A Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole is perfect when you need to feed a crowd first thing in the morning.
This breakfast casserole recipe is a full meal with eggs, sausage, peppers, and hashbrowns all topped with cheese and baked until perfect golden brown.
Best of all, prepare ahead of time and in the morning, just pop it into the oven. Serve with a fresh fruit salad, and keep the coffee coming (or mimosas)!
Ingredients in Breakfast Casserole
Hashbrowns – I use shredded hashbrowns, but any style of hash browns work well in this recipe, or even leftover home fries or roasted potatoes!
Sausage – I prefer pork sausage (like Jimmy Dean’s breakfast sausage). Swap it out for turkey sausage, ham, or crispy bacon (or even leftover ground beef from last night’s tacos)!
Veggies – I add bell peppers to this casserole but add whatever veggies you have on hand. Mushrooms (cook them first so they don’t get watery), asparagus, or even steamed broccoli are great.
Cheese – Shredded sharp cheddar cheese is our favorite, but pepper jack cheese or other bold flavorful cheeses work well. Save a little for the top to get a nice golden layer of cheese.
This hash brown casserole recipe is very forgiving; you can change the add-ins according to your preferences or what you have on hand. Try leftover meats, veggies, and cheeses of all kinds. Just chop or shred and toss them into the mix.
How to Make Breakfast Casserole
Frozen hash browns make this breakfast casserole super easy to whip up.
- Spread thawed shredded hash browns in the bottom of a baking dish per the recipe below. Mix in cheese, sausage, and pepper/onions.
- Whisk eggs, milk, and seasonings in a large bowl.
- Pour over the hashbrown mixture.
Bake Now or Make Ahead
The great thing about this hash brown breakfast casserole recipe is that it can be baked right away or prepared ahead and baked before brunch. It’s perfect for holidays like Christmas morning or even Easter.
Cook it now or refrigerate overnight Once prepared, bake right away or you can cover, refrigerate overnight, and bake this breakfast casserole fresh in the morning.
To Bake Now Pour the egg mixture over top and bake. Unlike strata or french toast, you do not need to wait as there is no bread to soak up the mixture. So just make and bake.
To Bake Later Cover the mixture tightly and refrigerate for up to 48 hours (or 3 days if using pasteurized egg product). Remove from the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking (while preheating the oven).
This bakes at 350°F for 55-65 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. If you’ve let it sit overnight, it may need a few extra minutes if it’s still quite chilled from the fridge.
To prepare in the Crock Pot, I recommend our slow cooker breakfast casserole.
Just like egg muffins, leftover breakfast casserole is perfect for busy weekday mornings. Keep leftovers in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave or the oven.
Yes, you sure can! This will last in the freezer for up to four months. Wrap individual pieces and store in freezer bags. Defrost in the fridge overnight and reheat in the microwave or the oven.
More Easy Make-Ahead Breakfast Casseroles
If you’re tired of the same old breakfast or want a meal to prep ahead, you’ll love these breakfast casserole recipes. They’re perfect for reheating throughout the week or for a special holiday breakfast and best of all, they’re all prepped ahead of time.
Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 20 ounces shredded hash browns thawed
- 1 pound sausage cooked, crumbled, and drained
- ¼ cup onion finely diced
- ½ red bell pepper diced
- ½ green bell pepper diced
- 2 cups cheddar cheese shredded, divided use
- 8 eggs
- 1 can evaporated milk 12 ounces, or 1 ⅓ cups milk
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning or your favorite herbs/spices (optional)
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (if baking immediately). Grease a 9×13 inch pan or a 3qt baking dish or spray with cooking spray.
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Brown the sausage, breaking it up with a spoon, until no pink remains. Drain fat.
- In the prepared dish, add the hashbrowns, cooked sausage, onions, bell peppers, and 1 ½ cups of cheese. Gently mix the ingredients together and spread evenly in the pan.
- In a large bowl, add the eggs, evaporated milk, salt & pepper, and Italian seasoning to a large bowl. Whisk until well combined.
- Pour the egg mixture over the hashbrown mixture and sprinkle the remaining cheese over top.
- Cover the dish with foil and refrigerate overnight if desired, or bake immediately.
- Bake uncovered for 55-65 minutes or until cooked through.
Video
Notes
- The casserole can be assembled and baked immediately or covered and refrigerated for up to two days before baking. If using pasteurized egg product, it can be prepared three days in advance.
- Sausage can be swapped for 1lb of bacon, cooked crisp. You can use any type of shredded cheese you have on hand.
- If the casserole is refrigerated overnight, remove it from the fridge 30 minutes before baking. It may require an extra 10-15 minutes of cooking time.
- Evaporated milk can be substituted with 1 1/3 cups of light cream, milk, or non-dairy milk of your choice.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Breakfast, Casserole
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
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I made this first time in 67 years . Never thought I could get it so good. I added left over rotelle dip i had made and used cooked rumbled bacon and sausage some cajun spice and 4 people ate the casserole up
Will be using a 30 oz. bag of frozen shredded potatoes instead of 20 oz., will it change texture? Should I add more of something else? Thanks
Hi Sandy, using more potatoes will change the texture of the casserole. If you want to use the full bag, I would use 50% more of all of the other ingredients too (for example instead of 1 pound of sausage, 1.5 pounds of sausage). I hope this helps!
thx,for letting me subscribe, love cooking for family!!:
I put it together exactly as the recipe read, but seemed like it did not have enough of the egg custard mix, so I mixed two more eggs, milk and spices. Hope it turns out.
Made this exactly as written and everyone loved it so much we made it a second day. This will be our go to breakfast when the famly gathers. Ours was well done at 55 minutes.
Made this for breakfast for my family on Christmas and it was a hit! Couldn’t find shredded hashbrowns so I used tater tots instead and did not grease the pan. Will definitely continue to make this and will likely stick with the tater tot substitute too since we liked it so much!
Made per the recipe but found it dry and flavorless. Quite a bummer for Christmas morning
Sorry that you didn’t enjoy this breakfast casserole as much as we do Kels. Thanks for trying it.
Looks delicious! Unfortunately my husband doesn’t like any cheese but mozzarella! Not sure it would work with that cheese.
Mozzarella is milder in flavor so it won’t have as much of a cheesy flavor but it should still work. Let us know how it goes!
Made this for Christmas brunch. Absolutely delicious and so easy to make.
Cooking a half batch now. Would I still cook 55-65 for half in a 9×9?
You can reduce the cooking time. I would suggest checking it after 35 minutes to ensure it’s heated through and melted in the middle.
i made 4 9×13 foil pans exactly like the recipe… absolutely delicious…no the group of 40 said … fabulous!!!
I did make one ..Plain Jane…. only with eggs, S&P, cheese and hash browns.
Got it in the oven right now, can’t wait to try! Thank you and Merry Christmas!!!
Same! Using this for Christmas Eve brunch. So delicious and Merry Christmas everyone!
I also changed the Italian seasoning for some ground mustard and paprika. So good! Thanks for the recipe!
I will be making this hashbrown casserole in the morning on Christmas! Will let you know how it turns out…ty
I’m making one pan as written (we’ve had it before – delicious), but I need to make another pan for an egg and dairy allergy kid. Any ideas about subbing out the eggs? Can’t do JUST egg – legume allergy. I make dairy-free condensed cream soups for him – might that work to keep the casserole together?
I would make it more creamy (think like the consistency of mac and cheese) and wouldn’t be able to be cut into squares, but it would be delicious. This hashbrown casserole might give you some inspiration.
Does it reheat well? I’m worried about transporting it with uncooked eggs. Might be sloppy. Hoping to cook it tonight and have tomorrow or the following day. Thanks!
I have reheated the pieces, and they do reheat well. If you’re concerned about transporting, another option would be to put the liquid (eggs/milk/seasoning) in a separate container with a lid and pour it on once you arrive at your destination if you have time to bake it there.
I have been making this for 40 years. It reheats well. Yes it could be sloppy, but holds together well. Sitting overnight is best. If you want fluffy to it, add more dry mustard (secret)
Merry Christmas
Delicious!!!
Planning on making this for Christmas morning breakfast. I can’t get shredded hashbrowns. Would regular hashbrowns work? If so.. how much would you recommend?
Any style of frozen hashbrowns will work. You will need 20 oz.
This is such a great recipe and the hashbrowns can easily be subbed out for almost anything: zucchini, rice, quinoa. I’ve made egg bakes before and love to add in banana peppers or jalapeño for a little kick, but never thought to layer anything on the bottom. Such a great idea for Christmas morning. thank you!
going to make it for Christmas.
Enjoy Cindy! It makes the perfect Christmas morning breakfast
Can I use freshly shredded hash browns in this recipe?
I personally haven’t tried this Jodi, but other readers have used fresh shredded potatoes with great results! You might like to microwave or pan fry them slightly to soften a bit first. We would love to hear how it works out for you.