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Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes

What do you do when there’s not enough room in the oven to bake a holiday side dish? Learn how to cook homemade Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes from scratch in a cheddar cheese sauce to save oven space.


Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes for an easy holiday side dish

Growing up, we always had boxed scalloped or au gratin potatoes for the holidays. It doesn’t matter if it was Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter; there were potatoes as a side.

After cooking on my own for several years, I decided to make homemade scalloped potatoes without all of the preservatives. It took me a few holidays to get it right, especially cooking it on the stovetop.

Cooking for the holidays, especially Thanksgiving, means the oven is lined up to bake two, three, even four dishes.

When there’s no room left in the oven, you’re left cooking side dishes on the stove. That’s why I set out to make Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes as a way to avoid baking in the oven.


Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes | www.chocolatemoosey.com

How do you make homemade scalloped potatoes?

The key to cooking Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes is to thinly slice the potatoes evenly using a handheld mandoline (affiliate link).

I reviewed my handheld mandoline for my homemade salt and vinegar chips recipe so you can see it in action.

My dad usually does this part during the holiday as I am busy preparing all of the other million dishes. He does a great job at it (especially since he can’t mince garlic – don’t ask).

If you don’t own a mandoline, slice them carefully and evenly with a knife.

How do you cook scalloped potatoes on the stove?

First, you need to use a wide-bottomed pan, preferably a Dutch oven (affiliate link). It helps evenly cook the potatoes instead of stacking them on top of each other.

Next, you need to create a roux, which is a paste made of fat, flour, and liquid. This helps thicken the cheese sauce that’ll coat the potato.

Finally, you cook the thinly sliced potatoes in boiling milk. You will need to stir often because the potatoes may burn on the bottom if you don’t.

What’s in scalloped potatoes?

The ingredients for Easy Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes are potatoes, cheese, and milk with additional flavors such as garlic. You can also add fresh herbs such as thyme or rosemary.

I highly recommend using whole milk due to the fat content. Skim milk won’t have the same results.


Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes | www.chocolatemoosey.com

What’s the difference between scalloped potatoes and au gratin potatoes?

After spending numerous hours researching and reading through recipes, nobody else knows either.

Some sources say scalloped potatoes don’t have cheese, but obviously my recipe does. The boxed scalloped potatoes I ate growing up definitely had a cheese sauce.

Another difference is au gratin has breadcrumbs on top, but most au gratin recipes I saw didn’t include breadcrumbs, including my Garlic Parmesan Au Gratin Potatoes.

In conclusion, the rest of the world doesn’t know the difference between scalloped and au gratin. They DO know anything with cheese and potatoes is a winner, no matter what you call it.

Which potato is best for scalloped potatoes ?

I personally think Russet potatoes make the best potato for scalloped potatoes because of their higher starch level, which results in a creamier sauce.

However, I’ve seen other scalloped potato recipes using Yukon gold, which better hold their shape. Whichever potato you choose, bake until the potatoes are fork tender.

Other Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipes

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Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes

Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour

Learn how to cook homemade Easy Cheesy Stovetop Scalloped Potatoes from scratch in a cheddar cheese sauce to save oven space.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk, room temperature
  • 1 pound russet potatoes (roughly 2 large potatoes), peeled and thinly sliced (preferably with a mandoline for even, thin cuts)
  • 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

  1. In a Dutch oven or another wide-bottomed saucepan, melt the butter. Add the onion and a big pinch of salt and cook 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute.
  2. Stir in the flour, salt, and garlic powder until a roux (thick paste) forms. Gradually whisk in the milk.
  3. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the potatoes. Cook covered for 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender, stirring often to prevent burning on the bottom.
  4. Stir in the cheese until melted. Serve warm.

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© Carla Cardello
Cuisine: American / Category: Side Dishes

Did you make my recipe?

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  5. Awesome- I was just telling the hubs that I wanted to make some!! Thanks!

    By looking at your Easter recipes with all the Cadbury eggs- looks like we would get along quite well. YUM!!

    Reply

  7. Carla,
    These look like a great use for my Benriner. I just ran through a pile of onions to caramelize in the crock pot today, and that Benriner makes it ridiculously easy. I learned about it from Alanna at Kitchen Parade/Veggie Venture, found one at my local Asian market, and was set. Cheaper than a mandoline, easy clean up, and super sharp blade.
    Back to your potatoes–they look wonderful. Do you think I could pour the sauce over sliced (uncooked) potatoes in the crock pot, give it a stir, and let it go for 4 hours? I’m always trying to find short cuts for holiday dishes, that, like you say, don’t involve the already overworked oven.
    Thanks!

    Reply

    • I have never used a crock pot before, so I honestly don’t know. Someone once told me for soups, you need to add more liquid to crock pot version because it cooks longer, so I’m not sure if you would need more sauce? I think in theory it would work. Just maybe keep an eye on it for the first time doing it?

      Reply

  14. Just made these scalloped potatoes and they were easy to make and also delicious!! Thanks for sharing the recipe :D

    Reply

  16. I just tried these potatoes and all I can say is WOW! they turned out great! I did have to change it up a little bit though, as I had sliced up more potatoes than were called for (6 cups rather than 4). It was OK though, I just added a third onto each measurement and everything turned out. One thing that I do have to note, is it’s best for a number of reasons to use a nonstick pan. One, it doesn’t stick (DUH!!! LOL) and two you can actually let it burn just a bit before stirring and it comes off easily. Why let it burn you may ask? Well I don’t know about you, but I happen to LIKE those nicely browned areas that you would normally get on scalloped potatoes that you make in the oven, and letting them stick and burn slightly between stirring adds some of that flavor, at least to me. Anyways, great recipe and thank you!

    Reply

  17. I JUST made these for dinner… and they are sooo good!!! I followed the recipe exactly but added some minced jalapeno.. My boyfriend can’t stop raving about them! Thanks for the recipe it will be a regular for sure! :)

    Reply

  18. Have you tried buying the individual frozen minced garlic cubes (for your dad) I don’t know if you get them in USA we get them in England they are great, use them most of the time. I usually don’t like things messed around with but these are 91% garlic with rapeseed oil sea salt and lemon juice, so they dont appear to have any gunk in. One cube equals one clove. Definitely going to try your potatoes they look scrummy.

    Reply

    • Hmm I don’t know about the frozen cubes, but I know you can buy minced garlic in a jar (which doesn’t have the same flavor as using fresh garlic – it’s…more stale). I’ll take a look and buy him some for Father’s Day haha thanks for letting me know!

      Reply

  20. Thanks! Have you ever tried using different potatoes? I ask because I’m curious how a waxier potato like Yukon golds, or maybe even a purple potato, will hold up.

    Reply

  21. Well I made them tonight with russets, super yummy, and I can see how easily they can be customized (can you say bacon?!)! I’ll probably try them with reds or golds, I’ll try to remember to let you know how they turn out! Thanks for the great recipe!

    Reply

  23. I tried making these tonight, and they were under cooked. I probably should have tasted them more than once before adding the cheese. I tasted them at the 15 minute mark and they weren’t quite done. I even cooked them for 5 minutes longer than it says. That’s when I should have tasted them again. I think if I try making them again, I’ll use a skillet, so that they’re spread out more. I also think the saucepan I used was too small. It was my fault. It’s a lovely recipe.

    Reply

    • Sorry to hear they didn’t turn out. Another reason could be the thickness of your potatoes. If yours were thicker than mine, they could very well take longer than directed.

      Reply

      • They were sliced pretty thin. I used my food processor. I just think they weren’t spread out enough. I’ll try again sometime.

        Reply

  24. I love scalloped potatoes. Stovetop or oven baked, either way, I am a fan of potatoes with cheese of any kind! Yours look creamy and delicious, Carla!

    Reply

    • In the recipe box, click on the link that says Print Recipe (next to Save Recipe and underneath the cooking time). That’ll take you to an ad-free page to print.

      Reply

  28. I don’t know what I did wrong, but I need to keep adding milk to mine. I’m not sure if my potatoes are really going to cook. It’s so think I could use it as wallpaper glue.

    Reply

    • I don’t know what you did wrong either, but it certainly shouldn’t be that thick. Can you walk me through what you did exactly, including what you used for ingredients? My guesses are you didn’t measure properly, didn’t use the correct pan size, or you boiled it way too rapidly and the milk reduced down before it cooked the potatoes. When did you add the cheese? Was it super thick before or after you added the cheese? If you added it before the potatoes finished cooking, that would also contribute to your super thick sauce. Or if the cheese is fat free or low fat, they can sometimes give the sauce a weird texture.

      Reply

  29. I didn’t have all the ingredients required, so it didn’t turn out the way it looks in the pictures. What I ended up with was cheesy, filling potatoes. Easy to make and very tasty.
    Thanks for the stove top recipe!

    Reply

  30. My family LOVES scalloped potatoes – YUM! – and I love how easy this recipe is! Way simpler than my other recipes.

    Reply

    • Because not everyone can peel and slice 2 potatoes plus gather the rest of their mise en place in 10 minutes. Based on the comments and traffic to this post, it doesn’t turn people off from trying it. Besides it’s better than writing 10 minutes and finding out it takes you 30 minutes ;) Regardless, I’m glad you were able to make this dish much faster than written and enjoyed it!

      Reply

  37. Simple recipe. I used about two cups milk. While they were cooking it looked like it might be too thick and the potatoes might not cook as fast as I wanted them to so I added some water. They were seriously perfect. Husband and I both think they are delicious and took no time to make. thank you for this recipe. It’s saved and I’ll use it a lot.

    Reply

  38. EXACTLY the recipe I was looking for. You guessed it, no room in the oven due to a ham! Will be making it in our wok. Appreciate it!

    Reply

  39. I made the recipe. I maybe used more than a pound of potatoes so I added another cup of milk but left the flour as directed in the recipe. I sliced my potatoes really thin and left the skins on as I used yellow potatoes. They were creamy and super tasty. I probably also cooked them about 30-40 min stirring often keeping them between simmer/low and 2. I just nursed them while waiting on my ham to finish baking low and slow in the oven. I will definitely use this recipe again. Thank you! 👍🏻

    Reply

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