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When it comes to easy comfort food you can’t beat a casserole. This cheesy ground beef and potato casserole checks off all the boxes for a delicious, easy dinner recipe that will please the whole family. It is pure comfort food and this one-dish meal does not disappoint.

ground beef and potato casserole in a white and blue dish on a grey background

Casseroles are such a versatile main dish. You can make them ahead of time and freeze them, they tend to be crowd-pleasers and what I love is that while a casserole is cooking, you can clean up all of the prep dishes and it makes after-dinner cleanup so much easier. A casserole dish is a hearty meal that is perfect for busy weeknights and can be paired with any number of side dish options, or served solo.

This is a level 2 recipe as described below, unless you use already cooked ground beef, then it would become a level 1 recipe. Recipes level times are for prep time, not cooking time.

This recipe is a Dined and Dashed Level 2 recipe, which means it takes 30 minutes or less to prepare and isn’t a challenge for an average weekday.

This cheesy ground beef and potato casserole is an easy recipe and is so delicious! Normally one of the benefits of a casserole like this is the leftovers, but beware – you might not have any leftovers with this one!

If you have made a recipe that I have created before, or at least looked at my recipes, you will notice that I don’t use canned soup for my creamy recipes. A lot of online ground beef and potato casserole recipes call for cream of mushroom soup, cream of chicken soup, or even cream of celery soup.

If your personal preference is to just use canned soup, then by all means, check out one of those other recipes. But I truly believe that it’s not that much more difficult or time-consuming to use as many non-processed ingredients as possible. So I created a delicious creamy cheesy sauce that takes the place of the soup mixture.

The information below is a quick rundown of the ingredients you need for this recipe, and the steps it takes. For the full recipe card, scroll down, or go back up and click the jump to recipe button.

What you need to make ground beef and potato casserole

You do have some options for this recipe, one of which is the different types of ground meat you can use. If you don’t want to use or don’t have ground beef you can use ground turkey, ground pork, ground chicken, or whatever type of meat you want. In general, it requires simple ingredients, many of which you likely already have at home.

I use frozen potatoes for this recipe. You can use whole potatoes and cut or slice them yourself, but that adds to the prep time significantly. I like the brand Sno Pac because they are organic and super affordable.

lean ground beef
frozen potatoes (hash browns, diced potatoes, sliced potatoes, any will work)
unsalted butter
heavy whipping cream
sour cream
shredded cheddar cheese (or your cheese of choice, I used gouda and cheddar)
Worcestershire sauce
onion powder
dried minced onion
garlic powder
minced garlic
salt
black pepper
dried parsley

The equipment you need for this delicious meal is easy too. You need a large skillet for browning the ground beef, a baking dish for the casserole, and some aluminum foil.

How to make ground beef and potato casserole

This recipe can be made the night or morning before you plan to cook it, or you can just make it about an hour or so before you plan to serve it. If you make the ground beef the day before, or if you are using frozen ground beef (see video below), your cook times may need to increase. You will need to cook it so the internal temperature is at least 165 degrees (200 degrees is more than done).

Preheat the oven
Brown the ground beef over medium high heat (or whatever ground meat you chose) and drain
Add all of the remaining ingredients except the parsley, cheese and potatoes to the meat mixture and stir until combined (alternatively, you can use a large bowl for this if your skillet isn’t big enough)
In a casserole dish, layer half of the ground beef mixture, then half of the potato slices (or hashed brown, or diced potatoes), then half of the cheese, and repeat for a 2nd layer with the meat, potatoes, and remaining cheese.
Bake covered for 30 minutes, then uncover the dish and continue to bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown
Serve and enjoy

Pro tip: Cook a bunch of ground beef ahead of time and freeze it in 1 lb packages to make easy casserole recipes even easier! Frozen ground beef will last around 2-3 months in the freezer. Make sure to write the date on the packaging.

If you want to serve this ground beef and potato casserole with a side dish, it would go well with fresh green beans, seasoned carrots, a side salad, or crisp steamed broccoli. To take it up a notch, serve with chives and a dollop of sour cream on top.