Potato Cabbage Casserole with Cheddar and Bacon is a hearty homestyle budget-friendly side dish for simply roasted meat or poultry. When paired with a salad and green vegetable, it’s practically a meal in itself!
The inspiration behind this recipe:
During this time when we’re all trying to make the food and ingredients we already have on hand go a little farther, I think about the stories my father tells about growing up with 13 brothers and sisters and the difficult time my grandmother had feeding everyone. It was during the Great Depression and potatoes and cabbage were a mainstay for them because she could make them go a long way.
As with everyone, we’re trying to stay home as much as possible and use what’s on hand. I was faced with needing to use these baby Yukon Gold potatoes and half a head of cabbage. I love a good potato and cabbage soup but was in the mood for something cheesy and bubbling!
Country-Style Potato Cabbage Casserole with Cheddar and Bacon fits that bill!
How to make Potato Cabbage Casserole with Cheddar and Bacon:
- Start with approximately two pounds of baby Yukon Gold potatoes.
- Slice them into approximately ¼-inch slices and cook them until you can just pierce them with a knife. You don’t want to overcook them because they’ll cook again later and you don’t want them falling apart.
- Thinly slice half a large head of green cabbage. You should have between 8 to 10 cups of cabbage.
- Cook and crumble 8 slices of bacon or chop the bacon and then cook. Your call!
- Reserve some of the bacon drippings, add some butter and cook the cabbage until softened.
- Make a cheese sauce in the saucepan you used to cook the potatoes to save washing a pot.
- Combine the sauce with the cabbage and start layering!
- ⅓ of the cabbage
- Half the potatoes
- ⅓ of the cabbage
- The rest of the potatoes
- The rest of the cabbage….
- This Country-Style Potato Cabbage Casserole with Cheddar and Bacon can be assembled up to the point of adding the French-fried onions and refrigerated up to two days.
- Finish with a layer of canned French-fried onions and bake!
Cheesy, hearty, satisfying, delicious and perfect for a crowd!
Okay, it may still be a while before we can be in a crowd, but you’ll definitely want to have this recipe in your back pocket because I have a feeling there are going to be some major get-togethers when we get the all-clear!
Or, divide it up into two 8 x 8 baking pans and take one to a friend! They’ll love you for it!
For more great cabbage recipes, try my:
- Spicy Italian Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
- Farmhouse Cabbage Soup with Cannellini Beans and Kielbasa
- Roasted Cabbage Steaks with Mustard Vinaigrette
- Parmesan Roasted Cabbage Wedges
- Russian Cabbage Soup (Shchi)
- Spicy Asian Pork Cabbage Rolls
You can find all my potato recipes here!
Potato Cabbage Casserole with Cheddar and Bacon
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 2 pounds baby Yukon Gold potatoes - scrubbed and sliced ¼-inch thick
- Salt
- 8 slices bacon - cooked and crumbled
- 4 tablespoons butter - divided
- 1 medium onion - chopped
- ½ head green cabbage - inner core removed and thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole milk - --OR-- 1 cup 2% milk and 1 cup half-and-half
- 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese - mild, medium or sharp
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- Freshly ground black pepper - to taste
- ½ cup crumbled french-fried onions
- Chopped fresh chives - for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- Place the sliced potatoes in a large saucepan and fill to cover with water. Add 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a boil and cook 5-7 minutes or until you can easily pierce the potatoes with a knife, being careful to not overcook. Drain in a colander and rinse with cold water to cool.
- Meanwhile, place the bacon in a large saute pan and cook 5-7 minutes over medium-high heat until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings and discard any dark, overcooked bits.
- Add 2 tablespoons butter to the bacon drippings and add the onion. Cook over medium heat until beginning to soften, approximately 4-5 minutes.
- Add the cabbage and continue cooking another 4-5 minutes or until cabbage is softened. Remove from the heat.
- In the large saucepan you cooked the potatoes in, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat.
- Add the flour and cook 1-2 minutes. Slowly add the milk or milk and half-and-half, whisking constantly. Bring to a simmer and cook 3-5 minutes or until thickened. (It won't be terribly thick--the cheese will thicken it some more.)
- Add the cheese and whisk constantly until the cheese is melted. Remove from the heat. Stir in the dry mustard and sour cream. Add to the pan the cabbage is in and stir to combine. Add salt and black pepper to taste along with the bacon.
- Begin layering as follows:
--⅓ of the cabbage mixture
--Half the potatoes
--⅓ of the cabbage mixture
--Remaining potatoes
--Remaining cabbage - Top with crumbled french-fried onions.
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake 40-45 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until bubbling and heated through approximately another 15 minutes.
- Garnish with chopped fresh chives.
Notes
Nutrition
These are estimated values generated from a nutritional database using unbranded products. Please do your own research with the products you're using if you have a serious health issue or are following a specific diet.
Nancy Smith says
What if I don’t have gold potatoes on hand?
Carol says
Hi, Nancy, Thanks so much for your question. You can definitely use red potatoes or Russets. Russets tend to fall apart more because of their high starch content. Waxy potatoes such as Yukons or red potatoes hold together better. If you like turnips, I think turnips would be great in this dish, too. Thanks again, hope this answers your question and hope you enjoy!
Joyce says
When do you add the bacon?
Are the French-fried onions from a can?
Hurry w/answers….I’m salivating! LOL
Carol says
Hi, Joyce, Sorry about that and thanks so much for catching that! Add the bacon back in after combining the cheese sauce with the cabbage. Thanks again and hope you enjoy!
Traci says
I love everything about this casserole. It’s the perfect recipe to use up cabbage and potatoes in a totally not boring way. That bacon tho…winning! Pretty sure I’ll be craving this on the regular 🙂
Joan says
With bacon, it won’t be a vegetarian dish. But for us meat eaters, it does sound good.
Carol says
Hi, Joan! Thank so much and you’re completely right! I clarified the recipe to say veggie bacon. Morningstar Farms has a great veggie bacon product. Hope you enjoy!