Scalloped Potatoes
intro
Tender thinly sliced potatoes baked in velvety herb-infused cream sauce with a golden cheesy top, the ultimate cozy, crowd-pleasing comfort food side.
Ingredients
Steps
Prep and slice potatoes
Preheat your oven to 190°C (375°F). Scrub 900g russet potatoes, peel if desired, then slice into uniform 3mm (1/8-inch) thick rounds using a mandoline or sharp chef’s knife. Place sliced potatoes in a bowl of cold water to prevent browning while you prepare the sauce, then drain and pat fully dry with paper towels before layering.
Make the sauce roux
Melt 42g (3 tablespoons) unsalted butter in a medium stainless steel saucepan over medium-low heat. Add 10g minced garlic and sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant, taking care not to brown the garlic to avoid bitter flavor. Whisk in 16g (2 tablespoons) all-purpose flour to form a smooth, pale golden roux, cooking for 1 minute while stirring constantly to remove raw flour taste.
Finish the cream sauce
Slowly whisk 480ml (2 cups) heavy cream into the roux, adding 60ml (1/4 cup) at a time, to prevent lumps from forming. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly, then reduce heat to low and cook for 3 minutes until thickened enough to evenly coat the back of a spoon. Stir in 5g kosher salt, 1g black pepper, 0.5g ground nutmeg, and 1g fresh thyme leaves, then remove the pan from heat.
Layer potatoes and sauce
Grease a 20cm x 20cm (8x8 inch) square glass baking dish with a thin layer of butter. Arrange 1/3 of the dried potato slices in an overlapping, shingled layer across the bottom of the dish. Pour 1/3 of the cream sauce evenly over the potatoes, then sprinkle with 40g (1/3 cup) of the shredded cheddar. Repeat this layering process two more times, finishing with a final layer of sauce and the remaining cheese on top.
Bake covered first
Tightly cover the baking dish with aluminum foil, crimping the edges firmly to seal in steam that will cook the potatoes through. Place the dish on the middle oven rack and bake at 190°C (375°F) for 45 minutes, until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork through the foil.
Finish baking and rest
Carefully remove the aluminum foil from the dish, turn the oven temperature up to 205°C (400°F), and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes, until the top is deep golden brown and bubbly around the edges, and the sauce has fully thickened. Remove the dish from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before serving to allow the sauce to set properly.
Tips
2.Always pat sliced potatoes completely dry with paper towels before layering; excess surface starch and water will thin the cream sauce during baking, leading to a watery final dish instead of a thick, velvety texture.
3.For make-ahead prep, assemble the fully layered unbaked dish up to 24 hours in advance, cover tightly, and store in the refrigerator; add 10 minutes to the initial covered bake time if cooking straight from chilled.
OMG these scalloped potatoes were the star of our Sunday family dinner! I was worried they’d be too fussy since I’m not a huge cook, but the easy difficulty was no lie — my three boys went back for seconds AND thirds. Even my super picky 7 year old asked if we can have these every week. 10/10, will be making this for our next potluck at the school too!
Really solid scalloped potato recipe! Super creamy, not watery at all which is the problem I run into with most homemade versions. Only reason I’m not giving 5 stars is I wish it had a note about how much salt to add for people who don’t cook super often — I undersalted my first batch, but a little extra at the table fixed it right up.
Game. Changer. I’ve tried so many scalloped potato recipes that come out grainy or use weird processed cheese, but this one is so smooth and rich with just simple ingredients. I added a little sprinkle of fresh thyme on top before baking and it was chef’s kiss. Already added this to my weekly meal prep rotation!
Wait a second, I thought scalloped potatoes were supposed to be hard??? I made this for my roommates in our tiny dorm oven (it cooks so unevenly, I was stressed) and even with janky oven temps these came out SO good. We ate the whole pan between 4 of us while we watched the game. No notes!!
So happy I found this recipe! I have celiac and a lot of scalloped potato recipes use flour as a thickener that gives me a reaction, but this creamy base works perfectly without any weird gluten-containing additives. I used gluten free chicken broth instead of regular and it turned out exactly like the photos! My whole family (none of whom are GF) had no idea it was modified.
Made these as a side for our weekend cookout with brisket and ribs, and they held up perfectly! Only heads up for anyone making this — my oven runs hot, so at the 1 hour mark the top was getting a little too crispy, so I tented some foil over it for the last 30 minutes and it came out perfect.
Just pulled these out of the oven and my whole apartment smells insane. I added a handful of crispy bacon bits between the layers because why not, and the cream sauce is so velvety I could eat it with a spoon. Can’t wait to dig in once they cool a little!
These reheat SO well! I made a big pan on Sunday and portioned them out for lunches all week, and even after 4 days in the fridge they didn’t get mushy or grainy when I warmed them up in the microwave. Total meal prep win for anyone who gets sick of eating plain rice and veggies for work lunch.
Taste was great, but I was expecting a little more cheese pull? The recipe says creamy, which it definitely was, but I think next time I’ll add a layer of sharp cheddar between the potato slices to get that gooey cheese texture I love. Still really good, just missing that extra cheesiness for my taste.
I made these for my husband for our first married anniversary dinner, and he said they’re better than the scalloped potatoes his grandma used to make!!! I was so nervous I’d mess them up, but the steps were so straightforward and the cook time was exactly what the recipe said. Total hit, will be a family staple for us forever.
Test ran this recipe ahead of Thanksgiving and it is officially on the menu! It’s easy enough to scale up for a big crowd, doesn’t require a million fancy ingredients, and the cream sauce doesn’t break when you keep it warm in the slow cooker for serving. Saved me so much stress planning the holiday sides.
Made this vegan by swapping the heavy cream for oat cream and using nutritional yeast for that savory depth, and it came out so creamy! I was worried it would be watery or have that weird oaty aftertaste, but it was totally indistinguishable from the dairy version when I served it to my friends. Only knock is I wish there was a note about vegan swaps on the main recipe!
Told my teens I was making ‘fancy potatoes’ for dinner and they groaned, but once they took a bite they stopped complaining long enough to eat half the pan. Joke’s on them, I’m making these every time they give me attitude about side dishes now. 10/10, parenting win.
Just finished making this for a friend’s housewarming tonight, and I may have snuck a bite before leaving the house… chef’s kiss. The garlic in the cream sauce is so subtle but adds the best depth, I know everyone is going to ask where I got the recipe. Pro tip: slice the potatoes as evenly as possible so they all cook at the same rate!
Guys. GUYS. I have literally never cooked anything more complicated than microwave mac and cheese before, and I made these scalloped potatoes ALL BY MYSELF for my mom’s birthday. She cried. They were so good. I feel like a real adult now. Thank you for this easy recipe!!!
As someone who eats potatoes at least 4 times a week, I can confirm this is top tier scalloped potato content. No weird curdled sauce, no undercooked crunchy potato slices, no bland flavor — just perfect creamy, salty, tender potatoes every single time. I’ve made this three times in the last two weeks, no regrets.
Loved this recipe! Only tiny thing is that 1 hour 30 minutes cook time was a little long for my convection oven — it was done in about an hour and 10 minutes, so just keep an eye on it if you have a convection setting so it doesn’t overcook. Flavor was 10/10 though, everyone raved.