Loaded Baked Potato Casserole
Published Mar 18, 2024
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This loaded baked potato casserole takes everything you love about a loaded baked potato and layers it into one seriously good side dish. Tender slices of potato bake with smoky bacon, garlic, and three kinds of cheese in a creamy custard that holds everything together. If scalloped potatoes are your weakness, wait until bacon and Gruyère get involved.
5 Star Review
I made this last night. I used cubed ham instead of bacon and added thinly sliced onions. It was AWESOME!! Baked for 90 minutes, covered and 10 minutes uncovered. While it was resting, I added more cheese on top. Will be making this again! – Laurie Jenkins
Loaded baked potatoes are already hard to argue with, so turning those flavors into a big, bubbling casserole is an excellent idea. Thin slices of russet potatoes are layered with garlic, crispy bacon, and three cheeses, including nutty Gruyère, then the whole thing bakes in a simple milk-and-egg custard. The potatoes soak up all that flavor as they become tender, and uncovering the casserole for the final few minutes gives the top a gorgeous golden finish. It has the creamy richness of scalloped potatoes with all the good stuff you’d normally pile onto a loaded baked potato.
What You’ll Need
Cheddar, Monterey Jack, and crispy bacon add plenty of savoriness, so you don’t need to add much more. Scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact ingredient amounts.
- Butter – I prefer unsalted butter, but salted butter is a good swap.
- Russet potatoes – Yukon Gold potatoes work too.
- Salt and pepper – Kosher salt and freshly-cracked black pepper are best.
- Garlic – Fresh garlic or garlic powder can be used.
- Cheddar cheese – Go for mild or sharp.
- Monterey Jack cheese – Feel free to use Pepper Jack cheese.
- Bacon – Regular or thick-cut bacon are great.
- Milk – Whole milk is best, but 2% milk is a good swap too.
- Eggs – Use liquid eggs if that’s what you’ve got on hand.
- Parsley – You can use dried parsley for this.
How To Make a Loaded Baked Potato Casserole
This impressive-looking cheesy potato side dish only needs to be layered and baked.
- Prep the oven. Preheat it to 375F. Grease a 13×9″ baking dish with butter. Don’t use a larger baking dish because it’ll affect the baking time and texture of the potatoes.
- Assemble it. Layer half of the potatoes in the baking dish. Don’t worry if they overlap slightly. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with garlic on top. Add the cheese and bacon. Layer the rest of the potatoes on top.
- Make the custard. Whisk the milk, eggs, salt, and pepper in a separate bowl until smooth. Pour it over the potatoes and sprinkle with parsley.
- Bake it. Cover the baking dish with foil. Pop it into the oven for 75-90 minutes, or until the the custard sets. Remove the foil and bake it for another 10-15 minutes, or until golden on top.
- Serve. Remove it from the oven. Let it cool for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
Tips & Variations for the Best Potato Casserole
- Slice the potatoes evenly. Aim for ¼-inch slices throughout so they become tender at the same time. A mandoline makes quick work of this, but a sharp knife works too. Thick slices can still be firm in the center by the time the custard has set and the top is beautifully browned.
- Give the custard a little kick. Whisk in smoked paprika, garlic powder, or a small pinch of cayenne before pouring it over the potatoes. Smoked paprika is especially good with the bacon and sharp cheddar.
- Make it even richer. Replace some or all of the milk with half-and-half for a creamier custard. Heavy cream will work too, but expect a much richer casserole.
- Raid the cheese drawer. Cheddar, Monterey Jack, and Gruyère are a fantastic combination, but this casserole is very forgiving when it comes to cheese. Fontina, mozzarella, Muenster, Swiss, or Gouda can all step in. Choose cheeses that melt well, and keep the total amount roughly the same.
- Add caramelized onions. Tuck ¼ to ½ cup between the potato layers with the bacon and cheese. Their sweet, deeply browned flavor is especially good with Gruyère and turns the casserole a little more gratin-like.
- Try roasted garlic. Swap the fresh minced garlic for mashed roasted garlic when you want a sweeter, mellower garlic flavor. Mix it into the custard so it gets distributed throughout the casserole.
- Don’t rush the resting time. Those 15 to 20 minutes after baking matter. The custard continues to set as the casserole cools, so you’ll get creamy layers that hold together when served instead of potatoes swimming in hot liquid.
- Grease the baking dish generously. Butter is the best choice here. Get it into the corners and up the sides of the dish to help prevent sticking while adding a little extra flavor to those browned edges.
Serving Suggestions
Serve it with my Pork Tenderloin with Apples or Seared Pork Medallions. My Rosemary Lemon Roasted Turkey and Garlic Butter Salmon are great too. If you prefer steak, try my New York Strip Steak or Churrasco Steak. Don’t forget to pair the meal with other sides like my Heirloom Tomato Salad or Green Goddess Salad.
How To Store & Reheat Leftovers
- Refrigerate: Let the casserole cool, then cover the baking dish tightly or transfer leftovers to an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 4 days. Keeping the casserole covered helps prevent the potatoes from drying out and absorbing other flavors from the fridge.
- Reheat: For individual servings, add a small splash of milk before microwaving to help loosen the creamy sauce, then heat until warmed through. For several servings, cover the casserole and reheat at 325°F for about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the cover for the last few minutes if you want to bring back some of that golden top.
- Freezing isn’t recommended: The milk-and-egg custard can separate after freezing and thawing, and the potatoes tend to lose their creamy texture. This casserole is much better enjoyed fresh or reheated from the refrigerator.
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Loaded Baked Potato Casserole
Ingredients
- 4 to 6 russet potatoes,, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch thick rounds
- salt and freshly ground black pepper,, to taste
- 2 to 3 cloves garlic,, minced
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese
- ½ cup shredded gruyere cheese
- 8 slices bacon,, cooked to desired crispiness and crumbled
- 2 cups milk
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ teaspoon salt,, or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper,, or to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley,, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375˚F and grease a 13×9 baking dish with butter.
- Layer half of the potato slices on the bottom of the baking dish, overlapping slightly, and season the potatoes with salt and pepper.
- Sprinkle the minced garlic over the potatoes. Next, sprinkle the shredded cheeses and the crumbled bacon over the potatoes.
- Layer the rest of the potato slices, overlapping slightly.
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, salt, and pepper.
- Pour the milk mixture over the potatoes.
- Cover and bake for 75 to 90 minutes or until the custard is cooked and set.
- Remove the foil and cook for 10 to 15 more minutes, or until the top is browned.
- Remove from the oven and let the casserole rest for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Add parsley over the potatoes and serve.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
Can you half the recipe? If so what would the cook time be?
Hi Abby!
You can definitely half it, but I’m not completely sure on the cooking-time. I would suggest to start checking at about the 45-minute mark. You can insert a toothpick in the center of the casserole, and if it comes out clean, it’s done, if it’s wet, give it a few more minutes. I hope this helps. Let me know how it goes!
Thank you 🙂
Made this for dinner tonight it was really good. I just needed to cook it a little longer. I also switched it up a bit I added sour cream in the middle layer and instead of putting the bacon on the inside I waited until it was cooked and added cheese in top and sprinkled the bacon.
This could do with AT LEAST 20 minutes less bake time. The potatoes were absolute mush with your 75-90 + 10-15 uncovered cooking instructions. Could also do with some cheese or bread crumbs on top.
Hi Jared! I’m really sorry that it didn’t turn out for you. I have made this in two different ovens – at my mom’s, it bakes in exactly 90 minutes + 10 more, uncovered. In my oven it bakes at just over 75 minutes and it also needs close to 10 minutes, uncovered. SO, maybe you have a super-oven?? I need to get me one of those! 😀
I’m thinking Jared sliced the potatoes to thin that’s why they came out the way they did!
I put some parmesan cheese on top :3 it was soooo good!
Thank you for this recipe! I surprised my mom with it when she got home from work! We all loved it!
Oh I’m SO happy you enjoyed it!! YAY for MOM! 😀
Should I cover the dish before baking, and does this recipe use fahrenheit, or celsius?
Answered my own questions by attempting. To anyone who sees this, yes, cover the dish, or it’ll cook in under half the time, but the top will be dried out, and the temperature given is in F. Use 190 if you’re using C.
Hi Zero! My apologies, please. I did not see your question. Very often some comments go into a “spam” folder and I don’t see them.
But, as you already figured it out, 🙂 yes, cover the dish and the temp is listed in fahrenheit. Have a great day!
So good! Easy to make. Followed 70 and 15 and they were perfect!
That’s great! I’m very happy you loved it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Thank you, thank you, thank you for this recipe! I made it this weekend and it was a HUGE hit! I used tex mex and mozzarella for the cheese because that’s what I had on hand, and it turned out amazingly. My boyfriend told me the morning after we had it for dinner that he had dreamed about it that night. Oh boy. Looks like it will be on the menu again soon!!
YAY! SO glad you loved it! It’s definitely in my top 5! 😀 Thank you!!!
Wondering if recipe could work using frozen hash browns?
Hi Val! I want to say yes, but because I haven’t tried it, I’m not sure… however, that certainly sounds delicious!! Great idea!
I wanted to try this recipe soooo bad! It looked amazing, and I was right. The only problem however is that it took twice as long to cook! The hubby was starving once 7;30 rolled around and I was out of excuses as to why I kept feeding him sliced bread… Other than that it was very good, specially with the extra amount of bacon added in.
3 hours to cook it?! OH NO! I’m SOOOO sorry it took that long… your poor hubby! At least he waited. 🙂 I wonder what could have caused that? Or is my oven a rock star and bakes things in half the time?! 😉
I would never complain about all those potato dishes. Chicken salad and chocolate…what a combo. I am a chocolate lover. I love the personality you have put into your post! If you have time please feel free to stop by my blog hop Thursday…Inspiration in Progress and I would love for you to add your favorite post to it. 🙂 Have a great day and I hope to see you tomorrow!