Do you really want to be mashing potatoes while the turkey rests and everyone is hovering in the kitchen? Me neither. These make-ahead mashed potatoes get made up to 3 days before the big dinner: Yukon Gold and russet potatoes, riced smooth and folded with cream cheese and sour cream. On the day you serve them, all they need is a reheat in the oven or slow cooker, and that slow cooker option leaves your oven open for everything else.
What Makes These Different
Cream cheese and sour cream make these rich and a little tangy, and they're the reason the potatoes come out of the fridge creamy instead of stiff and dry. Most mashed potatoes go gluey because they get overworked, so I rice the potatoes and use room temperature dairy, which blends in fast with a spoon or a quick pass with a hand mixer.
This is the only mashed potato recipe my kids like, and my family notices right away if I try to change it. You can make them up to 3 days ahead, so the only work left on the big day is reheating them. No pots, no ricer, and no mess to clean up!
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Ingredients & Substitutions
Ingredient Notes
Yukon Gold and russet potatoes. I use both because each one brings something. Yukon Golds have a creamy, buttery texture, and russets are high in starch, which makes them light and fluffy. Together you get the best of both. You can use just one kind if that's what you have. All Yukon Golds will be a little denser and creamier, and all russets will be lighter.
Cream cheese. This is what makes these taste rich, and it's a big part of why they stay creamy after a night in the fridge. Light or full fat both work. Make sure it's at room temperature (more on why in the tips).
Sour cream. Sour cream adds tang and loosens the potatoes so they're creamy, not stiff. Same rule here: room temperature. Light or full fat both work.
Butter. A couple of pats go on top before the dish goes in the fridge. They melt down into the potatoes while they reheat.
Salt and pepper. Season after the cream cheese and sour cream are in, so you're tasting the potatoes the way they'll actually be served.
How to Make Mashed Potatoes Ahead of Time
Step 1
Peel the potatoes and cut them into small, even cubes. Cover them with water in a large pot and boil until a fork slides in with no resistance.
Step 2
Drain the potatoes well. Put them back in the hot pot on the burner for about a minute to cook off the last of the water.
Step 3
Working in batches, press the hot potatoes through a ricer into a large bowl.
Step 4
Add the room temperature cream cheese and sour cream, then season with salt and pepper.
Step 5
Stir until combined, or lightly beat with a hand mixer until smooth. Stop as soon as the streaks of cream cheese disappear so the potatoes don't turn gluey.
Step 6
Spread the potatoes in a greased baking dish, top with pats of butter, cover, and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven, slow cooker, or microwave when you're ready to serve.
My best tips
- Cut the potatoes the same size. Small, even cubes cook at the same rate. If some pieces are big and some are small, the small ones turn mushy while the big ones are still firm in the middle, and those firm pieces become lumps.
- Don't overcook them. Boil them for 9 to 10 minutes once the water is boiling, or until a fork slides in with no resistance. Potatoes that cook too long soak up water and fall apart, and you end up with mushy, watery mashed potatoes.
- Drain them well. This is a BIG one. Drain, drain, drain, then put the potatoes back in the pot on the stove for about a minute. That cooks off the water still clinging to them. Skip it and the extra water ends up in your mashed potatoes, which makes them heavy instead of fluffy.
- Use a potato ricer. This is my most important tip. A ricer presses the potatoes into fine, fluffy strands without overworking them, and overworking is what makes mashed potatoes gluey. My potato ricer is one of my all-time favorite kitchen gadgets. The triangular shape makes ricing fast, and nothing gets stuck in the corners. (Amazon Affiliate Link)
- Pull the dairy out when you start peeling. That's how I get the cream cheese and sour cream to room temperature. Cold dairy takes longer to blend in, and the extra mixing is what turns potatoes gluey. Warm dairy blends in fast, so you can stop sooner.
- Stir or beat, but don't overdo it. You can stir by hand until just combined, or lightly beat with a hand mixer until smooth. Either way, stop as soon as you don't see streaks of cream cheese. Overbeating breaks down the starch in the potatoes and gives you that gluey, gummy texture.
- Leave the little lumps. If you find a few small pieces after mixing, don't keep mashing to chase them out. They'll soften when the potatoes reheat, and honestly, they let people know these are real potatoes!
- Take the chill off before baking. Pull the potatoes out of the fridge 30 to 60 minutes before they go in the oven. A dish that's ice cold in the center takes longer to heat through, and the edges can dry out while you wait for the middle to warm up.
FAQs
Up to 3 days. Keep them covered in the refrigerator in the baking dish until you're ready to reheat.
No. Put them right in the slow cooker and heat until they're hot, stirring occasionally so they don't burn on the bottom.
Yes. I cover the dish with foil so the potatoes stay moist while they warm up.
No, a regular potato masher works. I always use a ricer because it's easier and gets the potatoes smooth with less mixing, which helps keep them from turning gluey.
Yes! For a double batch, use a 9x13 pan and plan on about an hour to reheat in the oven.
I like a mix of Yukon Gold and russet. The Yukons bring the creamy, buttery texture and the russets make them light and fluffy.
Make ahead and reheating
Make the potatoes up to 3 days ahead, cover the dish, and keep it in the fridge. When it's time to eat, pick whichever reheating method fits the rest of your menu.
- Oven. Take the dish out of the fridge 30 to 60 minutes before it goes in the oven to take the chill off. Cover with foil and bake at 350°F for 30 to 45 minutes (about an hour for a double batch in a 9x13 pan), until hot all the way through. If your oven is packed with other dishes, it may take longer.
- Slow cooker. This is how I do it for big holiday dinners, because it frees up the oven. Heat them on high for 1 hour or on low for 2 to 3 hours, and stir occasionally so the bottom doesn't burn. No need to bake them first.
- Microwave. I use this in a pinch. Microwave for 2 to 3 minutes, stir, and repeat until heated through. Careful, the bowl gets hot!
More Side Dishes
Find all of my side dish recipes in the archives.
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Recipe
Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 pounds potatoes, peeled and cubed (Yukon Gold + Russet mix)
- 6 ounces room temperature cream cheese, light or full fat
- 1 cup room temperature sour cream, light or full fat
- salt and pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter
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Instructions
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into small cubes that are all about the same size. Set the cream cheese and sour cream on the counter now so they come to room temperature while the potatoes cook.3 pounds potatoes,
- Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover them with water. Bring to a boil, then cook until a fork slides in with no resistance but the cubes still hold their shape, 9 to 10 minutes after the water starts boiling.
- Drain the potatoes in a colander. Return them to the pot and set it back on the burner for about 1 minute, until no water is left in the bottom of the pot.
- Working in batches, rice the potatoes into a large bowl.
- Add the cream cheese, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Stir until combined, or lightly beat with a hand mixer on low until smooth. Stop as soon as you no longer see streaks of cream cheese. Overbeating makes the potatoes gluey.6 ounces room temperature cream cheese,, 1 cup room temperature sour cream,, salt and pepper
- Spread the potatoes in a greased baking dish and top with the butter, cut into pats. Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.2 tablespoons butter
- To reheat in the oven: Remove the dish from the refrigerator 30 to 60 minutes before baking. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 30 to 45 minutes (about 1 hour for a double batch in a 9x13 pan), until hot all the way through.
- To reheat in a slow cooker: Transfer the cold potatoes to the slow cooker. Heat on high for 1 hour or low for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally so the bottom doesn't burn. No need to bake them first.
Notes
- Room temperature cream cheese and sour cream blend in faster. Less mixing means no gluey potatoes.
- Using a hand mixer? Beat lightly and stop as soon as the potatoes are smooth.
- Don't overcook the potatoes. Mushy, waterlogged potatoes make watery mashed potatoes.
- Dry the drained potatoes in the hot pot. Leftover water makes them heavy.
- I use this potato ricer. No ricer? A potato masher works. Just stop as soon as the potatoes are smooth.
- Make ahead: Refrigerate, covered, for up to 3 days.
- Microwave reheating: Heat 2 to 3 minutes, stir, and repeat until hot. The bowl will be hot.
- Doubling: Use a 9x13 pan and reheat in the oven for about 1 hour.
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Nutrition
Nutrition info not guaranteed to be accurate.
Martha Elkins says
I plan to reheat and keep warm in the crock pot. Do I still need to bake in oven for 30:minutes prior to putting in crock pot?
Hi Martha, No. You do not need to heat in the oven prior to putting in the crock pot. Just heat them in the crock pot until they are hot, stir occasionally so they don’t burn on the bottom. happy Thanksgiving!
Karen says
I was really looking forward to serving these potatoes for Thanksgiving unfortunately they turned out awful.
I'm sorry they didn't work out for you, Karen. I have made these for years and have never had any issue with them not turning out.
Gay says
This is neatly the same recipe I’ve been using for holidays for years. It is perfect I usually do these the night before. Wondering if you’ve ever done 2 or even 3 days before? Love your recipes. How u lay out with the ingredients in each step. Tx so much. Trying your olive dip tonite with blue cheese stuffed olives this time.