Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole
on Nov 12, 2025
Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole is an easy make ahead, crowd pleasing side dish. Creamy mashed potatoes are loaded with lots of cheese, crispy bacon, tangy sour cream, and topped with green onion. This recipe is great for weeknight dinners or when feeding a crowd like Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Amp up your mashed potatoes this by making them into a casserole with your favorite baked potato toppings. This Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole is great because it can be made ahead for holiday dinners like Thanksgiving and Christmas.
If you are looking for other potato recipes, consider making Ruth’s Chris Sweet Potato Casserole or Slow Cooker Cheesy Potatoes.
Classic mashed potatoes are great but sometimes it’s great to switch things up a bit. That’s where this Loaded Potato Casserole will be an excellent choice. It’s great for a side with Thanksgiving Roasted Turkey, a Bourbon Glazed Christmas Ham or even with a Classic Meatloaf.
If you can peel, dice and boil potatoes, then this recipe will be super easy for you. You will make the potatoes, mix in butter, milk, sour cream, crispy fried bacon and cheese. Then top it with more cheese and bacon. So super simple.
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As I mentioned, this Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole is very easy to make. If you are crunched for time, do not have real potatoes on hand, or you like bagged, boxed or store-bought pre-made mashed potatoes, you can use those. No time to fry the bacon in a pan? Go ahead and use pre-cooked microwave bacon if you need to. Homemade is best when possible.
Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole Ingredients
You will need just a few ingredients to make baked mashed potato casserole from scratch. . Check out your fridge and pantry or run to the grocery store- these are all the ingredients you need for this recipe:
- Potatoes – The best potatoes for mashed potatoes or something like our Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole are probably russet potatoes. Russets are a light, fluffy potato after cooking and since we’re adding plenty of butter, milk, and sour cream, we don’t need the creaminess of something like a Yukon gold potato.
- Salt
- Bacon – Avoid the thin, microwave bacon for this recipe if you can. We prefer using a nice thick-cut bacon that’s perfect for cooking up in a skillet.
- Butter
- Milk
- Sour Cream
- Cheese – Plenty of good choices when it comes to cheese for mashed potatoes or a casserole recipe like this. To stick with the “loaded baked potato” flavors we have going on, we recommend with something like a sharp cheddar cheese or colby jack cheese like we used here. Skip the bagged cheese, they are loaded with anti-caking agents that do not melt like the real freshly shredded cheese.
- Green Onions – These make for a nice onion garnish. You can also use scallions or chives instead of green onions if you prefer.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to make Loaded Mashed Potatoes Casserole
This mashed potato casserole recipe is actually pretty easy- you will make homemade mashed potatoes and bake them with all of your typical loaded potato fix-ins. Let’s get this casserole started.
- Prep potatoes by first peeling and then chopping down into 1/2 inch pieces.
- Transfer potatoes to a large pot on the stovetop and add enough water to cover them. Mix in salt and then bring potatoes to a boil before reducing heat to medium/medium-low. Cook potatoes until tender before draining and setting aside.
- Chop bacon down into 1 inch pieces. Add chopped bacon to a skillet and cook until browned. Remove from pan and set on paper towels to drain off grease.
- To make mashed potatoes creamy, we’ll whip up a butter and milk mixture. Heat butter in microwave for one minute, add milk and cook another 30 seconds, and then add in sour cream before mixing together to combine. Do this in a mixing bowl or a large measuring cup for convenience.
- Transfer drained boiled potatoes to a large mixing bowl. Give butter-milk mixture another quick stir to combine before adding small amounts to bowl with potatoes. You will want to add the mixture a little bit at a time. You may not use all of the butter and milk mixture. Beat until you have your desired consistency.
- Grab a hand or stand mixer and use to beat potatoes and milk mixture together. Keep beating until you get creamy mashed potatoes before setting aside.
- If you haven’t already, shred cheese– no need to finely shred. Take time to divide bacon and cheese in half as well.
- Add half of your bacon and cheese to mashed potatoes and stir to combine into a loaded mash.
- Transfer loaded mashed potatoes to a baking dish.
- Top your loaded potatoes up with remaining bacon…
- …and remaining cheese. Note: If you are not baking your potatoes immediately and are making ahead, allow the potatoes to cool before adding final layer of cheese.
- Cover Mashed Potato Casserole with aluminum foil (add a bit of butter to foil to prevent the cheese from sticking) and transfer to an awaiting 375 degree oven. Bake for 25 minutes before removing foil and baking another 10 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven, garnish with green onions, and enjoy!
Storage / Freezing
Storage: Whether you’re prepping Make Ahead Mashed Potato Casserole or you have leftovers, you’ll want to keep them in the fridge. Let casserole cool completely before transferring to an airtight container or wrapping tightly with plastic wrap and/or foil. Keep in the fridge for 3-5 days and, for best results, reheat in the oven covered with foil to keep toppings from burning.
Freezing: Any leftover Mashed Potatoes Casserole should actually hold up really well in the freezer too. Ingredients like milk, cheese, and sour cream don’t freeze well but when they’re in a casserole like this, the taste and texture changes aren’t too noticable. Wrap well with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and keep in the freezer for 3-6 months- again, reheating covered with foil in the oven for best results.
Tips for the BEST Mashed Potato Casserole
- Add the milk and butter mixture to the potatoes in small amounts. You may not use all of the butter and milk mixture. Beat until you have you have the consistency you like.
- For a smoother mashed potato casserole with less lumps, use a potato ricer to smash the potatoes.
- Pan fried thick cut bacon gives the best texture. If you need to save time, use store-bought pre-cooked microwave bacon.
- Fresh grated cheese is the best. Bagged cheese contains anti caking agents so it will not melt well.
- Lightly butter your aluminum foil to prevent cheese from sticking.
- If you are not baking your potatoes immediately and are making ahead, allow the potatoes to cool before adding final layer of cheese.
- If making potato casserole ahead of time, prepare the mixture, add to baking dish and then cover with aluminum foil. Refrigerate until ready to bake.
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Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 lb Russet Potatoes
- 1 tsp Salt
- 12 oz Bacon, chopped
- 8 tbsp Butter
- 1/2 cup Milk
- 1/2 cup Sour Cream
- 8 oz Colby Jack Cheese
- 2 Green Onions, to garnish
Instructions
- Peel and dice potatoes into roughly 1/2″ pieces.
- Place potatoes in a pot and add enough water to cover. Add salt.
- Bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium.
- Cook until potatoes are tender (easily pierced with fork).
- Drain and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Cut bacon into 1″ pieces and cook in a skillet until browned.
- Remove bacon from skillet and place on paper towels to drain.
- Microwave butter for 1 minute in a medium bowl.
- Add milk and heat for 30 seconds, until butter is melted.
- Add sour cream and whisk until blended.
- Gradually add milk mixture to potatoes until desired consistency is reached.
- Beat potatoes with a mixer until creamy. Set aside.
- Shred the cheese.
- Add 1/2 of the bacon and 1/2 the cheese to the potatoes. Stir to incorporate.
- Transfer potatoes to a baking dish.
- Top with remaining bacon.
- Top with remaining cheese.
- Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil and cook an additional 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
- Trim and chop green onions. Sprinkle on top.
Notes
- Add the milk and butter mixture to the potatoes in small amounts. You may not use all of the butter and milk mixture. Beat until you have you have the consistency you like.
- For a smoother mashed potato casserole with less lumps, use a potato ricer to smash the potatoes.
- Pan fried thick cut bacon gives the best texture. If you need to save time, use store-bought pre-cooked microwave bacon.
- Fresh grated cheese is the best. Bagged cheese contains anti caking agents so it will not melt well.
- Lightly butter your aluminum foil to prevent cheese from sticking.
- If you are not baking your potatoes immediately and are making ahead, allow the potatoes to cool before adding final layer of cheese.
- If making potato casserole ahead of time, prepare the mixture, add to baking dish and then cover with aluminum foil. Refrigerate until ready to bake.
Nutrition
RECIPE CARD GOES HERE
