Easy Cheesy Potatoes {Farmhouse Style}
Do you want to have the BEST cheesy potatoes recipe in the neighborhood? We make this Easy Cheesy Potato casserole recipe with hashbrowns often for parties, holidays and family meals.
Whether you make it in the crock pot or oven, this is one of our top five most often made recipes! The Ritz cracker and butter topping makes it irresistible.
Easy Recipe For Cheesy Potatoes
Even though we’ve eaten a lot of potatoes on the farm I’ve never had a cheesy potato casserole as good as this one. This hashbrown casserole with Ritz Crackers is so creamy, cheesy and delicious! It’s definitely one of our favorite side dishes.
I can’t count how many times I’ve made this recipe since my sister-in-law gave it to me almost ten years ago. We make our famous Twice Baked Potato Casserole, Farmhouse Loaded Potatoes or these easy cheesy potatoes for parties, potlucks, holidays and anytime we want a nice dish that people will enjoy and remember.
This recipe is so good we’ve adapted it to make a main dish which is really popular on Pinterest, our Smoked Sausage & Cheesy Potato Casserole and another side dish, the delicious Cheesy Bacon Potato Casserole.
For a similar recipe that feeds 100 people check out our Cheesy Potatoes for a Crowd.
Ingredients Needed
- Frozen Hash Browns
- Sour Cream
- Cheddar Cheese
- Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Salt and Pepper
- Ritz Crackers
- Butter
How Long to Cook Cheesy Potatoes in the Crock Pot
The base hashbrown mixture can be stirred together and poured into a slow cooker liner. Tie the bag shut and store in the refrigerator overnight. Use a 6 quart or larger crock pot for best results.
Set liner in the crock pot and cook on high for 4 – 5 hours. Cook cheesy potatoes on low for 5 1/2 – 7 hours. Cooking time will vary depending on your specific cooking device.
While the potatoes begin to cook butter can be melted for the top and crushed Ritz butter crackers stirred in. This mixture can be sprinkled on top of the potatoes prior to the last 2 – 3 hours of cooking.
I do not put the entire crock in the refrigerator to avoid changing temperatures from cold to hot in a short period of time.
When making crock pot cheesy potatoes ahead of time using a liner is the key to success.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
I’ve watched my mom peel countless pounds, I mean TONS of potatoes. That never looked very fun to me. Maybe this recipe tastes better because it calls for a bag of frozen hashbrowns. Here are my tips for better cheesy potatoes.
- Dairy products rule. As a former dairy farming family, we’re a big fan of dairy products because they taste great and we know that we’re supporting other farm families like our own when we buy milk, cheese, sour cream and yogurt at any grocery store.
- The original recipe calls for 2-4 cups of cheese, but see point #1 and understand why I always use 4 cups of cheese.
- We prefer frozen hashbrowns in the matchstick shape versus small cubes of frozen potatoes.
- When adding melted butter to cold ingredients be prepared to stir quickly before the butter sets up.
- I love my white casserole dish with handles for casseroles like this!
Easy Step By Step Recipe
- Find a very large mixing bowl and pour hasbrowns in.
- In a small mixing bowl stir together cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, cheddar cheese, salt, and pepper. Melt 1 stick of butter and stir into this mixture as well.
- Pour over hashbrowns and stir well. Pour into a greased 9 x 13″ baking dish.
- In a small mixing bowl melt half stick of butter and crush Ritz crackers or butter crackers into the bowl. Stir well and sprinkle over the potato casserole.
- Bake at 350°F for 50 – 60 minutes until the crackers are browned and the casserole is heated through.
More Farmhouse Potato Recipes
- Crockpot Loaded Red Potatoes
- Ground Beef Hashbrown Casserole
- Garlic Red Mashed Potatoes
- Easy Creamy Mashed Potatoes
Easy Cheesy Potatoes
Ingredients
- 8 ounces sour cream
- 4 cups shredded cheddar cheese divided
- 10.5 ounce can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 stick butter softened
- 30 ounces frozen hash browns
Topping
- 2 cups Ritz crackers crumbled
- 1/2 stick butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×13' casserole dish.
- Place hash browns in a large bowl and separate any chunks of potatoes.
- In a small bowl mix soup, sour cream, 2 cups of cheese, salt, and pepper. Add 1 stick melted butter and mix thoroughly.
- Add creamy mixture to the hash browns and stir thoroughly. Spread in a casserole dish.
Topping
- Sprinkle remaining cheddar cheese on top of the potatoes.
- In a small bowl mix, 1/2 stick melted butter and crushed Ritz crackers. Spread over potato mixture. Bake uncovered for 50 – 60 minutes until crackers are browned.
Notes
- Can cook in a crock pot on high for 4 – 5 hours or on low for 5.5 – 7 hours in a 5 or 6 quart crock pot
- Allow hash browns to soften on the counter for 30 minutes before using
Did you make this recipe?
Follow PlowingThroughLife on Instagram and Pinterest for more! And don’t forget to leave your thoughts below.
Rate This Recipe Pin This RecipeOriginally published September 25, 2018, notes for crock pot use added on November 22, 2021 and additional pictures added on February 16, 2026.
The BEST cheesy potatoes!
Can I chop up small and boil fresh potatoes? Or fry/ bake them first?
Great question! I haven’t tested this, but if I did I would want to make sure the potatoes were all the same size and temperature. The cooking times on this recipe are for frozen raw potatoes, so cooking the potatoes will change the cooking time as well. Please let me know if you give it a try!
Edie, I’d parboil diced raw potatoes for five minutes, drain thoroughly, and then proceed with the recipe. The result will be the same as using the frozen product from the store. Hope this helps.
Can I substitute a can of cheddar cheese soup for the cream of mushroom soup? I really love cheddar cheese soup (it’s my favorite) and don’t like mushroom anything.
Hey There! I think that would work. I would also try cream of onion soup for a more mellow flavor. I hope you enjoy 🙂
what size pkg of hashbrowns
30 ounces – Thanks for asking, I made the recipe card more specific. Hope you enjoy! ~Jennifer
can I triple this recipe & put them in a roaster oven
Hey There! We have this cheesy potatoes recipe that’s got more liquid and does better in the roaster – consider giving it a try https://plowingthroughlife.com/cheesy-potatoes-for-a-crowd/
Great recipe we love it!
Our last names are similar. My father’s family came from Holland and settled in New York.
Hi Bonnie – Thanks for the kind comment! My husband said his family is from Borken which is very close to Holland! We hope you find more of our recipes to enjoy 🙂 ~Jennifer
My special education high school students made this recipe. I used it for my observation lesson with my supervisor. Scored some big points there!