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Brunches and potlucks call for dishes that feed a crowd and this Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole delivers. Supremely cheesy, creamy, and loaded with bacon and shredded potatoes, it’s going to disappear fast!
This is your classic cheesy hashbrown casserole with all the amazing flavors but without the canned soup. You don’t need it, and you won’t miss it!
Truly, this is a brunch side dish that everyone is going to devour, and you’ll love it too because it comes together with minimal effort, and you can even assemble it the night before.
Just like my Ham and Potato Casserole, this is a from-scratch potato casserole—in this case, the creamy sauce comes courtesy of tangy sour cream.
Ingredients
This recipe has:
- Bacon – When you sign up for Butcher Box, you get free bacon in every delivery, so I’m all about putting bacon in everything.
- Frozen shredded potatoes – Or 8 cups shredded cooked potatoes.
- Sour cream
- Extra sharp cheddar – Use medium cheddar for a milder flavor.
- Green onions
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper
- Cooking spray or butter
- Smoked paprika – To lean into the smoky flavor from the bacon.
Step By Step Instructions
*I’ll walk you through it here with some photos and tips, and you’ll also find a printable recipe card at the bottom of the post with exact measurements, etc. You can also click “jump to recipe” to skip down.
Cook the chopped bacon over medium heat in a deep skillet until it’s crispy. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels. Pro tip: if you cook bacon in the oven and then freeze it as part of your meal prep, you can skip this step.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together the potatoes, sour cream, cheddar, green onions, half of the cooked bacon, salt, and pepper.
Grease a 9×13 casserole dish with cooking spray or butter.
Transfer the potato mixture to the prepared dish; sprinkle the top with smoked paprika and scatter the rest of the bacon over it.
Cover the dish tightly with a lid, foil, or plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for a minimum of 5 hours, or up to 24 hours.
Preheat your oven to 350˚F. Cover the casserole dish with foil and bake covered for 25 minutes.
Uncover and bake for 10-20 minutes more, or until the top is lightly browned and the edges are bubbling.
I like to toss some additional sliced green onions on top after baking because I love to listen to my children complain.
RECIPE VARIATIONS & OPTIONAL ADDINS
- You can use fresh potatoes instead of frozen hashbrowns. To do this, bake or boil Russet potatoes until they’re tender. Once they’re fully cooled, shred the potatoes. Related: Crispy Baked Potatoes
- If your ideal breakfast potatoes include ham (such as leftovers from an Instant Pot Ham) or sausage, by all means, swap the bacon for one of those. Still use bacon for the topping, or just skip the meat on top.
- Love an extra crispy hashbrown casserole? You have options! Combine panko, coarse breadcrumbs, crispy rice cereal, cornflakes, or crushed buttery crackers with melted butter or some of the bacon grease. Sprinkle this over the top of the casserole.
- I use sharp cheddar for its bold flavor, but a smoked gouda would also be delicious.
HOW TO STORE AND REHEAT
Storing Leftovers: Allow the hashbrown breakfast casserole to fully cool before storing it in an air-tight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Reheating Leftovers: You can reheat leftovers for 60-90 seconds in the microwave or cover it and bake it in a 350ºF oven until it’s warmed through.
Freezing Leftovers: I do not recommend freezing this dish, as the cooked potatoes don’t freeze very well.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH THIS RECIPE
If you’re serving this potato breakfast casserole for brunch, I like pairing it with a mix of something sweet and something light.
For the sweet option, try Puff Pastry Cinnamon Rolls, Whole Wheat Waffles, or Apple Pie Egg Rolls.
Fresh fruit is perfect for a light accompaniment, or make Steamed Apples With Cinnamon.
And don’t forget the biscuits Air Fryer Biscuits or Make Ahead Scrambled Eggs.
PRO TIPS/RECIPE NOTES
- Shred your own cheese! It makes such a difference. Store-bought shredded cheese has an anti-clumping agent that keeps it from melting as smoothly as freshly shredded. If you can’t swing it, you can still use bagged shredded cheese, but you’ll get the best results by shredding your own.
- Make sure you grease all the way up the sides of your baking dish to prevent those impossible-to-scrub-off baked-on bits along the edges.
More Breakfast Recipes to Try
Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole
Ingredients
- 3/4 cups bacon, chopped {~5 slices}
- 30 oz frozen shredded potatoes {8 cups shredded cooked potatoes}
- 2 cups sour cream
- 2 cups extra sharp cheddar, grated {medium cheddar is ok}
- 1/2 cup green onions, sliced
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- cooking spray or butter for the pan
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
Instructions
- In a large deep frying oven-safe skillet, cook chopped bacon over medium heat until it is crispy (~5-7 minutes). Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a plate lined with paper towels. Set aside.3/4 cups bacon, chopped
- In a large mixing bowl add potatoes, sour cream, cheddar, green onions, half of the cooked bacon, salt, and pepper, and stir to combine.30 oz frozen shredded potatoes, 2 cups sour cream, 2 cups extra sharp cheddar, grated, 1/2 cup green onions, sliced, 1 tsp kosher salt, 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- Grease a 9×13 casserole dish with cooking spray or a bit of butter.cooking spray or butter for the pan
- Add all the ingredients to the casserole dish and sprinkle with smoked paprika and the rest of the cooked bacon.1 tsp smoked paprika
- Cover the dish tightly with a lid, foil, or plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours, and for up to 24 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350˚F.
- Cover casserole with foil and bake covered for 25 minutes.
- Uncover and bake for 10-20 minutes or until the top is lightly browned and the edges are bubbling.
Notes
- If you’re not using frozen hashbrowns, bake or boil Russet potatoes until softened. Allow potatoes to cool and then shred. You can include some of the peels if you’d like.
- 8 cups of shredded potatoes is ~3 lbs of Russets.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
