Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes and Ham are the best way to feed a crowd and can be made ahead of time and refrigerated or frozen. Bake them in the oven or cook them in the Crock Pot for an easy side dish idea!
Love easy side dish ideas? Be sure to try my Twice Baked Potato Casserole recipe (from The Pioneer Woman!) next!
Ingredients
- Yukon Gold Potatoes– They hold their shape best when baked. Slice them all thin for even cooking. A mandoline slicer makes this very easy.
- Butter– I prefer Cabot brand.
- Yellow Onion– I like to caramelize it for a greater depth of flavor. (And they become so silky smooth, onion haters won’t even know they’re in there!)
- Fresh Garlic– Freshly minced garlic at home is much better than jarred garlic or garlic powder.
- Flour
- Half and Half– Milk may also be used
- Rosemary
- Oregano
- Thyme
- Sage
- Cheddar Cheese
- Gruyere Cheese– cheddar may be used in it’s place but it compliments the caramelized onion very well.
- Ham– this is optional but adds nice flavor and texture.
- Parmesan cheese– finely grated into a powder to top off the dish.
- Fresh Parsley– to garnish.
⭐Pro Tip: Slice the potatoes very thin, about 1/8 inch thick. You’ll want equally-sized slices for even cooking. A mandoline slicer makes this much easier.
Make-Ahead Method
Scalloped potatoes are easy to make ahead and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 weeks.
- Assemble and bake at 400°, covered, for 30 minutes.
- Let them cool completely. Freeze or refrigerate.
- If you freeze them, thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Let them sit out for 30 minutes prior to baking.
- Bake in a 375° oven for 25 minutes, or until the top is begins to brown.
Crock Pot Method
- To prepare scalloped potatoes in the Crock Pot, assemble the casserole as instructed.
- Cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 8-9 hours.
- Add finely grated Parmesan.
- Leave the lid off for an extra 15 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken.
- Garnish with parsley and serve.
Can you Freeze Cooked Scalloped Potatoes?
Yes. Freeze cooked scalloped potatoes in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
- Let them defrost overnight or thaw it in the microwave.
- Cover and reheat in the microwave or in a 350° oven until heated through, (depends on portion size).
- You may also choose to reheat in a skillet over medium/medium-high heat. This creates a crispy crust on the bottom that you’ll love.
Serving Suggestion: This pairs perfectly with Ina Garten’s Roast Chicken!
Try These Next!
- Copycat Texas Roadhouse Rolls
- Paula Deen’s Corn Casserole
- Copycat Longhorn Parmesan Crusted Chicken
- Paula Deen’s Green Bean Casserole
- Copycat Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits
- Cheesy Ham and Potato Soup
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Did You Make This Recipe?
I would love for you to leave a rating and a comment below! How’d you do?! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
Ingredients
- 6 medium Yukon Gold Potatoes
Cheese Sauce
- 4 Tablespoons butter
- 1 yellow onion, sliced into strings
- 3 cloves garlic,, minced
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups half and half, or milk
- 3/4 tsp dried rosemary
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp sage
- 2 cups cheddar cheese,, shredded
- 1/2 cup Gruyere cheese,, shredded
- 1 cup cooked ham, diced
Topping/Garnish
- 1/4 cup Parmesan, finely grated into a powder
- 1 Tablespoon Fresh Parley, roughly chopped
Instructions
Preparing the Cheese Sauce:
- Shred the cheddar and Gruyere cheese and set aside, it should be close to room temperature when mixed into the sauce. **Reserve 1/2 cup of the cheddar to top the casserole with.
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
- Add the sliced onions and cook onions for 20 minutes (or more), stirring occasionally. They should begin to brown and caramelize.
- Add the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Gradually add the flour, and mix constantly to form a paste. Heat for 1 minute.
- Temper the half and half/milk by heating it in the microwave for 30 seconds. Add it to the saucepan and stir to combine.
- Add the 3/4 tsp of rosemary, then 1/2 tsp each of oregano, thyme, and sage. Simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Gradually sprinkle in 1 + 1/2 cups of the shredded cheddar and 1/2 cup of the Gruyere until smooth and well combined.
- Mix in the ham, you may want to reserve some to top the casserole with.
Assemble the Casserole
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Peel the potatoes and slice them thinly, about 1/8 inch thick. (A mandoline slicer makes this much easier.)
- Lay 1/3 of the potatoes in a single layer, overlapping each other, on the bottom of a lightly greased 9 x 13 casserole dish. Season lightly with salt and pepper if desired.
- Spoon 1/3 of the cheese sauce over the potatoes and use a pastry brush to completely cover the potatoes with the sauce, to retain their color.
- Repeat twice more until all of the potatoes and sauce are layered in the casserole dish.
- Top with remaining cheddar cheese and any reserved diced ham.
- Bake, covered, for 30 minutes.
- If making ahead: Let it cool completely and freeze or refrigerate until ready to serve. See notes.
- Remove cover. Add 1/4 cup finely shredded Parmesan.
- Reduce heat to 375 and bake for an additional 25 minutes, until the cheese is hot, bubbling, and begins to brown.
- Top with chopped parsley and let it sit for 5 minutes prior to serving.
Notes
Make-Ahead Method
To make scalloped potatoes ahead of time, assemble and bake them in a 400 degree oven, covered, for 30 minutes. Let it cool completely. Cover tightly and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for 2-3 weeks. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight if you freeze them. Let them sit out for 30 minutes prior to baking. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 25 minutes, or until the top is begins to brown.Crock Pot Method
- To prepare scalloped potatoes in the Crock Pot, assemble the casserole as instructed.
- Cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 8-9 hours.
- Leave the lid off for an additional 15 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken.
- Garnish with parsley and serve.
This was delish! I did put a little more half-and-half in the sauce, but other than that I followed the recipe. Even my pickiest eater who hates onions thought it was so good!
I’m so happy even the picky eater liked it Diane, victory! Thanks so much for the great comments and review!💖
This was so delicious. I was a littled worried the herbs would be overpowering, but they were not. I made this as a freezer meal and it does reheat beautifully in the oven.
Thanks so much for the great review! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!💗
The flavors blend together nicely, but the sauce was a little heavy for us. As other reviews mentioned, the thick stringy sauce was difficult to spread evenly. It was still a good recipe and will definitely try again. Tks
I’m happy that you enjoyed it Jeanne! You could use milk instead of half and half next time! 🙂
This is my go to Recipe for scalloped potatoes. Best EVER!!!
Hi Ella! I am so happy to hear that, I love this recipe too!!! 🙂 -Stephanie
This is a great recipe! “Painting” the thick and stringy (from the melted cheese) sauce over the potato slices is a bit of a hassle, but it creates great results. If you’ve ever had to deal with watery or thinly sauced scalloped potatoes, not with this recipe. The herbs provide a flavor boost and some depth. I use whole milk instead of half and half, and it’s just fine.
Hey Annette! I’m so glad that you enjoyed this recipe and really appreciate you taking the time to leave this review!! Thank you! -Stephanie
My “sauce” came out a little thick so it didn’t spread well and though I think the potatoes were plenty thin enough, it still needed additional time to get the potatoes done. The end result was delicious though!
I halved this recipe and used the cheese we had on hand (Mozzarella, Colby-Jack, Parmesan). It still worked great. I meant to try topping it with some buttered panko but forgot. Next time I’ll give that a try. Thanks for the great recipe.
Hey Becka! I’m so happy that you enjoyed this recipe and that you were able to improvise! I’m not gonna lie, a Panko topping sounds absolutely delicious, I am going to have to try that next time! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave your feedback, so much appreciated!! -Stephanie
Just found this recipe and plan on making this weekend. So much leftover ham and you cannot find boxes of augratin potatoes in the stores right now. I will come back on Monday and let you know how it turned out. Thank you
Excellent Carol! I hope you love it!! 🙌🏻
We loved the casserole, my only problem was that I did not have Yukon potatoes and had to use regular baking potatoes. I used my kitchen aid mixer to slice potatoes which did not slice the potatoes as thin as you stated in the recipe. Because of that the casserole took much longer. No matter, the flavors were great!!!
Hey Carol! I am so happy the flavor was great, thank you for letting me know how it came out!! You’re the best!! -Stephanie
Very tasty! I don’t normally put herbs in the sauce or caramelize the onions but yuuuummmeeeee. I did add the salt and pepper to the sauce and think it was needed in there. I will make this again. Thanks so much!
Hey Jocelyn! I’m sooo happy that you enjoyed these scalloped potatoes, it makes my whole day! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave the first comment on this recipe, and to give it a rating! I really appreciate it. Have a wonderful week! -Stephanie
This was delicious! I added a little bit of parmesan cheese to the shredded cheddar. This is the first time I made this and I was a bit nervous about reheating it after I had cooked it. I reheated it in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes and turned it up to about 375 and left it in there for about 10 more minutes for it to brown on top. It worked out so well. Thank you!
I’m so happy to hear it Lorena!! YAY!!!! I haven’t made this one in a while but I remember how DELICIOUS it is, time for me to make it again! 🙂