The Best Cheesy Potato Casserole recipe that you need for every holiday!

Cheesy potatoes. Let’s talk about them. This incredible holiday casserole was not one I grew up with. In fact, I really feel like I missed out on like 20 years of this deliciousness and now I am making up for it! Cheesy Potatoes were first introduced to me during Friendsgiving years ago by my friend Lauren. She later went on to be one of my bridesmaids and best friends… I can neither confirm nor deny that the Cheesy Potatoes had anything to do with this 😉

I have asked her to bring her family’s Cheesy Potatoes to every Friendsgiving since then and they are something I look forward to every year! She was kind enough to share her recipe with me and I made a few tiny tweaks but this recipe has ALL the holiday feels and plus it’s super easy to make!

The Best Cheesy Potatoes Casserole

Seriously, where has this casserole been all my life? I grew up with mashed potatoes, which are delicious, but why have just one potato when you can have two! Plus, hello cheese! Basically, this holiday casserole needs to become part of your holiday tradition every year. Everyone will thank you. Trust me.

I made two tiny tweaks to this incredibly delicious and easy recipe. One, I switched out my Cream of Chicken Soup Substitute for the canned stuff. And drumroll please… I added more cheese! The original recipe calls for two cups of shredded cheddar mixed into the casserole, which I kept, but I added an additional cup of shredded cheddar underneath the corn flake topping because it’s the holidays and calories don’t count. Also, the cheese near the topping gets the tiniest bit crispy adding some nice texture.

Lauren and her family add jalapeños to half of their casserole for a spicy kick! I love this addition! So if your crew digs spice, add half a cup of chopped jalapeños to one side of the casserole. You can add some  slices of jalapeños to the top of the half with the jalapeños so everyone knows which side is which. Or add a full cup to the whole thing. You can used fresh or pickled jalapeños, whichever you prefer!

Best part of this recipe? It uses lots of pre-made ingredients which means less prep time for you and you can mix it all together in one bowl and pop this into the oven! So easy. Yes, you can make ahead and keep in the fridge for up to three days then add the topping and bake when you are ready to serve.

The Best Cheesy Potato Casserole

Makes one 9×13 casserole

Ingredients: 

2 lb frozen hash browns

1 cup Cream of Chicken Soup Substitute

16 oz or 2 cups of sour cream

1 stick or 1/2 cup of melted butter

1/2 cup of white onion, chopped

3 cups sharp cheddar, shredded, divided

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

Topping:

1 stick or 1/2 cup melted butter

2 cups corn flakes, crushed

Optional:

1/2 cup diced (pickled or fresh) jalapeños + sliced jalapeños for top if desired

• If you want the entire casserole spicy, I suggest adding one cup diced jalapeños to the whole thing

Directions: 

1. In a large bowl, mix hash browns, Cream of Chicken Soup, sour cream, butter, onion, salt and pepper together with 2 cups of the cheddar until well combined. Put into a well greased casserole dish. Top with remaining cheddar. Option: Mix in diced jalapeños.
2. In a separate bowl, crush corn flakes, then mix together with remaining melted butter. Spread on top of casserole. Option: Top with sliced jalapeños.
3. Bake for 50 minutes at 350 degrees or until cheese is bubbling around the edges and topping is golden brown.
   

   The Best Cheesy Potato Casserole

   The Best Cheesy Potato Casserole recipe that you need for every holiday!

   4.17 from 68 votes

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   Prep Time 15 minutes mins

   Cook Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

   Course casserole, Side Dish

   Cuisine American

   Servings 16

   Calories 313 kcal

   Ingredients

     

   1x2x3x

   • 2 lb frozen hash browns
   • 1 cup Cream of Chicken Soup Substitute
   • 16 oz sour cream
   • 8 tbsp unsalted butter melted
   • 1/2 cup white onion chopped
   • 2 cups sharp cheddar shredded
   • 1 teaspoon salt
   • 1 teaspoon black pepper

   Topping

   • 8 tbsp unsalted butter melted and cooled
   • 2 cups corn flakes crushed
   • 1 cups cheddar shredded

   Optional

   • 1/2 cup pickled or fresh jalapeños diced (if going spicy on the whole casserole use 1 cup)
   • 9 slices of jalapeños for topping (double if going spicy on whole casserole)

   Instructions

    

   • In a large bowl, mix hash browns, Cream of Chicken Soup, sour cream, butter, onion, salt and pepper together with 2 cups of the cheddar until well combined. Put into a well greased casserole dish. Top with remaining cheddar. Option: Mix in diced jalapeños.
   • In a separate bowl, crush corn flakes, then mix together with remaining melted butter. Spread on top of casserole. Option: Top with sliced jalapeños.
   • Bake for 50 minutes at 350 degrees or until cheese is bubbling around the edges and topping is golden brown.

   Nutrition

   Calories: 313kcalCarbohydrates: 16gProtein: 8gFat: 25gSaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 68mgSodium: 392mgPotassium: 331mgFiber: 1gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 870IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 194mgIron: 2mg

   Keyword casserole, cheese, holiday, potatoes

   Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

                      

Tell me about your favorite potato side dish in the comments!