Hamburger Potato Casserole
Looking for a hearty, budget-friendly dinner the whole family will love? This Hamburger Potato Casserole is the perfect comfort food classic, packed with seasoned ground beef, tender sliced potatoes, and creamy, cheesy layers baked to golden perfection. Ideal for busy weeknights or cozy weekend meals, this easy casserole recipe uses simple ingredients you likely already have in your kitchen. Whether you’re feeding a crowd or prepping for leftovers, this satisfying dish is a must-try!

What to Love About This Hamburger Potato Casserole
- Simple Ingredients – Made with pantry and fridge staples like ground beef, russet potatoes, melty cheese, and cream soup, no fancy ingredients required.
- Family-Friendly – Kids and adults alike love the simple savory flavors.
- Budget-Conscious – It’s a comforting meal that feeds a crowd without breaking the bank, using filling ingredients.
- Perfect for Make-Ahead Meals – Prep it the night before and bake when ready, or freeze for future dinners.
- Customizable – Easy to adapt with your favorite veggies, seasonings, or even swap in ground turkey or plant-based alternatives.
- One Dish Wonder – Everything bakes in one casserole dish for minimal cleanup and maximum flavor.
Easy and Delicious Hamburger Potato Casserole Recipe
Checkout this quick list of ingredients you’ll need to make old fashioned Hamburger Potato Casserole: (Scroll down for the full printable recipe card.)
- Beef – Two pounds of lean ground beef forms the meat layer.
- Potatoes – Thinly sliced russet potatoes forms the potato layer.
- Cheese – Shredded colby jack cheese for a melty cheesy flavor.
- Onion and Garlic – One large sweet onion and fresh garlic cloves amp up the flavor.
- Oil – You’ll need olive oil for sautéing the meat and onion.
- Spices – Seasoned salt, black pepper, smoked paprika and dry Italian seasoning or dried thyme.
- Liquid – Whole milk forms the base of the sauce.
- Worcestershire Sauce – Worcestershire sauce for depth of flavor.
- Cream Cheese – Chive and onion cream cheese thickens the sauce and adds flavor.
- Soup – One can cream of celery soup seasons the sauce.
- Herbs – Fresh parsley for garnishing.

How to Make the BEST Hamburger Potato Casserole Recipe
- Cook Ground Beef and Onion – Cook ground beef and onion with olive oil until no pink remains.
- Season – Add garlic, seasoned salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine. Remove hamburger mixture from the skillet.
- Make the Sauce – To the pan add milk, remaining seasoned salt and black pepper, paprika, Italian seasoning, cream soup, and cream cheese. Simmer over medium low just until the cream cheese has melted and thickened. Remove from the stovetop.
- Heat Oven and Prepare the Baking Dish – Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray a 13×9-inch casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Assemble the Casserole Layers – Arrange half of the potato slices on the bottom of the baking dish, top with hamburger mixture and drizzle with sauce and cheese. Repeat layers.
- Oven – Cover and baker per the cooking time in the recipe. Bake uncovered until golden brown.
- Serve garnished with parsley.
Kitchen Equipment to Make Hamburger Potato Hot Dish Recipe
- Large skillet for cooking the beef and making the sauce.
- Measuring cups and spoons.
- Sharp knife and chopping board.
- Cheese grater for freshly grated cheese.
- Mandolin or food processor for prepping the potatoes.

Recipe Variations, Tips and Substitutions
- Protein – You could use ground turkey, ground chicken, sausage or vegetarian crumbles in this recipe.
- Potatoes – You can use Yukon gold potatoes, white potatoes or red potatoes. I don’t peel the potatoes but you can, if you prefer. Remember each variety of potatoes has different starch content and will cook differently.
- Soup – You could use cream of mushroom soup, cream of chicken soup or cheddar cheese soup in place of cream of celery soup.
- Cheese – You could use sharp cheddar cheese or spicy pepper jack cheese. Any cheese that you like will work.
- Peppers – You could add diced green bell pepper or jalapeño pepper for spice.
- Vegetables – You could add a frozen peas, steamed broccoli florets or cook diced carrots along with the ground beef and onion layer.
- Worcestershire Sauce – You could use soy sauce in place of worcestershire sauce.
Storage and Leftovers
- Leftovers – Store leftover Hamburger Potato Casserole covered with aluminum foil or transferred to an airtight container chilled in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Reheating – Reheat leftovers in individual servings in the microwave or in a preheated 350°F oven until heated through.
- Freezer – Freeze leftovers for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat just before serving.

More Ground Beef Recipes to Make
- Serve this Hamburger Steak with a heaping helping of mashed potatoes.
- Barbecue flavored Smokey Joes.
- Treat the family to a big bowl of Chili Spaghetti.
- Shepherd’s Pie for St Patrick’s Day or any day that suit your fancy.
- Teriyaki Beef Fried Rice is quick and easy.
- Use a fluffy loaf of bread from the grocery store bakery to make this Stuffed Sloppy Joe Bread.
- Italian Basil Beef and Shells for Italian night at home.
- This Bacon Cheeseburger Pie has a hash brown crust.
- Save time and stock your freezer with this Make-Ahead Ground Beef for quick and easy meals.
- Beef Noodles from Food Network.

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Helpful Kitchen Items:

Hamburger Potato Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 lbs lean ground beef
- 1 large sweet onion diced
- 1-2 Tbsp olive oil
- 3 medium garlic cloves minced
- 2 tsp seasoned salt divided use
- 1 tsp black pepper divided use
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp dry Italian seasoning or dried thyme
- 3 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
- 2 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1 8 oz container chive and onion cream cheese
- 1 10 oz can cream of celery soup
- 4 medium russet potatoes thinly sliced
- 3 cups colby jack cheese or sharp cheddar cheese divided use
- chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- In a large skillet, cook ground beef and onion with olive oil over medium-high heat. Cook until no pink remains, around 8 minutes.
- Drain excess grease from pan. Add garlic, 1 teaspoon seasoned salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine.. Cook 1-2 minutes longer.
- Remove hamburger mixture from the skillet.
- Creamy Sauce: To the pan add milk, remaining seasoned salt, black pepper, paprika, Italian seasoning, soup, and cream cheese. Simmer over medium low just until the cream cheese has melted and thickened about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the stovetop.
- Assemble: Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray a 13×9-inch casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Arrange half of the potato slices on the bottom of the baking dish. Top with 1/2 hamburger mixture and drizzle with 1/2 sauce. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 cups cheese.
- Repeat layers, potatoes, hamburger mixture and sauce. Cover with aluminum foil.
- Transfer to the oven and bake for 45-50 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle the top with the remaining 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese.
- Continue to bake uncovered for another 15-20 minutes or until bubbly, the potatoes are fork tender and the cheese is lightly golden brown.
- Serve garnished with parsley.
Notes
- Protein – You could use ground turkey, ground chicken, sausage or vegetarian crumbles in this recipe.
- Potatoes – You can use Yukon gold potatoes, white potatoes or red potatoes. I don’t peel the potatoes but you can, if you prefer. Remember each variety of potatoes has different starch content and will cook differently.
- Soup – You could use cream of mushroom soup, cream of chicken soup or cheddar cheese soup in place of cream of celery soup.
- Cheese – You could use sharp cheddar cheese or spicy pepper jack cheese. Any cheese that you like will work.
- Peppers – You could add diced green bell pepper or jalapeño pepper for spice.
- Vegetables – You could add a frozen peas, steamed broccoli florets or cook diced carrots along with the ground beef and onion layer.
- Worcestershire Sauce – You could use soy sauce in place of worcestershire sauce.

