Funeral potatoes are a cheesy potato casserole often served at gatherings such as funerals, weddings, holidays and potlucks. They consist of a hash brown potato base with a creamy sauce. The sauce is often a combination of cream soup, onions, cheese and sour cream. Most funeral potatoes have a crunchy topping – usually potato chips or bread crumbs with butter. See more here: Funeral Potatoes and Sympathy Meals – Everything You Need to Know.
Cheesy potato casseroles are popular throughout the country, but often called “Funeral Potatoes” in the Mormon tradition. There are many, many varieties on the basic recipe, and often recipes are passed down through the generations. Hundreds of recipes for funeral potatoes are online, with many terrific variations on the theme listed below.
Classic Funeral potatoes
First are some classic funeral potato recipes. This recipe from lil luna uses cream of chicken soup and cheddar cheese. One interesting ingredient is frozen cubed potatoes instead of hash browns. This recipe even features cornflakes for a crunchy topping.
Another classic recipe using cream of chicken soup, sour cream, hash brown potatoes, cheddar cheese and cornflakes.
Funeral potatoes from America’s Test Kitchens
Americas test kitchens is famous for creating and testing many variations of a recipe to see which ingredients and cooking techniques work the best. They experimented with using fresh potatoes vs. frozen hash brown potatoes, and concluded that using frozen hash browns was best in their recipe. They also use a sauce made from chicken broth and half and half instead of the traditional cream soup. This looks like a nice, fresh take on the standard.
Must-haves for bringing a comfort meal
Award winning funeral potato recipes
Salt Lake Magazine published an award winning recipe from Utah’s Own competition. This recipe relies on frozen hash browns, cream of chicken soup and 2 types of cheese. The recipe is modernized a bit with the use of Panko bread crumbs as a topping
Here is another award winning funeral potato recipe from Utah. This recipe is quite involved, as everything is made from scratch, including the chicken broth!
Cracker Barrel copy cat funeral potato recipe
Yes, even Cracker Barrel offers funeral potatoes. Although, they do call the Hashbrown Casserole. Never mind, we still know what it is! This recipe uses Colby cheese, as advertised in Cracker Barrel’s menu.
Funeral potatoes that are dairy free and gluten free
For those of us who are dairy free, it seemed like funeral potatoes was out of our reach. However, these enterprising bloggers have figured out how to make the casserole without milk!
Positively Mommy’s recipe relies on almond milk, Tofutti cheese substitute shreds and Earth balance instead of the typical cheese, butter and cream.
Earth Balance even offers a dairy free (and gluten free) recipe. Their recipe uses dairy free creamer, dairy free sour cream and dairy free cheddar cheese, and Earth Balance sticks. They also call for vegetable broth instead of the typical chicken broth or cream soup
Great casserole dishes for funeral potatoes
Funeral potatoes with no cream soup
This recipe uses chicken broth and milk to make its own cream sauce instead of using canned cream soup, The potatoes are still creamy and delicious!
Healthier funeral potatoes
Well, can cheesy potatoes actually be healthy? Given that they rely on cream and cheese and other wonderful goodness for flavor, I was doubtful. But this recipe from Lovely Little Kitchen is still satisfying, salty and creamy by using a home made white sauce in place of cream soup.
Crockpot Funeral Potatoes
The crockpotladies offer a recipe for funeral potatoes that can be prepared in a crock pot. This recipe uses cream of celery soup for added flavor and a twist of cream cheese for added creaminess. Wow!
Great options for crock pots
3 Cheese Scalloped Potato Recipe
This recipe uses fresh potatoes and a mixture of 3 cheeses, American, cheddar and Parmesan for flavor!
Funeral Potato Recipe with Cream of Potato Soup
Many traditional funeral potato recipes call for cream of chicken soup. This recipe uses cream of potato soup instead and 2 types of cheese: cheddar and Parmesan for extra flavor. Here, the author compares her recipe to a more traditional recipe.
Funeral Potato Recipe using Fresh potatoes
The recipe from Bountiful Kitchen uses typical cream of chicken soup and cheddar cheese, but the author uses fresh, grated potatoes for a fresh twist.
Beautiful Casserole Carriers
Spicy Funeral Potato Recipe with Ham
One common twist is the addition of a meat such as bacon or ham. The Spicy Southern Kitchen includes ham in their recipe to make it more of a main dish. This recipe also uses cream of mushroom soup, dry ranch mix, dried thyme and hot sauce for a spicy kick.
Funeral Potato Recipe using a Pressure cooker / Instant Pot
Instant Pots are all the rage right now, offering a set it and forget ease. While most funeral casseroles are cooked in the oven, this is one of the few I found cooked right in your Instant Pot. This recipe takes only 15 minutes to cook in an Instant Pot, instead of the usual 1 hour.
Funeral potatoes for 100
We know that often, sympathy meals are often cooked to feed entire communities. Well, here are the recipes you need – so you can feed 100 of your closest friends and neighbors at one time!
A Pinch of Joy’s recipe for 100 starts with 10 pounds of frozen hash browns, 3 pounds of sour cream and 8 cups of shredded cheddar cheese! Now that is a funeral potato casserole!
Funeral Potatoes with Gourmet truffle and Gouda
And now for something completely different – this scalloped potato casserole recipe uses sliced red potatoes, truffle salt and 1 cup of Gouda cheese.
Funeral Potatoes with Green Chile
While this spicy recipe starts with the classic frozen hash browns and cream of chicken soup, it uses 2 cans of chopped green chiles and 2 types of cheese: cheddar and pepper jack cheese. Also, it uses crushed crackers for a topping.
Spicy southern funeral potatoes
Mommacan.com makes a spicy southern funeral potato casserole with green chiles, onion powder, cream of mushroom soup and cheddar cheese.
Pioneer Woman’s Funeral Potatoes
Finally, don’t forget Ree Drummond’s Pioneer Woman Funeral Potatoes. The Pioneer Woman’s potatoes are very popular on the internet, and for good reason. They make their own sauce with low sodium chicken broth and milk instead of cream soup, and use a special mixture of 3 cheeses: cheddar, Parmesan, and Monterey Jack, my favorite.
Also, you can check out our youtube channel: Funeral Potatoes and Comfort Food!