Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole for a Crowd
Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole is a large batch recipe for easy cheesy potatoes cooked to creamy buttery perfection for a crowd of 20, 50, or even 100 people. Make these dreamy brunch potatoes easily and affordably with these tips for cooking in larger quantities. This no fail, copycat Cracker Barrel recipe is always a crowd-pleaser.
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Why this recipe works
Who doesn’t love cheesy breakfast potatoes? Especially copycat Cracker Barrel potatoes, which are legendary. Well, here I am to tell you that you can make loads and loads of yummy Cracker Barrel hashbrown casserole for lots of people. Yep, this recipe is your new brunch mate, your best breakfast friend, for serving a bunch of people.
This recipe works because it is a traditional, Southern hashbrown casserole amped up for volume and flavor. Volume in that I’ve got it all measured in amounts that multiply easily. And flavor in that I stayed true (well almost true, I’ll explain below) to the original Cracker Barrel recipe.
About the ingredients
- Shredded hash browns. Frozen or fresh, either is fine. But if using frozen, you do want to thaw them first.
- Butter. I prefer unsalted butter, but salted butter can also be used.
- Condensed cream of chicken soup. Cream of chicken is a hallmark ingredient in traditional hashbrown casserole. Though it can be tempting to get a generic brand of this soup, I highly recommend not doing that (especially Great Value sold at Walmart – it’s not good). Stick with Campbell’s brand soup.
- Sour cream.
- Dried minced onion. Instead of chopping a bunch of onion, I prefer to use dried minced onion when I can. And in this recipe, we can! Dried minced onion works very well. But if you prefer, use 1 cup fresh chopped onion instead.
- Kosher salt.
- Black pepper.
- Cheese: shredded Colby-Jack and sharp cheddar. Cracker Barrel uses Colby cheese in their casserole, but Colby is only sold in grocery stores in blocks. Shredding a ton of cheese by hand sucks, so I don’t. So instead, I use shredded Colby-Jack and sharp cheddar cheeses. The sharp cheddar makes up for the lack of full Colby and I don’t have to shred cheese!
- Cooking spray. For the pan.
TIP: Grocery stores carry condensed cream of chicken soup in 10.5 ounce and larger 22.6 ounce cans. Both work, just use 2 small or 1 large, and don’t worry about the slight difference in volume.
How to make hashbrown casserole for a crowd
This recipe is so easy. Just combine everything – except not all the cheese because we want to reserve some for topping. Then pour it all in hotel pans. If you have large enough bowls, you can make more at once. Otherwise, make in 1x or 2x batches.
Once the casserole is in the pans, we top with the reserved cheese. Then bake! Since these are potatoes, they will take their time. I am a stickler for soft hashbrown casserole – I want it cooked well through the center. So be sure to check for doneness by tasting from the center. And be careful not to burn your mouth.
TIP: If the casserole starts to get too browned on top before the potatoes are cooked through the center, lightly tent with foil to finish cooking.
FAQs
Yes, this recipe can be assembled a day in advance. Cover tightly with foil or plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator before cooking. Note that putting this straight in the oven cold will increase the cooking time.
Though the leftovers of this recipe do well, I do not recommend cooking in advance. In general, potatoes tend to get mealy, and cheese tends to separate upon reheating.
Complete your breakfast with my Buttermilk Pancakes and Oven-Cooked Bacon. Both are easy recipes too!
Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole for a Crowd
Equipment
Ingredients
- 60 ounces shredded hash browns thawed if frozen
- 1 cup unsalted butter melted
- 22.6 oz condensed cream of chicken soup (one 22.6 oz family-sized can or two regular 10.5 oz cans)
- 32 oz sour cream
- 2 Tbsp dried minced onion or 1 cup fresh chopped onion
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 lb shredded Colby-Jack cheese divided
- 1 lb shredded sharp cheddar cheese divided
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Heat oven to 400℉.
- In a large bowl or hotel pan, combine the butter, soup, sour cream, onion, salt, and pepper.
- Stir in 3/4 lb each Colby-Jack and cheddar cheeses (reserving 1 cup each for topping).
- Stir in the potatoes.
- Transfer mixture to a one hotel pan or divide between two (13 x 9) bake dishes (sprayed with cooking spray).
- Top with the reserved 1 cup each Colby-Jack and cheddar cheeses.
- Bake at 400℉ for 80 minutes or until potatoes are cooked soft in the center.
I need to make this slightly ahead of the meal due to other commitments the same day. Could I bake it then place the foil pan in an electric roaster on the lowest setting for a few hours to keep warm?
Hi Angie, yes that should work fine as long as your heating element won’t be so strong as to cause burning. As long as that’s the case, you really can’t otherwise overcook these potatoes. Enjoy!
easy and yummy. . made ahead of time and refrigerated..reheated next day in oven covered.. while my tennesee pride sausage casserole baked….a hit with a crowd …everyone loved the breakfast… suggest you make the tennessee pride country sausage casserole with the hashbrowns… add a biscuit and you have a hearty breakfast for many.
I am wondering if this could be made in a slow cooker. How long do you think it would take on low?
Hi Karen, this could probably be cooked in a large slow cooker but I have not done so. I would think it would take a good amount of time to get the potatoes cooked through – probably low for 6 hours rather than high to prevent burning.