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Creamy plant-based mashed potatoes with coconut milk and rosemary roasted garlic. I use canned coconut milk to give my cornbread recipe a buttery texture so I thought it might work in mashed potatoes. Well, I’m pleased with the outcome!

plant based mashed potatoes with roasted garlic and rosemary in large bowl

The fat in the coconut milk gives the potatoes a creamy texture without butter, and it doesn’t taste like coconut. It works best to stir the contents of the can to incorporate the cream that settles at the top with the coconut water. Just try to mix it together, it doesn’t have to be perfect. If you want to skip the coconut milk try my recipe for mashed potatoes without butter or oil.

What Potatoes Should I Use?

I prefer to use Yukon Gold because they have a natural creamy buttery taste that works well with mashed potatoes. They're a type of yellow potato, so if you can’t find them then substitute them with another type of yellow potato. Russets also work well for making mashed potatoes.

Smoother Vegan Mashed Potatoes with Coconut Milk

The potato skins hold a lot of nutrients so I prefer to leave them on, but if you desire a smooth mash then you’ll want to peel the skins. A potato ricer or a food mill will also help produce a very creamy mash.

Tips

Stir the canned coconut milk before measuring.
Make sure to use unsweetened coconut milk for your mashed potatoes with coconut milk.
I have only tested with full-fat coconut milk, not lite or coconut cream. If you do try coconut cream, check the back of the can some have sweeteners in them.
Keep cubed potatoes the same size to ensure even cooking.
For this dish to come together quicker, the garlic can be roasted ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator. Instead of heating up the oven just for garlic, I’ll roast it when I’m cooking something else in the oven. Then store it in the refrigerator or freeze it for later.

How to Roast Garlic without Oil

Since it’s the holidays I decided to make these mashed potatoes with coconut milk fancy! I infused roasted garlic with rosemary. It sounds complicated but it’s not.

Slice a head of garlic in half and add half a teaspoon of dried crushed rosemary on each half. I remove the stem from the garlic bulb to help the slice sit upright. Don’t worry, some cloves will fall out of their little holder, but they’ll still roast just fine.

Place the heads of garlic on a piece of foil with the slices facing up then wrap up the foil packet around them. Roast for one hour at 400 F (200 C). Let the garlic cool before handling. There’s no need to remove the rosemary that’s stuck to the garlic, just squeeze the garlic cloves from their papery skins into your cooked potatoes. Here's a more detailed post about how to roast garlic without oil.

More Vegan Recipes with Potatoes

More Holiday-Inspired Recipes

I hope you enjoy this recipe for plant-based mashed potatoes with roasted garlic and rosemary!

Originally published on November 27, 2019, updated on November 22, 2021.

Recipe

Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes with Coconut Milk

★★★★★

5 from 1 review

Author: Allie
Total Time: 90 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 1x
Diet: Vegan

Print Recipe

Description

Creamy plant-based mashed potatoes with coconut milk and rosemary roasted garlic.

Ingredients

Scale

1 head of garlic
1 teaspoon of dried crushed rosemary
3 lbs (1370 g) Yukon Gold or Russet potatoes (washed and scrubbed)
1 cup full-fat coconut milk (the canned stuff)
¼ cup of dairy-free milk
1 teaspoon of salt (plus enough to salt the water), or to taste
Parsley, chives, or pepper to garnish

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Instructions

Rosemary Roasted Garlic

Slice a head of garlic in half and add half a teaspoon of dried rosemary on each slice.
Place the heads of garlic on a piece of foil with the slices facing up then wrap up the foil packet.
Roast for one hour at 400 F (200 C).
Let them cool before handling.
Squeeze the garlic cloves from their paper shell into cooked potatoes, there’s no need to remove any rosemary stuck to the garlic.

Potatoes

Wash and scrub the dirt off the potatoes, peel them if you prefer, then cube the potatoes to be about 1 inch thick.
Add the cubed potatoes to a pot, cover with water to where there’s about an inch of water above the potatoes, and salt the water generously (roughly 1 tablespoon of salt).
Bring to a boil and cook for around 15-20 minutes or until you can poke a piece of potato with a fork and the potato falls off.
Drain the potatoes and add them back to the pot, put the lid on, and steam for 5-10 minutes off the burner.
While the potatoes are steaming warm up the coconut milk and dairy-free milk, don’t boil just warm them up.
To the potatoes add the roasted garlic, 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste), and mash into the potatoes.
Add a ladle full of coconut milk mixture at a time and mash the milk in. Continue adding ladles of milk and mashing. The potatoes will absorb the milk.
Depending on the potatoes and your desired consistency you may not need all of the milk mixture or if you need more add a little more dairy-free milk.
Taste for seasoning, and adjust if needed. Then garnish with chives, parsley, or pepper.