This creamy scalloped potato recipe is a cheesy, scalloped potatoes recipe made with fresh potatoes, cheese, sour cream, and herbs. If you've ever wondered how to make the best-scalloped potatoes, we've got you covered. These baked scalloped potatoes are perfect for your family dinner or holiday meal.
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Creamy Scalloped Potatoes Video Tutorial
If potato recipes are your thing, we have a few others you're gonna want to try. We have a scalloped potatoes recipe with ham, a cheesy potato casserole recipe, a slow cooker cheesy hash brown potato casserole, or a slow cooker scalloped potatoes recipe. Let me assure you, cheese and potatoes are kind of a big deal around here.
Homemade Scalloped Potatoes
This on the top of the list as our go-to homemade Scalloped Potatoes with sour cream. We love making this potato recipe during the holidays, for Easter, and for Sunday dinners with the family.
It's a recipe that's made without any condensed soup. The real difference in this scalloped potato with cheese recipe is the fresh thyme. It is really a game-changer. It is perfect with the rich and creamy cheesy sauce, it makes for an incredible savory potato casserole recipe.
Ingredients in Scalloped Potatoes
Potatoes: You can use almost any type of potato. Russet Potatoes are what I used for this recipe but you can use Yukon gold or red potatoes too.
- Broth: You'll notice there's chicken broth in this recipe. This will give it the moisture and flavor you love without as many calories. Win, win!
- Sour Cream: Sour cream will give it the creaminess and tart flavor you love in scalloped potatoes. Cheese and sour cream are the perfect combinations in this recipe.
- Cheese: I prefer to use on that's already shredded because it simplifies the process a little but you can use just about any type of cheese. Some of my favorites are sharp cheddar, white cheddar, gouda cheese, or gruyere cheese. It's also great to use some parmesan in this recipe. It has such a smooth but intense flavor and everyone loves it. Use a couple or mix your cheeses!
- Garlic: I also used garlic powder in this recipe, garlic salt to be exact. I'm all about substituting the powders to get the same flavor.
- Onion: For this recipe, I like to add onion powder. You can the onion flavor without the hassle of chopping and caramelizing the onion.
- Thyme: I used fresh thyme in this recipe. It's my favorite fresh herb. I have it growing in a pot right outside my patio door so I can access it all year round. If you don't have fresh thyme, dried will work in a pinch too.
How to make scalloped potatoes from scratch in the oven:
- Start by spraying your baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. This will help with the cleanup.
- Next, you are going to prepare your potatoes. You can choose whether you'd like your potatoes peeled or not. Russet potatoes have a little thicker peel so I'd suggest peeling those but if you are using Yukon Gold or Red Potatoes, they have a peel that is a little more tender. My kids are super picky with potato peels so I usually peel them but if you're making this for adults, the peel is super pretty and I like the chewiness of them too.
- Slice the potatoes. You will want the potatoes a thin ⅛"-¼", as evenly as possible.
- To make the sauce for these easy scalloped potatoes, in a medium mixing bowl, combine the chicken broth (vegetable broth can easily be substituted for the chicken broth), sour cream, half of the cheddar and parmesan cheese, garlic salt, onion powder, fresh, thyme and the pepper. Mix
- Spread half of the sliced potatoes in the bottom of your greased baking dish. Pour half of the sauce over the potatoes.
- Spread the remain potatoes in the baking dish and add the rest of the sauce and the rest of the cheese.
- Bake your scalloped potatoes in the oven, in a 350-degree oven for about 1 hour or until the edges and top of the scalloped potatoes are golden brown and the potatoes are soft when poked with a fork.
- If the cheese becomes too brown on top, simply cover the baking dish with aluminum foil until the potatoes are tender when poked with a fork.
- Take the baking dish out of the oven and cool for about 5 minutes before serving.
Scalloped potatoes can definitely be made ahead of time. They can be made a day or two before you need them. Just make according to directions but don't bake them yet. Just store it in the fridge, covered with saran wrap and then bring it to room temperature before putting it in the oven. (or you risk cracking your baking dish if you put a cold dish in a hot oven.)
If you're wondering what the difference is between scalloped potatoes and au gratin potatoes, well there's not much difference. Scalloped potatoes are usually thinly sliced potatoes layer with a cream or milk mixture and scalloped potatoes, on the other hand, have cheese between the layers resulting in a more decadent dish. Also, the potatoes in scalloped potato recipes are usually cut a smidge thicker than those in au gratin potatoes.
Regardless of what you call them, we know one thing, they are the best comfort food and we all love them.
Scalloped potatoes should be fork tender when done. You should be able to prick them with a fork easily and the potatoes fall off the fork. If the potatoes are not tender yet, continue to cook for another 15-20 minutes or until tender.
Bake the scalloped potatoes in a 350-degree oven for about 1 hour or until the edges and top of the scalloped potatoes are golden brown and the potatoes are soft when poked with a fork. If the cheese becomes too brown on top, cover the baking dish with aluminum foil until the potatoes are tender when poked with a fork.
Cover the potatoes with aluminum foil. Bake in a 400-degree oven for about 40 minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender, uncover and cook again for 10 minutes or until the edges and top of the scalloped potatoes are golden brown.
You can easily use red potatoes when making scalloped potatoes. You can use red potatoes with or without skins. The recipe will work great either way.
What to make with scalloped potatoes:
This recipe is really versatile. If you're wondering what to make with scalloped potatoes, you can try our Cornflake chicken recipe, Grilled California Chicken Recipe, The best Slow Cooker Pot Roast, or Monterey Chicken, a personal favorite.
Tips for Making the Best Scalloped Potatoes
- Try to cut the potatoes very thinly. A mandoline slicer works great, but a sharp knife will do the trick too.
- If your potatoes are still firm after you've baked for the recommended time, bake longer. (Bake for another 20-30 minutes) Place aluminum foil on the potatoes, so the top doesn't get too dark and cook longer.
- If your scalloped potatoes get done early, simply keep them in a warm oven covered with foil until you're ready to serve them.
- If your cheese on top gets overly-brown, you can pull the top layer of cheese off, add some fresh shredded cheese and place in the oven until golden brown again.
Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes
Ingredients
- 3 lbs Potatoes Russet, Yukon Gold or Red Potatoes
- 1 ½ cup Broth Chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 ½ cup Sour Cream
- 1 ½ cup Cheese Shredded (It can be a mix or just cheddar cheese)
- ⅓ cup Parmesan Cheese
- 2 teaspoon Garlic Salt
- 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1 teaspoon Thyme, fresh Fresh is best but dried will work in a pinch too.
- ⅛ teaspoon Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Start by spraying your baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- Peel the potatoes if desired. Slice the potatoes. You will want the potatoes a thin ⅛"-¼", as evenly as possible.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the chicken broth (vegetable broth can easily be substituted for the chicken broth), sour cream, half of the cheddar, parmesan cheese, garlic salt, onion powder, fresh, thyme and the pepper.
- Spread half of the sliced potatoes in the bottom of your greased baking dish. Pour half of the sauce over the potatoes. Spread the remain potatoes in the baking dish and add the rest of the sauce and the rest of the cheese.
- Cover loosly with alluminum foil and Bake in a 350-degree oven for about 1 hour or until the edges and top of the scalloped potatoes are golden brown. The potatoes should be soft when poked with a fork. Take the foil off and continue to cook for 15-20 minutes until the cheese on top becomes golden brown.
- Take the baking dish out of the oven and let these delicious homemade scalloped potatoes cool for about 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
Tips for Making Easy Scalloped Potato Recipes:
- Use Russett Potatoes or Yukon Gold for a Classic recipe
- Try using red potatoes for a recipe variation
- You can use your favorite cheeses. Sharp cheddar, white cheddar, gruyere, and parmesan. Have fun with it!
- You can make these up to a couple days in advance.
- Add a little ham for another recipe variation.
Nutrition
We love Potato Recipes! Here are a few recipes using potatoes...
- 3 Cheese Twice Baked Potatoes
- Loaded Baked Potato Skins Recipe
- Smashed Potatoes
- Slow Cooker Cheesy Potatoes
- Cheesy Breakfast Hash Browns
- Fingerling Potatoes
- Broccoli Potato Cheese Soup
- Crockpot Scalloped Potatoes
- Slow Cooker Scalloped Potatoes
- Funeral Potatoes
- Creamy Potato and Broccoli Cheese Soup
- Mashed Potatoes
- Herb Roasted Potatoes
- Best Baked Potato
- More Potato Recipes
- More Best Holiday Recipes
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This is the Best Scalloped Potato Recipes. It's a classic scalloped potato recipe made with fresh potatoes, cheese, sour cream, and herbs. If you've ever wondered how to make scalloped potatoes in the oven, this is is the potato recipe for you.
Sherry Shafer
I tried this recipe as directed and the potatoes were still firm and tough. What did I do wrong?
Jill Baird
Sherry, I'd love to help you figure out what's going on. It sounds like maybe your potatoes were on the thicker side. You can just bake for another 20-30 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender.
Sam
These cheesy scalloped potatoes were delicious! Our family loved it!
The Carefree Kitchen
So happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know!
Mel
So rich and delicious. We had these tonight for our Easter dinner (we're doing it a day early). The fresh thyme really made a difference! There's something more aromatic and it adds a depth of flavor. SO good!
The Carefree Kitchen
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed them. Thanks for letting me know!