Scalloped Potatoes – A Lovely Mess

Dear Scalloped Potatoes, you’re great. I love your crispy edges and creamy, cheesy center. You feel fancy but you’re simple to make with very little prep. You might be my favorite potato side dish at the holiday dinner buffet. You’re a classic! Mashed potatoes are great but you’ve got so much more texture going and you taste like a sunrise made of cheddar. Consider this a love letter to you, scalloped potatoes, because it is.

Why is this casserole called scalloped potatoes? They say it’s from the Old English word “collop,” which means thinly sliced. The starting point for this dish is to thinly slice the potatoes into large coins. And while some will lovingly layer their potato slices perfectly in the pan, I tend to go with the chaotic toss and it turns out great every time, IMO.

Related: If you aren’t making this with Thanksgiving turkey or Easter ham, then you might want to learn how to cook steak, how to broil steak, baked chicken, air fryer chicken or air fryer steak. Plus 50+ Christmas Dinner Ideas!

Ingredients

• Potatoes
• Butter
• Shallot
• Garlic
• All-purpose flour
• Chicken stock – or vegetable stock
• Milk
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Cheddar cheese
• Parmesan cheese
• Chives, thyme or rosemary – or a combination of those

How to make Scalloped Potatoes

First, wash and then slice the potatoes into uniformly thin pieces. I don’t peel the potatoes, but you can if you like. I do recommend using a mandoline for slicing, it makes this task much quicker and ensures your slices will be uniform even if you don’t have the knife skills of a professional chef.

Next, make the sauce. Start by finely chopping the shallot and mincing the garlic. In a pot or saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Cook the onion for 2 minutes then add the garlic and cook another minute. Sprinkle the flour into the pot and stir; this will create a thick paste. Slowly stir in the stock, creating a thin gravy consistency. Then slowly stir in the milk. Season with salt and pepper.

Prepare a 9×13 casserole dish by spraying with nonstick cooking spray or greasing with a little butter. Layer in half of the thinly sliced potatoes. Cover with half of the cream sauce. Sprinkle on half the cheese (both cheeses). Then layer on the rest of the potatoes and pour the remaining sauce over these. Top with the remainder of the cheeses. Last, sprinkle on some fresh herbs—chives, thyme or rosemary or a combination.

Cover the dish in aluminum foil and bake in the oven at 400°F for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 30 minutes.

Tips & Substitutions

• I recommend yellow potatoes or Yukon gold potatoes for this recipe. Russet potatoes (also called baking potatoes) and other varieties can also work, but I like the soft, buttery texture of yellow and Yukon gold.
• While I do recommend a mandoline (this one comes with different blades and a glove!), you certainly can cut the potatoes by hand with a good quality knife. If you do, try to keep the slices as uniform in thickness as you can so they will all bake to the same tenderness. You don’t want some thick pieces that end up feeling undercooked.
• You can substitute the shallot for 1/3 of a yellow or white onion.
• I like cheddar cheese and Parmesan, but you could substitute other cheeses like gruyere or pepper jack if you want.
• If you want to make this scalloped potato recipe ahead, simply follow the recipe up to the point of baking (so do the layers and cover in aluminum foil) then refrigerate until you are ready to bake. You can make this at least a day or two ahead of time if you need.
• Save any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for at least 3 days. Rewarm in the microwave. I especially love these rewarmed the day after a holiday and a fried egg added on top for breakfast. 🙂

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