But the other non-negotiable for me each Easter, Christmas, Thanksgiving and — let’s be real — any night of the year that I’m craving some creamy, garlicky, cheesy comfort food?
Scalloped potatoes. ♡
Specifically, these scalloped potatoes (which are technically potatoes au gratin). In my humble opinion, they are simply the best. And in the years since I originally posted this recipe here on the blog, thousands of you have also tried them and agreed! So today, I thought I’d bump this recipe back to the top of the stack for those of you who might be new to the blog and looking for a tried and true recipe to make this weekend. As someone who has made these dozens and dozens of times, I can vouch — they won’t let you down.
Scalloped Potatoes Recipe | 1-Minute Video
Scalloped Potatoes Ingredients:
The ingredients to make this classic scalloped potatoes recipe are pretty simple. You’ll need:
Yukon gold potatoes: I prefer these to Russets because of their nice creamy texture and buttery flavor. Be sure to slice them uniformly — about 1/4-inch thick — so that they will cook evenly.
Shredded cheese: It’s important to have a good melty cheese for these. I have always preferred a nice sharp cheddar (not one that has been aged, since those don’t melt as well). But I have also made these with mozzarella, gouda, fontina and gruyere, and all have been delicious. So feel free to pick your favorite, or use a mix! Plus, some freshly-grated Parmesan is also a must.
Sliced onion: For extra flavor. I always cook the onion in the sauce, and then strain it out and add it to the middle layer of the potatoes, so that there aren’t a bunch of onion slices sitting on the top layer.
Garlic: If you ask me, the more the merrier. The recipe calls for 4 cloves, but I’ve used up to 8 before. :)
Fresh thyme: I’ve always used fresh thyme as my main seasoning for scalloped potatoes, but you could also use a teaspoon of dried thyme instead. Or any other favorite fresh herbs or dried seasoning blends! (I occasionally love adding a teaspoon of Cajun seasoning to my sauce — it’s delicious.)
Cream sauce: In lieu of heavy cream, my sauce for this recipe calls for a roux with butter and flour, whole milk and chicken stock (or vegetable stock).
How To Make Scalloped Potatoes:
To make this scalloped potatoes recipe, simply…
Make the cream sauce. Sauté onion and garlic in butter until softened. Then stir in the flour to form a roux and help to thicken the sauce, followed by the stock, milk, salt, pepper and thyme. You want to cook the sauce until it just reaches a simmer. (Don’t let it boil, otherwise it can “break” and become watery once baked.) Then remove it from the heat until you’re ready to put it to use.
Layer the potatoes. Spread half of the sliced potatoes in an even layer on the bottom of the pan. Top evenly with half of the cream sauce. (I usually strain out all of the onions and add them here too.) Then sprinkle evenly with 1 cupof the shredded cheddar cheese, and all of the Parmesan cheese. Top evenly with the remaining sliced potatoes, the other half of the cream sauce, and the remaining 1 cup of cheddar cheese.
Bake: Cover the pan lightly with aluminum foil and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the sauce is all bubbly around the edges. Remove the foil and bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through and the cheese on top is nice and golden. (If the cheese starts to get too brown on top, just lightly cover the top with a sheet of foil again until the potatoes are ready to go.)
Cool. Transfer the pan to a wire cooling rack and sprinkle with the remaining teaspoon of thyme and extra Parmesan.
Serve. This casserole is definitely best fresh out of the oven, so dive in while it’s nice and warm!
Possible Recipe Variations:
There are all sorts of delicious ways that you can customize these homemade scalloped potatoes if you would like. For example, feel free to…
Add bacon or ham: Diced cooked bacon or ham would be a delicious addition here! (Or go for the gold and make scalloped potatoes with ham and bacon!)
Add greens: Fresh kale or baby spinach would also be delicious. Just stir a large handful to the sauce before layering the potatoes.
Add pesto: For an extra herby twist, feel free to stir 1/4 cup of basil pesto into the sauce.
Use half sweet potatoes: I also love making a version of this dish with half Yukon gold and half sweet potatoes. The sweet/savory combo is such a winner.
Use a different cheese: Mozzarella, gouda, fontina or gruyere would also be delicious in place of the sharp cheddar. Or you could also sprinkle some extra crumbled/diced brie, goat cheese, or feta into the casserole.
Use cream: Feel free to sub in heavy cream for half of the milk for an even creamier dish.
Make it gluten-free: Just use a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend (in place of the standard AP flour). Or whisk 2 tablespoons of cornstarch into the cold milk before adding it to the sauce.
Make-Ahead Instructions:
Over the years, I’ve had lots of you ask if you can prep this recipe in advance — and the answer is yes! For make-ahead scalloped potatoes, just bake the scalloped potatoes and let them cool completely to room temperature. Then cover tightly and refrigerate for up to 3 days. And on the day you are ready to serve them, bake the pan covered (with foil) at 350° for 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are warmed through.
More Potato Recipes:
If you love this recipe, be sure to check out some of my other potato faves including:
4 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes, sliced into 1/8-inch rounds
2 cups freshly-grated sharp cheddar cheese*, divided (feel free to add more cheese if you’d like)
1/2 cup freshly-grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving
Instructions
Prep oven and baking dish: Heat oven to 400°F. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray, and set it aside.
Sauté the onion and garlic. Melt butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add onion, and sauté for 4-5 minutes until soft and translucent. Add garlic and sauté for an additional 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Stir in the flour until it is evenly combined, and cook for 1 more minute.
Simmer the sauce. Gradually pour in the stock, and whisk until combined. Add in the milk, salt, pepper, and 1 teaspoon thyme, and whisk until combined. Continue cooking for an additional 1-2 minutes until the sauce just barely begins to simmer around the edges of the pan and thickens. (Avoid letting it reach a boil.) Then remove from heat and set aside.
Layer the potatoes. Spread half of the sliced potatoes in an even layer on the bottom of the pan. Top evenly with half of the cream sauce. (I usually strain out all of the onions and add them here too.) Then sprinkle evenly with 1 cupof the shredded cheddar cheese, and all of the Parmesan cheese. Top evenly with the remaining sliced potatoes, the other half of the cream sauce, and the remaining 1 cup of cheddar cheese.
Bake: Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. The sauce should be nice and bubbly around the edges. Then remove the foil and bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through.
Cool. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack, and sprinkle with the remaining teaspoon of thyme and extra Parmesan.
Shredded cheese: As always when melting shredded cheese into a recipe, it’s best if you grate the cheese yourself just before adding it to the recipe. Store-bought shredded cheese usually contains a coating that prevents it from melting smoothly.
The best scalloped potato recipe I’ve ever made!! Fabulous!,
Neena —
Excellent recipe! Family fave now! I layer up the potatoes a bit more than what the recipe says. Broiling is a must to crisp it up a bit!
Crowhouse —
Agreed! I had to improvise some of it, but a great recipe overall. Trust the recipe. I thought the recipe didn’t call for enough of the ingredients while making it. In the end it came out perfect. Delicious.
These potatoes were delicious. However, I did take your advise and shredded my own cheddar cheese. My potatoes ended up being so greasy on top. Had an entire layer of oil that I had to drain off. I then broiled them to crisp them. I would make them again but would prefer to not have all the oil. Any idea as to why this happened?
sue —
I believe it was the cheddar cheese that let off that oil. I also thought that scalloped potatoes had no cheese in them. Au Gratin has cheese. If you like the cheese I would suggest using a less oily type like mild cheddar.
Kaci —
Cheese often does that on my dishes. I sometimes lay a pice of paper towel over it to absorb. But most of the time, I don’t and everything is just fine.
Charles M Herndon —
I actually added some American cheese slices, tore into pieces on the lower layer and mixed in with the food processor for the top layer of cheddar. The sodium citrate in the “singles” helps make the cheddar more melty and less greasy.
Made these for my wife, she said they were the best scalloped potatoes she’d ever eaten in her life. Now she wants them whenever we have friends over and for her “Birthday at home dinner “, Thanks, getting lots of brownie points!
Hope —
Made this recipe but for some reason it looks super super wet? Like it didn’t look wet until 30 minutes in the oven when I took off the tin foil and now it looks like soup 😂 still tasty though. Probably my fault. I let me potatoes sit in cold water while I was prepping everything
Thank you for making this recipe so easy to follow. I’ve never made them before but always wanted to. I have made it twice now and it’s simply delicious!!
I’m excited about this so far….
It looks and smells amazing. My only concern is I went to check the doneness of the potato and the top layer was perfect and so good but then I pulled one out from underneath, not the very bottom of the pan, but just under the top layer, and the potato is not done.
I used 4 lb just as the recipe said. I wonder if there’s something I did wrong? I gave it a light stir and put it back in for 10 minutes and I’m hoping it will be good but I’m going to lose that top cheddar cheese yumminess…
Molly —
Thoughts from a baker:
I would make sure you are setting the dish on the middle of the oven (you can always broil for 5mins at the end to get a crispier top).
Were you using a 13×9 dish?
You can always try slicing the potatoes smaller, as that might effect the cook.
My only other thought is using an oven thermometer to test your ovens actual temperature. Not all ovens are the same and sometimes they get funny with time.
I hope this helps, if not sorry for making you read this!
Christa Estee —
We had the exact same problem and I definitely used 4 pounds. We put them back in for another 10… still not done. 20…still not done. :/ really bummed
I’ve never commented before on a recipe, but these are the BEST thing I’ve ever tasted!!! I used 3% milk…and a mix of cheddar and gruyere cheese. absolutely amazing!!!!!!!
Tasted fantastic! Took more than 15 to prep. and had to cook more like an hour and 15 minutes for the potatoes to be done, well worth it though! I will add this to my favorites.
Wow!
I’ve been searching through 5 scalloped potato recipes and every single one is different so I had to end up writing down my own recipe (combining a bit of each.), to suit my taste… then I stumbled upon this one. It included everything PLUS thyme! That’s my favourite herb being originally from the islands and all. I would never thought to put that in scalloped potatoes. Plus you included onions and/or garlic (which some recipes didn’t), but is a must.
I will probably also boil everything together – potatoes and sauce, for a few minutes before pouring it all in a pan to bake to guarantee doneness.
I love this recipe! Have made it twice so far, can’t stop eating them.
One quesiton: why does the top of the blog page say 1/4 inch rounds, but the recipe card itself says 1/8 inch rounds? (confused me this go around, bc i sliced into 1/4 inch rounds, double checked, and then sliced again in half and it was very tedious and confusing)
These were delicious but took me way longer to prep and cook than the estimated time here. It probably took me 15 minutes just to slice 4 pounds of potatoes! Total prep time was closer to 45 minutes, and cook time was closer to an hour and ten minutes.
This is the best recipe ever. I have made this several times now and guests and family cannot get enough. I add sautéed diced onions to layers and Parmesan and grated cheese on top layer,
One of my longstanding favorite scalloped potatoes recipe. I basically have memorized it but return to make sure I have the baking temps and times just right. Thank you!
This was the first time taking a crack at making scalloped potatoes! I used baking dish with lid and fancy stand for my thanksgiving table. I cooked the first half of the process at home and finished the second part at my son’s home. I did my best to cut potatoes 1/4 “ . For whatever reason the potatoes would not fully cook!!! I kept putting them in the oven for a little longer a couple of times. For the life of me I could not figure out what was wrong! Good thing it was just family otherwise I would have been mortified! I’ll try another crack at this recipe but make sure to use a different pan for baking!
Fantastic and thank you!
First time making Scalloped Potatoes and this recipe will be going into my binder! Perfect consistency, potatoes were just solid enough and not too saucy!
Took your advice and upped the Garlic game too! Well done!
Have I ever made one of your recipes that was NOT amazing? This was awesome of course. I don’t leave reviews for all of them but I can tell you that when say to my husband, “what about xyz for dinner?” And he gives me a skeptical look, and then I say, “it’s Gimme Some Oven,” and then he immediately ok’s it because some of our best-loved and most-made recipes are from you ❤️
My family and I love love love this recipe! My husband always requests it for holiday dinners. I want to take it to a Christmas party and wondered if you think it would work to cook in a crock pot?
I made this last night. My family loved it!!! I used the heavy cream(1st time I’ve cooked with it). Wow was it ever creamy & cheesy. NO LEFTOVERS I will make this again.
Thank you Ali. You inspired me. Happy New Year everyone.
Amazing recipe. My husband made this for dinner this evening. Hu used parmigiana reggiano, that’s what was in the fridge. A must try if you love scalloped potatoes!
Made these yesterday for a potluck and everyone loved them. I had a small taste and I wished I had made an extra pan for myself (and everyone else, of course 😏)! I added 15 minutes to the covered cooking time just to be safe, and I’m glad I did. The potatoes on the bottom were cooked perfectly. I was worried at first that I wasn’t going to have enough sauce, but trust the measurements! The sauce was perfect. I’m bookmarking this recipe for next time.
The best scalloped potato recipe I’ve ever made!! Fabulous!,
Excellent recipe! Family fave now! I layer up the potatoes a bit more than what the recipe says. Broiling is a must to crisp it up a bit!
Agreed! I had to improvise some of it, but a great recipe overall. Trust the recipe. I thought the recipe didn’t call for enough of the ingredients while making it. In the end it came out perfect. Delicious.
The best scalloped potato recipe I’ve ever made!! Fabulous!
These potatoes were delicious. However, I did take your advise and shredded my own cheddar cheese. My potatoes ended up being so greasy on top. Had an entire layer of oil that I had to drain off. I then broiled them to crisp them. I would make them again but would prefer to not have all the oil. Any idea as to why this happened?
I believe it was the cheddar cheese that let off that oil. I also thought that scalloped potatoes had no cheese in them. Au Gratin has cheese. If you like the cheese I would suggest using a less oily type like mild cheddar.
Cheese often does that on my dishes. I sometimes lay a pice of paper towel over it to absorb. But most of the time, I don’t and everything is just fine.
I actually added some American cheese slices, tore into pieces on the lower layer and mixed in with the food processor for the top layer of cheddar. The sodium citrate in the “singles” helps make the cheddar more melty and less greasy.
Very delicious 😋
Is it possible to make these by adding pork chops on top?
Very tasty recipe .
Greetings from Athens Greece.
Great recipe, Hi from Texas
Τhe best Scalloped Potatoes I ever had!
Happy new Year, greetings from Athens GREECE.
I have made this recipe a few time.
My family doesn’t care for thyme so I replace it with paprika and dry mustard. 5 stars every time.
Made these for my wife, she said they were the best scalloped potatoes she’d ever eaten in her life. Now she wants them whenever we have friends over and for her “Birthday at home dinner “, Thanks, getting lots of brownie points!
Made this recipe but for some reason it looks super super wet? Like it didn’t look wet until 30 minutes in the oven when I took off the tin foil and now it looks like soup 😂 still tasty though. Probably my fault. I let me potatoes sit in cold water while I was prepping everything
Thank you for making this recipe so easy to follow. I’ve never made them before but always wanted to. I have made it twice now and it’s simply delicious!!
Made a mistake and added too much garlic and parmesan then realized there’s no such thing. This is an awesome recipe and I highly recommend it.
I’m excited about this so far….
It looks and smells amazing. My only concern is I went to check the doneness of the potato and the top layer was perfect and so good but then I pulled one out from underneath, not the very bottom of the pan, but just under the top layer, and the potato is not done.
I used 4 lb just as the recipe said. I wonder if there’s something I did wrong? I gave it a light stir and put it back in for 10 minutes and I’m hoping it will be good but I’m going to lose that top cheddar cheese yumminess…
Thoughts from a baker:
I would make sure you are setting the dish on the middle of the oven (you can always broil for 5mins at the end to get a crispier top).
Were you using a 13×9 dish?
You can always try slicing the potatoes smaller, as that might effect the cook.
My only other thought is using an oven thermometer to test your ovens actual temperature. Not all ovens are the same and sometimes they get funny with time.
I hope this helps, if not sorry for making you read this!
We had the exact same problem and I definitely used 4 pounds. We put them back in for another 10… still not done. 20…still not done. :/ really bummed
I was wondering if you make these the day before and bake it the next day. Or should I bake then reheat the next day?
Been using this recipe for a couple years now. Never changed a thing. Always turns out perfect.
I’ve never commented before on a recipe, but these are the BEST thing I’ve ever tasted!!! I used 3% milk…and a mix of cheddar and gruyere cheese. absolutely amazing!!!!!!!
So delicious! My friend and I both agree that this is the best scalloped potato dish we have ever eaten!
First time making scalloped potatoes! Turned out great!!
Tasted fantastic! Took more than 15 to prep. and had to cook more like an hour and 15 minutes for the potatoes to be done, well worth it though! I will add this to my favorites.
Absolutely delicious!
Made this for Easter lunch and we all devoured it! So good!! 🤤
Wow!
I’ve been searching through 5 scalloped potato recipes and every single one is different so I had to end up writing down my own recipe (combining a bit of each.), to suit my taste… then I stumbled upon this one. It included everything PLUS thyme! That’s my favourite herb being originally from the islands and all. I would never thought to put that in scalloped potatoes. Plus you included onions and/or garlic (which some recipes didn’t), but is a must.
I will probably also boil everything together – potatoes and sauce, for a few minutes before pouring it all in a pan to bake to guarantee doneness.
I love this recipe! Have made it twice so far, can’t stop eating them.
One quesiton: why does the top of the blog page say 1/4 inch rounds, but the recipe card itself says 1/8 inch rounds? (confused me this go around, bc i sliced into 1/4 inch rounds, double checked, and then sliced again in half and it was very tedious and confusing)
Unreal recipe , I highly recommend added dill !
I didn’t do cheese cause roommate can’t handle it and added my own spices but dam good
Have not made yet looks great but Au Gratin is made with cheese vs Scalloped no cheese.
These were delicious but took me way longer to prep and cook than the estimated time here. It probably took me 15 minutes just to slice 4 pounds of potatoes! Total prep time was closer to 45 minutes, and cook time was closer to an hour and ten minutes.
Excellent recipe. Easy to follow and delicious. I will eliminate the extra salt next time, but that is the only change I would make. Thanks!
I never post but had to let you know this is the very best I have ever ,made or tested. My new signature dish.
Made this with ham cubes and bite-sized asparagus spears mixed in. Delicious!
Very easy and delicious! Thank you!
This is the best recipe ever. I have made this several times now and guests and family cannot get enough. I add sautéed diced onions to layers and Parmesan and grated cheese on top layer,
One of my longstanding favorite scalloped potatoes recipe. I basically have memorized it but return to make sure I have the baking temps and times just right. Thank you!
The very best ! Thanks 😊
I don’t see anywhere where it says how many servings the recipe makes.
Thank you
This was the first time taking a crack at making scalloped potatoes! I used baking dish with lid and fancy stand for my thanksgiving table. I cooked the first half of the process at home and finished the second part at my son’s home. I did my best to cut potatoes 1/4 “ . For whatever reason the potatoes would not fully cook!!! I kept putting them in the oven for a little longer a couple of times. For the life of me I could not figure out what was wrong! Good thing it was just family otherwise I would have been mortified! I’ll try another crack at this recipe but make sure to use a different pan for baking!
This looks delicious but we are short on oven space for the holidays! Can I make this in a crockpot?
Excellellent
Fantastic and thank you!
First time making Scalloped Potatoes and this recipe will be going into my binder! Perfect consistency, potatoes were just solid enough and not too saucy!
Took your advice and upped the Garlic game too! Well done!
Have I ever made one of your recipes that was NOT amazing? This was awesome of course. I don’t leave reviews for all of them but I can tell you that when say to my husband, “what about xyz for dinner?” And he gives me a skeptical look, and then I say, “it’s Gimme Some Oven,” and then he immediately ok’s it because some of our best-loved and most-made recipes are from you ❤️
My family and I love love love this recipe! My husband always requests it for holiday dinners. I want to take it to a Christmas party and wondered if you think it would work to cook in a crock pot?
Love this recipe!!! Can I make a day ahead of time and bake the next day?
This recipe, made with 4 lbs of Yukon gold potatoes fits better into a 10 X 14 pan. The 9 x 13 pan overflowed a bit.
I made this last night. My family loved it!!! I used the heavy cream(1st time I’ve cooked with it). Wow was it ever creamy & cheesy. NO LEFTOVERS I will make this again.
Thank you Ali. You inspired me. Happy New Year everyone.
Perfect recipe. I loved how easy it was to follow the instructions.
Made as per recipe. Simply the best….. will be my new go to! Thanks!
these are au gratin potatoes scalloped potatos dont hvae cheese
I added bacon bits to mine.
Absolutely delicious! Naturally I added more cheese! The bake time is spot on
Hi,
I’m a bit confused by your wording as follows:
“(I usually strain out all of the onions and add them here too.)”
Why are you straining out the onions, if you’re adding them here too? Could you please clarify this for me
Thanks,
Mary-Ann
Amazing recipe. My husband made this for dinner this evening. Hu used parmigiana reggiano, that’s what was in the fridge. A must try if you love scalloped potatoes!
Made these yesterday for a potluck and everyone loved them. I had a small taste and I wished I had made an extra pan for myself (and everyone else, of course 😏)! I added 15 minutes to the covered cooking time just to be safe, and I’m glad I did. The potatoes on the bottom were cooked perfectly. I was worried at first that I wasn’t going to have enough sauce, but trust the measurements! The sauce was perfect. I’m bookmarking this recipe for next time.