Easy cheesy potatoes are a classic recipe made with diced potatoes in a creamy cheese sauce. Topped with a buttery cornflake topping it’s a simple and comforting side dish!
Cheesy Potato Casserole
These easy cheesy potatoes are the epitome of comfort food that you may have also heard called funeral potatoes or hash brown casserole! They are a staple side dish at Christmas dinner and always on my Thanksgiving menu.
This recipe for cheesy potato casserole is quick to make with frozen diced potatoes and a creamy cheesy sauce. I always keep the ingredients on hand for this cheesy potato bake and for busy weeknight dinners you can make turn it into a crockpot cheesy potatoes!
Ingredient Notes
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements below.
- Hash browns: A large bag of thawed frozen hash browns potatoes. My family prefers diced potatoes but you can use shredded. Real potatoes will need to be parboiled.
- Sour cream: This adds a bit of tang and contributes to the creamy texture.
- Canned cream of chicken soup: You can also use cream of celery or cream of mushroom soup. Make a homemade cream of chicken soup if you’d prefer.
- Butter: This is mixed in with the potatoes and the crunchy topping for some added richness.
- Onions: I like to include some fresh chopped green onions to help boost the flavor. If you don’t have fresh onions on hand, use onion powder instead.
- Cheese: They wouldn’t be cheesy potatoes without the cheese! I like to grate my own sharp cheddar cheese and then stir it into the potato mixture.
- Cornflakes: Crush them up, then sprinkle on top before baking. You could also use crushed Ritz crackers, potato chips or panko breadcrumbs as the crunchy topping.
How to Make Cheesy Potatoes
- Preheat oven. Preheat oven and butter a 9×13″ baking dish. Set aside.
- Mix ingredients together. In a large bowl, combine thawed diced potatoes, green onions, sour cream, cream of chicken, salt, pepper, 1/4 cup melted butter and cheese. Stir, then spread into casserole dish.
- Add topping. Top with extra cheese (if desired) and crushed cornflakes. Drizzle remaining melted butter on top.
- Bake in oven. Bake cheesy potatoes for 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbling hot.
Tips and Variations
- Thaw. It’s important to thaw the bag of hash browns first before using. If they are still frozen, the excess water could make your cheesy potato casserole runny.
- Using real Russet potatoes. Make this easy cheesy potatoes recipe from scratch! Boil or bake potatoes and then shred or cube them and proceed with casserole.
- Topping. If the cornflake topping begins to brown too fast while baking, feel free to tent the top with foil. Instead of cornflakes, try crushed potato chips or Ritz crackers.
- Let rest. The party potatoes will need to set a bit before serving, so I would recommend letting them rest for about 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
Make Ahead and Storage
- Store: Store leftover cheesy potato casserole in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Do not freeze leftovers.
- Make Ahead: Prepare cheesy potatoes but leave off the cornflake topping. Cover and refrigerate up to 48 hours. Bring to room temperature then sprinkle the cornflake topping over the potatoes and bake as directed
- Freeze: You can freeze the assembled casserole without the cornflake topping before baking. I prefer to prepare it in a disposable pan for easier clean up. Cover the pan tightly, then freeze up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, add topping an bake.
Want more cheesy potato recipes? Try cheesy mashed potatoes, cheesy scalloped potatoes and ham, or this au gratin potatoes recipe.
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Easy Cheesy Potatoes Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 (30-ounce) bag diced or shredded hash browns , thawed
- 1 (16-ounce) container sour cream
- 1 (10.5-ounce) can cream of chicken soup (or celery or mushroom)
- ¼ cup melted butter
- 1 bunch green onions (or 1/2 teaspoon onion powder)
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese , plus more if desired
Topping
- 1-2 cups crushed cornflakes (or ritz crackers or panko crumbs)
- ¼ cup melted butter
Instructions
- Prep. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9×13-inch baking dish. Make sure your potatoes are mostly thawed and drain any excess water.
- Combine ingredients. In a medium bowl, stir together 30 ounce hash brown potatoes, 16 ounce sour cream, 1 can cream of chicken, 1 bunch green onions (or 1/2 teaspoon onion powder), 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese until combined. Spread into the baking dish. Top with extra cheese, if desired.
- Bake. Spread 1-2 cups crushed cornflakes over the top. Drizzle with 1/4 cup butter. Bake 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbling hot. If using cubed potatoes instead of shredded hash browns, bake 40 minutes.
- Serve. Let rest 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy while warm!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Categorized as: American, Christmas, Easter, Freezer-Friendly, Nut-Free, Potatoes, Reader Favorites, Side Dishes, Thanksgiving, Vegetarian
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
Also do you cover them at all?.
No need to cover them
You say 1/4 cup butter to mix in. Then say “add remaining butter to flakes”! So how much butter in mix & how much in cornflakes?
Hi Ray, if you scroll to the recipe card, in step 3 you will ‘Spread 1-2 cups crushed cornflakes over the top. Drizzle with 1/4 cup butter.’ There is 1/4 cup butter in the potato mixture and then another 1/4 cup drizzled on top of cornflakes. Hope that helps!
I made the recipe as is and everyone loved it!! But do you think I could switch out the cheddar for a white cheese or partially?
Sure! I think partially substituting would work great.
I’m required to make this at all family functions now
I’m so glad your family enjoys the cheesy potatoes! I hope you have a Merry Christmas!
Can fresh potatoes be used for this recipe? I have some from my garden that I need to use up and am thinking it would be easier to dice or shred the potatoes instead of freezing them & thawing them.
Hi Kelly! Absolutely! Boiled or baked and then shredded or cubed should work well in this recipe.
Made this for thanksgiving and it was a hot hit! I used crushed up saltine crackers turned out delicious! So I’m making them again for Christmas Day dinner!
I made this for my Christmas party and it was a hit. This is so good. I didn’t have cornflakes and used panko. Thank you for this recipe ♥️
I’m so glad you enjoyed the Cheesy Potatoes Sandy! The substitute of panko sounds yummy, I’m glad it worked out!
Should I rinse my potatoes?
No, you do not rinse the hash browns :) It’s important to thaw the bag of hash browns first before using. If they are still frozen, the excess water could make your cheesy potato casserole runny when baking.