Scalloped potatoes are a classic side dish made with thinly sliced potatoes baked in a creamy sauce (cheese optional!). I’ve been making this recipe for as long as I can remember. Originally published in 2019, it has been loved by readers ever since.
If you’ve never made scalloped potatoes from scratch before, you’ll be amazed how easy they are to make. Simple ingredients, tried-and-true steps, and a rich homemade flavor.
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Why This Scalloped Potato Recipe Is So Amazing
- The Secret Sauce: Many recipes use only cream or milk however, when creating this recipe many years ago, I found that the addition of broth makes sauce perfectly rich and light. It’s silky delicious without being too heavy.
- Feelin’ Cheesy? This is a classic scalloped potato recipe with a white sauce however, you can add cheese (see recipe notes) .
- Kitchen tip: Scalloped potatoes will hold their heat for up to 45 minutes, so prepare them early if you need the oven space.
Ingredient Notes
- Potatoes: I use Yukon gold or red potatoes for scalloped potatoes. They have thin skins, so they don’t need to be peeled, and they will hold their shape. Russet or Idaho potatoes can be used and should be peeled; they won’t hold their shape as well but still taste great.
- Onion: Use either white or yellow onion to flavor the sauce. Soften the onion in butter to bring out the natural sweetness.
- Sauce: Milk makes the sauce creamy without being too rich or heavy while broth adds flavor and salt to the sauce. I prefer chicken broth, but vegetable broth can be used.
- Seasonings: The seasonings are simple, and it’s important to salt each layer of potatoes. You can add ½ teaspoon of dried thyme, crushed rosemary, or 1 tablespoon fresh parsley to the sauce if desired.
How To Make Scalloped Potatoes (overview)
Making scalloped potatoes from scratch takes time, but it is easy. There are four basic steps:
- Slice potatoes: Start by thinly slicing the potatoes (a mandoline is helpful).
- Prepare sauce: Next, prepare the cream sauce according to the recipe below.
- Assemble: Layer the potatoes and sauce in a baking dish.
- Bake: Finally, bake the potatoes covered so they become tender and then uncover and continue baking to create a golden brown topping.
This recipe can be prepared up to 48 hours ahead of time.
Prepare the potatoes as directed in the recipe.
Bake the dish covered for 50-60 minutes.
Cool completely on the counter (leave them covered; the steam will help finish cooking). Cover and refrigerate.
To bake, remove the potatoes the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking. Bake uncovered for about 35 to 40 minutes or until heated through.
Add Up to 2 cups of shredded cheese to the sauce or between the layers of potatoes. Remove the sauce from the heat after boiling, and whisk in the cheese. Do not boil the cheese, or it may separate.
I recommend a bold cheese such as sharp cheddar or gruyere.
Prepare the recipe as directed and bake the potatoes for 45 minutes covered and 20 minutes uncovered.
Cool completely, then cover tightly and freeze.
To cook, thaw the potatoes in the fridge overnight and follow the directions below, adding 20 minutes to the covered cooking time.
Store leftover scalloped potatoes in the fridge for up to 4 days.
The main difference between scalloped potatoes and potatoes au gratin is the cheese. Scalloped potatoes don’t generally contain cheese (although you can add cheese if you’d like).
This recipe has a creamy onion sauce; cheese can be added for an au gratin version—check the recipe notes for tips.
Looking for more ways to prep potatoes? Try oven roasted potatoes, creamy mashed potatoes, or crispy smashed potatoes!
Ingredients
- ¼ cup salted butter
- 1 large yellow onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 ¼ teaspoon salt divided
- ½ teaspoon black pepper divided
- 3 pounds Yukon gold potatoes or red potatoes, *see notes, sliced about ⅛-inch thick
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease casserole dish and set aside.
To Make the Sauce
- In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion begins to soften, about 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes more.
- Combine the milk and broth. Gradually add it to the flour mixture, whisking until smooth after each addition. It will be very thick at first; continue adding a little bit of liquid at a time while whisking.
- Once all of the liquid has been added, increase the heat to medium and bring to a boil while whisking. Stir in ½ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon pepper and let the sauce boil for 1 minute.
To Assemble the Potatoes
- Layer ⅓ of the potatoes in the prepared dish, seasoning with ¼ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon pepper. Pour ⅓ of the cream sauce over top.
- Repeat the layers, including salt and pepper, ending with sauce. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes.
- Uncover and bake for an additional 35-45 minutes or until golden brown and potatoes are tender. Broil for 3-4 minutes if desired.
- Allow the potatoes to rest for at least 20 minutes before serving.
Video
Notes
- Prepare the potatoes as directed in the recipe.
- Bake the dish covered for 50-60 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and cool completely on the counter (leave them covered; the steam will help finish cooking). Cover and refrigerate.
- On the day of serving, remove from the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking. Bake uncovered for about 35 to 40 minutes or until heated through.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Casserole, Side Dish
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Sauce came out watery as hell didnt come out like a roux at all. Followed directions and formula to a tee and its a watery mess of trash. Not thick at all added slowly waited long and ruined was cooking this for thanksgiving and now am out of the one dish im excited for due to the poor instructions.
Hi Tyrese, sorry this dish didn’t work out for you! Other readers have made this dish without that problem so I can’t say for sure what happened.
I thought the same was happening to me and normally I would add more flour but it took longer for mine to thicken up – approx 5 minutes actually which threw me off. But in the end mine turned out great – I did add half a package of onion soup mix to the mixture once it was thickened – and when layering I added fresh parmasean cheese and in the middle shredded Swiss cheese. final product was superb…thanks for the recipe :)
So happy it worked out for you, Joanne!
I make this recipe at every holiday feast. 50+ years ago, my mother would put sliced potatoes in the baking pan, dot with pats of butter, sprinkle on flour with salt and pepper, and repeat layers. When done, she would pour milk over everything. Was delicious!
That’s how I remember my grandmother doing it too! Always came out perfect!
Hello Jo,
Are you saying there is no making a pre-sauce? Just throw it all in a baking pan? Are the potato slices cooked ahead of time? That’s basically almost no cooking prep work. Would love to hear your reply. Thanks.
Perfect!!!
Never made scalloped potatoes before and this was the perfect recipe. I added Parmesan cheese to the cream sauce for a twist. It was a big hit at our ladies luncheon. Makes a lot. There were 8 of us and still had leftovers.
These potatoes were delicious. I put a layer of shredded Cheddar on the top, but not necessary.
took way longer to cook than the recipes says. I sliced the potatoes very thin and they came out crispy until I cooked for an additional hour.
I’ve made this countless times and haven’t had this problem (scalloped potatoes should cook in 90 minutes) so I can’t say for sure what went wrong for you.
Was the dish made ahead and chilled before baking (this can add additional cooking time) and was it baked covered for the first 45 minutes and then uncovered for the last 45 minutes? Did you add anything acidic to the sauce (such as sour cream), this can cause the potatoes to not cook properly.
Hi :) There are so many different types of onions these days … what do you mean by “one large onion”? Regular yellow cooking onion? How many cups? Thank you!
Either white or yellow onion will work in this recipe. A large onion is approximately 2 cups chopped but if it’s a little more or a little less, it works just fine in this recipe.
Thank you for your response re: how many cups of onions – very helpful.
I prepared two pans this evening in preparation for a celebration of life tomorrow. I baked them for 50 minutes to get a head start and plan on finishing the cooking tomorrow. As I was about to cover and put them in the fridge overnight, I just realized that they were supposed to be baked covered with foil! I’m so upset that I screwed up the recipe and dried them out :( It took me so long to make this dish and I was exhausted, I just put them in the oven without re- checking the baking instructions. How do I fix this? Do you think they will be dry? I worked so hard on this and wanted them to be perfect because it was their mother’s favourite.
It took me an hour to peel/cut the potatoes, cut the onions, and garlic. Then another 30 minutes x 2 to make the sauce – whisking each pot for 25 minutes to get it thick. Even if I just made one pan, it would take way longer than the estimated 25 minutes to prepare.
Oh no Joanne, these potatoes are very forgiving and if you’d like to add moisture since they were cooked uncovered, you can drizzle some cream on top and cover them with foil tomorrow as they heat, I am sure they will be lovely. I hope your guests enjoy the potatoes and all goes well with your celebration tomorrow.
Can you half this recipe? It’s just me and my husband
Yes, this recipe can be halved (adjust the servings in the PRINT screen to half the ingredients list). The baking time may need to be slightly adjusted, you’ll want to bake them until tender when poked with a fork.
The best I’ve ever tasted! this will be the only one I use from here on!
I was wondering if I could use all milk and omit the broth as we have vegetarian in our house
Hi Kim, I would replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth. Enjoy!
Food is great for potato lovers, salt lovers, and butter lovers.
Love this recipe, could I use this recipe but cook it in the crockpot ?
Hi Sam, we haven’t made this recipe in the slow cooker but we have a Crock Pot Scalloped Potato recipe that is so delicious!
This was the best ever recipe of scalloped potatoes!!
This recipe is for 8 people but I have 14 coming. can this be tripled and baked in a the same casserole dish? how would that affect the baking time?
Hi Sue, this can be doubled and I would double everything but you might like to cook it in two 9×13 pans if possible to ensure the potatoes in the middle cook through without overcooking the outside. It may take a bit longer so I would suggest allowing extra time. If they’re done early they stay warm for quite a while. Let us know how it goes!
Very good. I sprinkled grated cheddar cheese on top before baking
I’ve made this recipe before and it’s a great one. Can I make it and partially bake it the day before and finish the cooking the next day
Hi Betty, to make ahead we bake the dish covered for 50-60 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely on the counter. Cover well and refrigerate. On the day of serving, remove from the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking. Bake uncovered about 35 minutes or until heated through.
Can I make this ahead of time and cook later?
Hi Debbie, we have only tried making this recipe when baking ahead, but others readers have with success. If baking ahead, we bake the dish covered for 50-60 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely on the counter. Cover well and refrigerate. On the day of serving, remove from the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking. Bake uncovered about 35 minutes or until heated through.
I’ve made this several times now and it’s always a big hit. My only adjustment is to snip the leaves off fresh thyme sprigs and scatter a few of them in each layer and on top.
I made them for a potluck a day in advance, assembled in my ceramic CrockPot liner and baked it in my oven according to the recipe, minus about 20 mins. Then I broiled it a few mins, just till the top was lightly browned. I let it cool uncovered, then covered the surface with plastic wrap, then into the fridge overnight. At the get-together the next day I set the crock on low for the 2 & 1/2 hrs before lunch. My crock went home empty. Thanks for another super recipe, Holly.
A great hit in our house. I planned to add ham, but my ham had been put in the freezer. My last minute backup was skinless kielbasa. I did mix after layering to ensure full coating. I also added about 20 minutes cooking for the right color and tenderness, probably because of adding the kielbasa. Delish!
I would love to get this potat recipie
Hi Cynthia, the full recipe can be found by scrolling towards the bottom of the writing or by using the Jump to Recipe button at the top of the page. I hope that helps!
I want to make these for Sunday’s dinner. I planned on making them on Tuesday and freezing them. Do you recommend a specific type of potato to avoid mushiness?
I would suggest white or Yukon gold potatoes for scalloped potatoes. Russets or baking potatoes are more grainy and tend to fall apart.
Hi Cathy, I use Yukon Gold and have never had them go mushy.
Big hit! Made the 3X recipe, added thyme. Very yummy.