Go Back
a small everyday baking dish of soft fine shredded potato casserole with a thin melted golden Colby top and browned edges, one spoonful lifted out to show pale creamy shreds, with no cornflakes, bacon, sour-cream dollop or garnish
Andre Lewis

Cracker Barrel-Style Hashbrown Casserole

Fresh potatoes and Colby give this Cracker Barrel-style casserole its own route to the familiar soft, cheesy side. It's an original home recipe, not the restaurant's formula. Parboil the whole potatoes just enough to soften their outer layers, chill them and grate once they can hold a clean shred. The brief evaporated-milk sauce gets its body from cornstarch, so there is no canned soup or sour-cream layer to weigh it down. Plan for the cooling time instead of grating warm potatoes into a sticky pile, then bake until a knife meets no firm strands in the center and the exposed edges have started to brown.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 40 minutes
Servings: 8
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 2 lbs medium russet potatoes about 4 potatoes, scrubbed
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter divided
  • 1 small yellow onion very finely diced
  • 1 can evaporated milk 12 fl oz
  • 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch
  • 8 oz Colby cheese grated and divided
  • 3/4 tsp fine salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper

Method
 

  1. Cover whole potatoes with cold water by 1 inch in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer and cook for 12 to 15 minutes until the outer flesh yields to a knife but the centers remain firm; drain, cool for 10 minutes and refrigerate in a shallow dish for 45 minutes until easy to handle and firm enough to grate.
  2. Heat the oven to 375°F. Peel cooled potatoes and grate on the large holes of a box grater, keeping the shreds loose. Grease a 2-quart baking dish with 1 teaspoon of the butter.
  3. Melt remaining butter in a saucepan over medium heat and cook onion for 5 minutes. Whisk evaporated milk, broth and cornstarch together, pour into the pan and stir for 2 to 3 minutes until gently bubbling and slightly thickened.
  4. Remove from the heat and stir in 6 ounces Colby, salt and pepper. Fold the sauce through the fresh potato shreds and spread in the prepared dish; scatter remaining Colby over the top.
  5. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until the center bubbles and a knife slides through the shreds without a firm catch. Cover loosely if the top browns before the potatoes soften, then rest for 10 minutes before serving.