Au Gratin Hash Brown Casserole (AKA Funeral Potatoes)

Published November 10, 2017. Updated August 21, 2019

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Au Gratin Hash Brown Casserole is the definition of comfort food! Shredded potatoes are coated with a rich and creamy sauce then it’s covered with a crispy topping and baked until warm and delicious.

Au Gratin Hash Brown Casserole

A Different Kind of Hash Brown Casserole

I can’t count how many times I had these at different get togethers growing up. I’m pretty sure that any church dinner party that ever happens in Utah, these kind of potatoes are there.

But honestly they are one of the most popular pot luck foods around here and for good reason – they are so delicious!

The thing I never liked about them though was that cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup that the recipe always had.

So my version is cream of whatever free. It’s just made with a roux and milk mixture instead, then a generous dose of tangy sour cream is mixed in along with a nice cheesy blend of sharp cheddar and parmesan cheese.

And you don’t even need to thinly slice or shred potatoes. It just uses the frozen pre-shredded hash browns.

Au Gratin Hash Brown Casserole

Ingredients Needed for This Recipe

  • Frozen shredded hash brown potatoes
  • Butter
  • Yellow onion
  • Flour
  • Milk
  • Sharp cheddar cheese
  • Parmesan cheese
  • Sour cream
  • Salt and pepper
  • Cornflakes
  • Parsley

How to Make Hash Brown Casserole

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Melt 4 Tbsp butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and saute until softened.
  • Add in flour and cook 1 minute.  Whisk in milk then cook stirring constantly until mixture comes to a boil.
  • Remove from heat, stir in cheeses.
  • Stir in sour cream. Season mixture with salt and pepper to taste.
  • Place hash browns in a large mixing bowl then pour in milk mixture and toss to evenly coat. Transfer to baking dish and spread even.
  • Crush corn flakes to pebble size bits.
  • Add 3 Tbsp melted butter to cornflake mixture and toss to evenly coat.
  • Sprinkle cornflake mixture evenly over casserole.
  • Bake in preheated oven until hot throughout.
  • Garnish with parsley and serve warm.

Au Gratin Hash Brown Casserole

It may seem like such a random side dish but it really is so good. I crave this stuff. And I don’t think it’s just because I was raised on it.

Those creamy, cheese potatoes layered with crunchy buttery cornflakes – I mean how could it not be good?

Do a trial run for dinner this weekend to see for yourself, you want these on the Thanksgiving menu this year!

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Au Gratin Hash Brown Casserole
5 from 2 votes

Au Gratin Hash Brown Casserole

These Au Gratin Hash Brown Potatoes are the definition of comfort food! Like a loaded baked potato in casserole form! Perfect for parties and holidays.
Servings: 12
Prep15 minutes
Cook1 hour
Ready in: 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Melt 4 Tbsp butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and saute until softened, about 5 - 6 minutes. 
  • Add in flour and cook stirring constantly, 1 minute. While whisking pour in milk then cook stirring constantly until mixture comes to a boil.
  • Remove from heat, add in cheddar cheese and parmesan cheese and stir until melted. 
  • Stir in sour cream. Season mixture with salt and pepper to taste (you want it on the salty side as it will be seasoning the potatoes).
  • Place hash browns in a large mixing bowl then pour in milk mixture and toss to evenly coat. Transfer to a 13 by 9-inch baking dish (no need to grease dish) and spread into and even layer.
  • Place cornflakes in a gallon size resealable bag, seal bag and crush with a rolling pin to roughly pebble size bits. 
  • Add 3 Tbsp melted butter to cornflake mixture then seal bag and toss to evenly coat with butter. Sprinkle cornflake mixture evenly over casserole.
  • Bake in preheated oven until hot throughout, about 40 - 50 minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve warm.
  • Recipe source: Cooking Classy
Nutrition Facts
Au Gratin Hash Brown Casserole
Amount Per Serving
Calories 300 Calories from Fat 153
% Daily Value*
Fat 17g26%
Saturated Fat 10g63%
Cholesterol 49mg16%
Sodium 338mg15%
Potassium 347mg10%
Carbohydrates 26g9%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 4g4%
Protein 7g14%
Vitamin A 760IU15%
Vitamin C 9.2mg11%
Calcium 248mg25%
Iron 3.7mg21%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition values are estimates only. See full disclaimer here.

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27 Comments

  • NY cook

    Planning to make this tonight, but just wanted to comment on the review that criticized the serving size of 12. Serving sizes are so subjective anyway, I usually use the pan size to figure out how many servings it will yield. Depends so much on who you’re feeding, what else is being served, etc. No need to be so critical of a serving size listed on a recipe. And for the record, this looks so yummy, I’m thinking a 9×13 will serve about 6 around here :)

  • Cat

    Looks delish and easy…what can be used instead of the cornflakes for the topping?

  • Joel

    I knew someone would have had this idea before I did and have a recipe for it. I can’t wait to make this for Easter.

  • Name Withheld

    If you are using shredded real cheese, you might try using a small amount of sodium citrate when you add the cheese. It will make the cheese melt like nacho cheese or velveeta and it should stay smooth and creamy even after cooling and when you reheat it. Sodium citrate is super cheap on Amazon for a fair sized bag, too.

  • carol derry

    Not every one cooks for 12, could you cut the no. of servings to4 and still keep, C (1/4 -1/3- 1/2 – 2/3 & 3/4, Tbs, (1 TBS, 1Tsp, 1/2 tsp, 1/4 tsp, and maybe 1/8? This would make it easier to understand and I’m sure you want people to use your recipes. Or do you. Maybe you just want them to see how smarter you!

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      Where I live this is actually a super popular dish for family get togethers and potlucks so it is generally served for 12 or more (not so much this past year though). Anywho you can adjust the servings by moving the toggle bar after you click on that serving number.

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      Yes, then you’ll want to let rest at room temp while oven preheats and it will probably need about 10 – 15 minutes longer to bake.