Perfect Potatoes Au Gratin

This potatoes au gratin recipe is one of my favorite potato dishes. It’s has tender, creamy potatoes under a layer of crisp, browned bubbly cheese.

Think of au gratin potatoes as scalloped potatoes with extra cheese. As the dish bakes, the cheesy sauce bubbles and forms a golden crust on top of the sliced potatoes. That incredibly creamy, cheesy crust is what “au gratin” refers to in French.

These are comforting, infinitely impressive, and always a crowd-pleaser. Everyone we’ve served them to loves them!

Key Ingredients

• Potatoes: We love Yukon Golds for au gratin potatoes. They hold up really well in the sauce and won’t break down into a mash.
• Butter and Flour: These make the roux, which thickens the creamy cheese sauce. You don’t need much, since the potatoes release starch as they cook, helping thicken the sauce naturally.
• Milk and Cream: These combine to make our sauce. We use mostly milk, but love making it a bit richer with some cream.
• Cheese: For that cheese sauce, we will use two cheeses: a medium cheddar and easy melting Colby Jack. You can experiment with other cheeses, too, like Gruyère, sharper cheddars, fontina, or others.
• Salt, Pepper, and Garlic Powder: These season the sauce and potatoes. The garlic powder adds a subtle garlic flavor, and granulated garlic works just as well.

Find the full recipe with measurements below.

How to Make the Best Au Gratin Potatoes

Tip 1: Make the cheese sauce. This sauce is made just like a classic mac and cheese sauce. Melt the butter, whisk in the flour, then pour in the milk and cream. Once it’s bubbling and thickened, stir in the cheese and a little extra butter. It’s simple and tastes incredible with the potatoes. (The extra butter adds a really lovely sheen to the sauce).

Tip 2: Prepare the potatoes. I peel my potatoes, but you can skip that step if you prefer. Slice them thinly with a chef’s knife or a mandoline. A mandoline is fast and keeps every slice the same thickness (just watch your fingers).

Tip 3: Assemble. Layer everything into the baking dish: a little sauce, a layer of potatoes, some cheese, then more sauce. Repeat, then finish with a final layer of the sauce and more cheese on top.

Tip 4: Bake until bubbly. We bake our potatoes uncovered at 375°F until the top begins to turn golden and the edges are bubbly. You can check if the potatoes are done with a skewer. It should slide through them easily. In our oven, this takes about 45 minutes.

Make Ahead Tips

Au gratin potatoes are perfect for making ahead of time.

• You can assemble the dish the day before. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. When you’re ready to cook, bake it uncovered the next day.
• You can also fully bake the dish ahead of time. Let it cool, then refrigerate for up to 3 days. To reheat, cover the dish with foil and bake until hot and bubbly.
• You can also prep the potatoes ahead of time. Peel and slice them, then submerge them in a bowl of cold water. They’ll keep well for up to 12 hours, and possibly a little longer, but not longer than 24 hours. Do not store sliced potatoes without water, or they will turn gray.

Serving Suggestions

Au gratin potatoes work really well for the holidays and heartier weeknight meals. My family loves them for Thanksgiving. Try them with one or more of our Thanksgiving and holiday recipes, like roasted turkey, baked ham, roast beef, or brisket.

They work for hearty weeknight meals, too. Try them with pork chops, roast chicken, meatloaf, marinated steaks, or baked salmon. And, they are amazing with simple vegetable sides. We love them with roasted carrots, roasted broccoli, sautéed green beans, or roasted cabbage.

More Potato Recipes

• Mashed Potatoes
• Roasted Potatoes
• Potato Pancakes