remove any little eyes or sketchy spots using the end of the peeler or a small knife.• 3 pounds gold potatoes• 1 large russet potato
- Cut medium-sized potatoes into quarters and larger potatoes into 6-8 pieces each. This doesn’t have to be precise; you are aiming to get your pieces more or less the same size so they’ll cook evenly.
Cook the Potatoes
- Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water until the water covers the potatoes by about 2 inches. Cover the pot and place over a burner set to high.
- Peel garlic cloves and slice off any hard ends. (There is no need to chop them; they'll get mashed up later!) • 6 cloves garlic
- Drop the peeled cloves into the pot with the potatoes, and when you do, add about a tablespoon of salt to the water as well. Give everything a good stir and put the lid back on.
- Once the water starts to boil, remove the lid and set a timer for 20 minutes. Continue to boil the potatoes uncovered. After 20 minutes, pierce a potato with a fork – you should be able to pierce it easily with very little resistance. If it is still firm, continue to boil and check again every 5 minutes. (Note: Try to resist piercing them unnecessarily – too much poking about can make your potatoes watery!)
- When the potatoes are soft, drain them in a strainer and give it a good shake or two to remove most of the water. Put the drained potatoes back in the hot pot and set the pot back on the hot burner (which is now turned off). (Note: All this heat should help the potatoes dry out more, which will help the potatoes become extra fluffy.)
Heat the Milk & Butter
- While the potatoes dry, prepare the rest of the ingredients. Measure out the oat milk into a large measuring cup. Get out the dairy free butter; set aside 2 tablespoons or so for later and put the rest (6 tablespoons, cut into a few pieces) into the oat milk. • 1 cup oat milk• 1/2 cup dairy free butter
- Heat the oat milk and dairy free butter in the microwave for about 2 minutes or on the stove top until all is melted and warm.
Mash the Potatoes
- Move the potato pot to the counter. Working directly in the pot, use a potato masher to mash the potatoes. Do not add any milk or butter to the potatoes at this point. Stir the potatoes occasionally to reach the lumps hiding along the edge of the pot. You will begin to see that the potatoes that are mashed will be lighter in color and opaque, while the lumps will be more yellow and appear almost translucent. Continue to stir and mash, looking for the yellow lumps to target with your masher. You can also use a ricer or food mill to mash the potatoes.
- When you no longer see any lumps, add the salt. Begin to add the milk mixture gradually, stirring to incorporate. When you’ve added most of the liquid, taste the mashed potatoes and adjust to your liking. You can always add more salt and more oat milk if you prefer. Keep in mind that the potatoes will thicken as they cool.• 1 t salt
- Place in a bowl and top with remaining pats of butter and minced chives for garnish. Enjoy!• chives
Notes
- Mashing: I recommend this particular potato masher. Most potato mashers produce lumpy potatoes, but this one has small enough holes that it actually makes smooth, lump-free mashed potatoes!
- Reheating: If your potatoes cool off a bit while mashing, or the rest of the meal is not quite done yet, not to worry. You can easily reheat the potatoes in the microwave (check after every couple of minutes) or on top of the stove. You can also keep them in a warm oven (less than 200°F), covered, for up to 2 hours. Other options: keep warm in a slow cooker (set to low) or in a heatproof bowl (covered), set over a pot of simmering water.
- Storage: Any leftovers should be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Making Ahead & Refrigerating: To help make a big day of cooking a bit less stressful, feel free to make these a day or two ahead and reheat, tightly covered in foil, in a 350°F oven for about 30 minutes, stirring halfway through. If they are a bit dry after reheating, add a bit more oat milk and/or dairy free butter.
- Making Ahead & Freezing: If you would prefer to make your dairy free mashed potatoes weeks in advance, feel free to freeze them. Make sure they have cooled completely before freezing, then wrap them tightly in several layers of plastic to keep out the freezer burn.
- Thaw them in the refrigerator the day before and reheat in the slow cooker or on top of the stove, stirring periodically on low – you may need to add a bit more oat milk.
- As long as the potatoes were frozen in an oven safe container, you can also reheat them directly from frozen in the oven or microwave:
- For the oven, remove the plastic and place, covered in foil, in a 350°F oven for about 40 minutes, stirring halfway through.
- For the microwave, remove the lid, cover with parchment paper, and microwave for about 10 – 15 minutes, stirring periodically, until hot.
- For more advice on making ahead and freezing, check out this helpful Bon Appétit article.
- Dairy Free Milk: I recommend Oatly Original Oat Milk (the light blue box) because it is the only dairy free milk that passes my Milk & Cookies Test (i.e., I would drink it straight up with a plate of cookies).
- Dairy Free Butter: I recommend Miyoko’s Creamery Salted European Style Plant Milk Butter (the yellow box) because it has way more flavor than most dairy free butters.
- Dairy Free: This recipe is dairy free as written. Make sure to use oat milk (or another plant based milk) and dairy free butter to keep these mashed potatoes dairy free.
- Gluten Free: This recipe is naturally gluten free. Most homemade mashed potatoes should be gluten free (as long as they don’t have some kind of breadcrumb topping). If you are using a box of instant potatoes, though, be sure to check the label.
- Vegan: This recipe is vegan as written. Make sure to use oat milk (or another plant based milk) and dairy free butter to keep these mashed potatoes vegan.
- If You Aren’t Dairy Free or Vegan: If you don’t need to avoid dairy, feel free to swap out the dairy free milk and butter with the regular types.
The POSTSCRIPT
Pin It & Make It Later
The Mulberry Moment
(a tiny moment of happiness from me to you!)
Roses grew wild in my backyard in Berkeley. We literally did nothing to care for them, and they grew of their own accord. The scent was heavenly, and the petals ranged from the warmest gold to a delicate pink. Here they are at their moment of fullest bloom.