Cheesy Potatoes For a Crowd
This easy recipe makes Cheesy Potatoes For a Crowd of 100 in a roaster.
Only five ingredients mix together to make the best big batch of potatoes that I’ve had.
For lots of tips on cooking with electric roasters and party planning see our article on Food For a Crowd.
Cheesy Potatoes in a Roaster
These Farmhouse Style Cheesy Potatoes are always in demand at family parties, but doubling the batch to put in a large aluminum foil pan in the oven is all I’ve ever made.
When a friend gave me this recipe that feeds 100 people that fills up a 22-quart roaster I knew this would be important to keep in my recipe files.
The first time I made these potatoes for a crowd was for a funeral meal. While it was a celebration of a Christian woman’s life, I look forward to making this recipe again for graduation parties, holidays, big birthday or anniversary parties.
My go-to party menu is Crock Pot Pulled Pork, Farmhouse Baked Beans, Potluck Pasta Salad, and Loaded Baked Potatoes or a side dish of cheesy potatoes.
I like to serve a variety of desserts at a party from our famous Chocolate Cake to our Cinnamon Applesauce Cake and of course a variety of cookies including Chocolate Chip Cookies and No-Bake Chocolate Cookies are popular.
Big Batch of Potatoes For A Crowd
There are two keys to success when making a really big batch of party potatoes. First, be sure to get all of the ingredients mixed together very well. Second, to ensure the mixture cooks evenly stir often. I allow a minimum of 2.5 hours on 350 degrees F when stirred every 20 – 30 minutes.
Diced potatoes or hashbrowns can be used. Fresh potatoes could be used too, but pieces would need to be evenly sized to cook evenly. Potatoes at room temperature will also cook a little bit more quickly than frozen potatoes.
Cream of chicken soup could be split 50/50 with cream of mushroom soup or substituted fully for cream of mushroom soup if you really like that flavor. Keep in mind that chicken is a flavor that appeals to more people than mushrooms.
Leftovers can be allowed to cool and then refrigerated for 2-4 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
Tips for Making Cheesy Potatoes in a Roaster
- I like to sit potatoes and other ingredients out on the counter about an hour
- Butter must be well softened, sometimes I start with melted butter
- Southern style potatoes (tiny cubes) are easier to stir in a very large batch like this than hashbrowns
- Half of cream of chicken soup could be substituted for cream of mushroom soup
- Stir every 20 – 30 minutes to avoid burning in the corners and along the bottom
- Especially for the first hour I try to wipe down the sides of the roaster after stirring to help keep a neater look
- If a burnt piece surfaces during the stirring process scoop it out with a tablespoon and discard
- Lining the roasters with these foil liners does save time and scrubbing during clean up.
Serve with a green salad for a crowd and about any meat for a meal people really love!
When Are The Potatoes Done?
- Cheese will melt a while before the potatoes are soft and tender, so sample often and keep stirring to determine when the potatoes are cooked to your preferred doneness.
- The absolute fastest this funeral potatoes recipe will be done cooking is in 2.5 hours on 350 degrees F when stirred every 20 – 30 minutes.
- I like to allow 4 hours for the recipe to cook since it is so large and can be turned down to keep warm.
- Once potatoes have reached desired tenderness turn warm to “keep warm” and continue to stir every 20 – 30 minutes until serving.
- Electric roasters vary greatly across different sizes and different brands, so testing the recipe and keeping good notes in your own appliances is the best scenario.
How to Make Cheesy Potatoes for a Crowd
- Spray a very thick layer of non-stick cooking spray in a 22-quart roaster pan. Our use a foil liner and coat it with non-stick spray too. Turn roaster oven to 350°F.
- Pour 1/4 of potatoes in an even layer in the bottom of the pan.
- In a mixing bowl mix half of soup, half of sour cream and half of well softened or melted butter.
- Pour mixture over potatoes. Sprinkle half of cheese over soup mixture.
- Layer another 1/4 of the potatoes and mix well with a spoon.
- At this point half of all ingredients should be mixed together in the roaster.
- Add remaining potatoes in an even layer.
- Mix together remaining soup, sour cream and butter and pour over potatoes. Mix well.
- Cover with a lid and stir every 20 – 30 minutes for at least 3 hours until the potatoes have reached your preferred tenderness.
- I keep dish towels and a dishcloth handy to set lid on and help keep roaster clean.
Other Delicious Party Potato Recipes
- Scalloped Potatoes in a Roaster
- Twice Baked Potato Casserole
- Loaded Smashed Potato Casserole
- Crock Pot Twice Baked Potato Casserole
- Farmhouse Potato Salad
- Ground Beef Cheesy Potato Casserole
- Crock Pot Loaded Red Potatoes
- Farmhouse Loaded Potatoes
Printable Cheesy Potatoes For A Crowd Recipe
Cheesy Potatoes For A Crowd
Ingredients
- 3 22 ounce cans Cream of chicken soup
- 6 cups sour cream
- 6 sticks butter softened
- 12 pounds Southern Style Hashbrown Potato Cubes
- 80 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Grease a 22-quart roaster pan very well. Turn to 350°F.
- Pour 1/4 of potatoes in an even layer in the bottom of the roasting pan.
- In a mixing bowl mix half of soup, half of sour cream and half of well softened or melted butter.
- Pour mixture and half of cheese over potatoes.
- Layer another 1/4 of the potatoes and mix well with a spoon. Half of all ingredients should be mixed together in the roaster.
- Add remaining potatoes to roaster.
- Mix together remaining soup, sour cream and butter and pour over potatoes. Mix well.
- Cover with a lid and stir every 20 – 30 minutes for at least 3 hours until the potatoes have reached your preferred tenderness.
Notes
- Stir every 20 – 30 minutes to avoid burning in the corners and along the bottom
- Especially for the first hour I try to wipe down the sides of the roaster after stirring to help keep a neater look
- If a burnt piece surfaces during the stirring process scoop it out with a tablespoon and discard
- The absolute fastest this recipe will be done is in 2.5 hours on 350 degrees F when stirred every 20 – 30 minutes
- I like to allow 4 hours for the recipe to cook since it is so large and can be turned down to keep warm
- Once potatoes have reached desired tenderness turn warm to “keep warm” and continue to stir every 20 – 30 minutes until serving
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I feel like this is a LOT of butter! The typical recipe calls for 2 Tlbs of melted butter to 2 lbs of potatoes, so multiplying by 6 would be just 12 Tlbs of butter…NOT 6 sticks!
Great question! I think this is a personal preference. In this big of a batch I have noticed that more butter does help keep the potatoes moist and prevent drying out. Our favorite 9 x 13 pan of potatoes has a stick of butter per pound of potatoes, but there are lots of recipe variations out there.
It does seem like alot, I’ve always thought that too but every recipe for cheesy potatoes that I have accumulated over the years all call for 1 stick of butter per 2 lbs of hashbrowns. I just made it with 6 lbs of hashbrowns and I didn’t use 3 sticks though, I used about 2.25. Also, I didn’t use 40 oz of cheese, that is INSANE. I used 32 oz and just stirred it after 30 min of cooking and it’s way too cheesy! I’ve actually never had cheesy potatoes anywhere this cheesy. Should have stuck with 24 oz or less. Oh well!
Yes I actually took the recipe I use and ended up multiplying my normal amounts to sort of match this one and it ended up being more like 3 sticks of butter. 12 cups sour cream and only 48 oz of cheese. But I love cheese so I’ll add more. My normal recipe used onion salt and pepper too.
What are your thoughts on using a liner in the roaster for easy clean up?
Hey There! Great thought! I have used a liner many times in a slow cooker, but haven’t tried it yet in the roaster. I do wonder if it would make stirring so often a little tricky? I definitely use an extra thick coat on non-stick spray. Please let me know how it works out if you use a liner.
Thanks! Jennifer
Made this for the 4th and it turned out great. A few changes I will make for next time: little less butter, seasoning- definitely salt and pepper are needed and i want to add garlic powder and some finely chopped onion, possibly smoked paprika. I also plan to have a large bowl of chopped bacon pieces to add if desired. I used a liner, by the way, and clean up was super easy. This recipe was great as it was, just some ideas i had to make it my own/give it a boost.
Hey There! Thanks so much for sharing! Love those ideas for ways to personalize the recipe 🙂
Could this be done in a large foil pan in the oven? As I need to make this for around 40 – 50 people and we like the crushed potato chips on top for the crunch. But trying to figure out what size foil pan I would need for 6lbs of potatoes.
Hey There! I haven’t tested it, but yes this recipe would work well in foil pans. If I were to try it I would use a couple pans, get them done cooking and hold them on keep warm for an hour or two because the cooking time will definitely change in the oven. I hope you enjoy the recipe as much as we do!
Do you think I could prepare it all the night before and leave in the refrigerator until ready to cook for the next day?
Hey There! That’s a good question – my concern would be increasing the cooking time, so I would be a bit nervous to give it a try unless you have plenty of buffer on your serving time. if you do this would you please let us know how it goes? Thanks!
The recipe I use in the oven is 30 oz of hashbrowns at 375 degrees for 45 -50 minutes. How long would you cook a double recipe of this in an electric roaster and at what temperature?
Hey There! Thanks for checking out the recipe! Unfortunately I haven’t tested all of variations of cheesy potatoes. I do know the quantity and cooking time listed works well in our appliance. I hope you’re able to make adjustments that work well for you!
Sounds great, I would add some type of bacon or ham to fortify. I was wondering wouldn’t this be quicker if you par cooked the potatoes ahead of time? and less likely to scorch if you added the cheese/dairy later, when the potatoes are almost done? Even if you had to remove some taters and then add half the sauce and stir it up , then add the rest to the taters you took out, stir and then put all back into the roaster and finish by heating it through well, I have a couple roasters and want to utilize them better during parties. Thanks
What’s the serving size? I’d like to make this for my daughter’s wedding reception ( BBQ buffet style) The guest list is 106.
Hey There! Thanks for reaching out! Congratulations on the wedding! For an event that important you may want to ready through the whole article. While this recipe is intended to feed 100 people there are several variables to consider like how much other food is being served, etc. If you give it a go I hope it turns out great for you!
I had these at a graduation party last night and they were amazing. Is there a much smaller portion recipe?
Thanks! So glad to hear this 🙂 I don’t have it broken down, but the recipe is fairly easy to divide by 6. The leftovers freeze pretty well!
Thank you thank you thank you for posting this! I wanted to make cheesy potatoes for my daughters grad party and didn’t want to make several batches in the oven. These turned out perfectly. Thanks again for the very clear instructions. Great recipe!
I made this recipe for a grad party yesterday.
They were a huge hit!
Small changes I made, added pre fried finely chopped onion to the recipe.
I baked it in a foil lined roaster, then transferred to a full chafing pan and it fit perfectly. (The foil lined worked great and had no problem with all the stirring.)
I topped it with pre toasted cornflakes.
(Earlier in the day I toasted cornflakes in butter on a cookie sheet in the oven. I used a whole box of cornflakes.)
Do not change a thing about the original recipe, the butter, cheese etc. was perfectly measured.
So glad to hear this! Thanks so much for sharing!!!
I don’t have an electric roaster and bought several large handi-foil roaster pans (17x13x3 that I assume are 22 quart size?) to use for making cheesy potatoes for 100 people (grad party). I was so happy to find a recipe where these type of pans were used successfully. Thank you!
These potatoes are amazing!! I had them for leftovers and they tasted great until they were gone.
Can you cook it the day before and just warm it up the next day before serving?
Hey There! We have certainly reheated leftovers and they taste fine, but when serving a crowd you’ll get the best results making them fresh if that’s possible for you. Hope you enjoy 🙂
If I did make one 6th of this recipe, how long would I bake that amount at 350 degrees….probably in a 9×13 inch pan?
Hey There! I haven’t tested that with this specific recipe, but here is the option I make for a smaller gathering in the oven. Hope you enjoy! https://plowingthroughlife.com/easy-cheesy-potatoes-farmhouse-style/
Is it ok to use store bought shredded cheese or does the cheese need to be shredded from blocks? Does it impact the recipe one way or another?
Hey There! I don’t think it makes a big difference one way or another in this recipe. Using store bought shredded cheese can save a lot of time, but doesn’t always melt quit as perfectly as shredding your own. We use a lot of pre-shredded cheese in our house. Hope you enjoy 🙂
Do you start with frozen hash browns or refrigerated?
Hey There! I like to sit frozen potatoes and other ingredients out on the counter about an hour to begin thawing. Be sure to stir often to prevent burning. Hope you enjoy 🙂
What is the serving size for this recipe? I know it’s for 100 people but is the serving size 1 cup or 1/2 cup person?
Hey There! We usually figure a big heaping serving spoon full, which is closer to a cup than half a cup. I hope the recipe works well for you!
I made this today for a funeral. I sautéed three onions in two cubes of butter and used half cream of chicken and half mushroom soup. I stirred it every 20 to 30 minutes and cooked it for about four hours then the last half hour I put crushed cornflakes on top and then more melted butter on top and it was a huge hit.
So is the 100 people recipe the 1x or 2x option for the ingredients?
Hey There! 1x is for 100 people. Hope you enjoy!
There seems to be some confusion in the recipe. When is the other half of the 80 oz of cheese added? With the other half of the sour cream, cream of chicken soup, butter mixture? At the end, and then melted? Also, are you absolutely sure of the 80 oz total of cheese (5 lbs shredded)? Only 40 oz is added with the first half of potatoes. I’ve put mine on in a large roaster with a plastic liner (good to 350 deg). We’ll see how it goes. Maybe I’ll update after all is done.
Hey There! We typically layer like that to save on dishes while making it possible to mix up in the roaster. I hope the recipe worked out well for you!
How full are the roasters after filling these? I’m making 4 roasters full for a graduation party. I just realized that all 4 of my roasters are only 18 quarts. Would these work in place of the 22 quart?
Hey There! I’m not sure exactly how that would work, but I do know that stirring is the part that takes the most space. I wonder if you could put 3/4 of the recipe in a roaster to eye ball how much space it takes before adding all ingredients? If at all possible testing this recipe might decrease stress. We hope this works well for you and congrats to the grad!