Cheesy Funeral Potatoes From Scratch

Have you ever had Funeral Potatoes? This is a cheesy, creamy, spoonable potato casserole – an ideal side dish for a potluck dinner or other large gathering.

Where do mourning potatoes come from?

Funeral potatoes are often associated with Southern and Mormon cultures, particularly the Auxiliary Society of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (a women-led organization founded in 1842 dedicated to serving those in need).

However, almost every region of the United States has its own version of this potato casserole under a different name. They are sometimes referred to as cheese potatoes, hash browns, church potatoes or party potatoes, among other things.

How did the mourning potato get its name?

Wondering where the name “funeral potatoes” came from? This creamy comfort food earned the funeral nickname because it’s a simple dish to serve to a crowd, and it’s often prepared for a post-funeral meal or given to a grieving family.

Burial potatoes from scratch

While part of the charm of this recipe is its ease — rip open a bag of frozen hash browns and a bag of shredded cheddar cheese, then stir them together with a can of cream of chicken soup and a few scoops of sour cream — I wanted to make an execution completely new.

I wondered if using homemade soup, fresh potatoes and fresh ingredients would make a difference. It did.

My ready made burial potatoes recipe from scratch has a creamy texture and rich flavor peppered with lovely chunks of chicken throughout. I even made a traditional version with frozen hash browns and canned chicken soup for comparison. While it reminded me of the potatoes of my youth, this version won from scratch.

The best way to shred the potatoes

I tried several ways of preparing the potatoes before deciding on my final choice including shredding and squeezing potatoes with moisture, shredding potatoes Not Squeeze potatoes and onions, chop (a latke-making trick that keeps the potatoes from turning gray) and par-cook the potatoes with the skin on, peel, then chop in my food processor.

Ultimately, the parboiled potatoes were the winner. The same par-boiling technique is used by restaurant chefs to create fries with a fluffy center and crispy exterior—here it intensified the overall creaminess of my hash brown casserole. The shredded potatoes combined easily with the other ingredients and gave it a creamy texture while holding its shape.

You can also par-cook the potatoes up to 3 days in advance without worrying about the potatoes drying out or oxidizing (which turns potatoes gray). Just chill them and store them in the fridge with the skin on, then shred them up the day you want to make the casserole. The skin on cold potatoes doesn’t come off as easily, but gentle pressure with a knife still works quickly.

Make cream of chicken soup from scratch

I ended up coming up with an entirely separate cream of chicken soup recipe that you can use for those funeral potatoes or any recipe that calls for cream of chicken soup.

Taking a cue from the classic gumbo, this recipe starts with a roux, a combination of fat and flour that helps thicken soups, intensify flavor and keep the fat from separating from the other liquids in the soup. The darker the roux, the spicier the soup, but how dark you get is entirely up to you.

To add flavor to the soup, I use the rendered fat from chicken thighs to make the roux, and then also use the thighs themselves to make a quick homemade chicken broth. The results are exceptional, making a soup worth eating as a meal in its own right.

This soup base is definitely the most labor intensive part of making funeral potatoes from scratch. To break the chores, make the soup ahead of time and refrigerate for up to four days. (Note that I don’t recommend freezing as freezing and reheating can affect the texture.)

Panko makes the best crunchy topping

Panko won the topping test – never again will a cornflake touch a potato casserole in my house.

Panko makes a consistently crunchy topping and eliminates the step of crushing the cornflakes into crumbs. In contrast, the cornflake topping I tested had inconsistent flake sizes depending on how well I shredded them, which toasted some pieces and made others chewy.

The crispy panko topping also reheated beautifully, while the cornflakes topping was just so-so.

The best pan for a family batch of mourning potatoes

Most potato casserole recipes call for a 9 x 13 inch pan because the idea is to feed a crowd. But when you want them for dinner for a family of four, a 9″ x 13″ pan feels like too much.

As written, this recipe fits in an 8″ x 8″ pan, but you can easily double it to feed a crowd and bake it in a 9″ x 13″ pan.

Make-Ahead Funeral Potatoes

You can make the cream of chicken soup up to four days in advance and pre-cook the potatoes up to three days in advance.

You can also make the whole dish up to three days in advance, except for the breading. Simply spread in the casserole dish, cover with cling film and store in the fridge. When ready, open the casserole, sprinkle over the panko crumbs and cook according to the recipe.

I do not recommend freezing the casserole, either baked or unbaked, as freezing and thawing can cause the fat to separate and curdle the texture.

More great potluck casseroles

• Chicken Noodle Casserole
• Ham and Cheese Breakfast Casserole
• Beef Noodle Casserole
• Baked ziti
• Chorizo ​​Mac and Cheese