This Southwest Au Gratin Potatoes recipe is cheesy, hearty, and downright delicious! Tender potatoes are baked until golden brown and bubbly in a delicious, cheesy and tangy sauce, packed with some of your favorite Southwestern flavors, perfect for weeknight dinners or Christmas and Thanksgiving, too!
Pair these potatoes with a Ribeye with Compound Butter, or Butter Basted Turkey for a filling meal, and if you love this au gratin recipe, you will also love my Cast Iron Skillet Gratin Potatoes and Twice Baked Loaded Mashed Potatoes! These potatoes will go perfectly on your holiday table with roasted hot honey carrots and homemade sourdough stuffing, too!
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👩🏽🍳Why This Recipe Works
Delicious dynamic duo - Many people love both cheese and potatoes—together they are even better. It’s sure to become a family favorite from the very first bite. It’s hard not to love a cheesy potato recipe!
Easy base sauce - The base sauce for these delicious potatoes is a classic cheese sauce - like in a classic macaroni and cheese, or a fancier five cheese baked mac, too. This is particularly great, because the options are endless once you nail this sauce!
A great entertainer - These potatoes are perfect for one or a crowd. These potatoes are low-effort and low maintenance to prepare, which makes them perfect for entertaining.
🥘Ingredients
- Yukon gold potatoes - Yukon gold potatoes are ideal because they offer a good amount of starch without being overly starchy. They also hold their shape and texture well, even after being baked.
- Half and half cream - Using the right amount will add silkiness and creaminess to your dish. It is not overly heavy like heavy cream, while still adding a good silkiness that you will not get from milk.
- Cheddar cheese - I recommend using sharp cheddar for the best flavor; it’s a key ingredient in a traditional cheese sauce.
- Monterey jack cheese - This cheese adds to the southwestern flair of these potatoes. Monterey jack cheese is neutral, but is very creamy and melts perfectly in a cheese sauce.
A full list of ingredients with measurements is located on the recipe card, below.
📖Substitutions
- Yukon gold potatoes: You may also use red potatoes or russet potatoes.
- Half and half cream: You can also use heavy cream instead. Alternatively, you can use milk.
- Cheddar cheese: You can choose to use white cheddar, velveeta or American cheese.
- Monterey jack cheese: If you prefer, you can also use pepper jack instead of monterey jack. You can also use colby jack for the entire cheese component of the recipe.
- Fire roasted green chilies: You can also use chopped pickled jalapeno or chipotles in adobo instead of green chiles.
🔪Variations
- Black pepper - You can also add pepper if you want more spice and a little kick of heat.
- Sour cream - Many people love to add sour cream with potatoes. While these cheesy au gratin potatoes are phenomenal without it, you can add sour cream too.
- Parmesan cheese - You can also add parmesan as a topping if you want even more cheese goodness!
- Bread crumbs - Top with seasoned breadcrumbs for an extra layer of texture!
⏲️ Step-by-Step Instructions
Prep Work Before Cooking
Collecting all your ingredients - This will make cooking so much easier. Gather all the spices you will need, and keep them nearby.
Cut the potatoes - Using a mandoline or a sharp knife, thinly slice the potatoes into rounds. Try to make the potatoes as thin as possible, so they cook quickly.
Shred the cheese - Using a box grater or a grater attachment on a food processor / stand mixer, shred your cheddar and Monterey jack cheese.
Preheat the oven - Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Arrange the potato slices into layers in a baking dish, or into individual ramekins if you are making individual sides. Do not pack the potatoes into the dish too tightly, as you want the sauce to seep into the layers. [photo 1]
Heat a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Add the butter to the heated pan, and let it melt. Once the butter has melted, sprinkle in the flour, and combine with a whisk. The mixture should form a paste. Let the butter and flour mixture cook for 1-2 minutes to get rid of the raw flour taste.
Slowly stream in the cream while whisking the mixture vigorously, to ensure there are no lumps of flour. Continue to whisk the mixture occasionally until it comes to a simmer, and the sauce has thickened.
Once the sauce has thickened to the point that you can coat the back of a spoon and you can draw a line through the back of the spoon, turn the heat to low. Add in the cheeses in batches. Whisk to combine the cheese, and then add another batch until all the cheese is combined into the sauce. Stir in the seasonings and fire roasted chillies, and remove from the heat. [photo 3]
Pour the cheesy sauce over the potatoes, or ladle into the individual ramekins if you are using them. Move the potato slices around so that the sauce seeps into the crevices of the potatoes. Top with the reserved cheese. Cover the baking dish with foil. [photo 4]
Bake the potatoes for 25 minutes with the foil on, and for another 20 minutes with the foil off. If you are baking in smaller ramekins, bake for 15 minutes covered with foil, and another 15 minutes with the foil off.
💭 Expert Tip
Use freshly grated cheese! Pre-shredded cheese is covered in anti-caking agents, which will often make cheese sauces gritty and ruin that smooth texture you’re looking for. Hopefully this pro tip saves you the trouble!
Use low heat! Adding the cheese to super high heat will also ruin the consistency of your creamy cheese sauce. You want to ensure you have the best au gratin potato recipe results as possible!
🍽 Make Ahead & Storage
Make Ahead Instructions
To save yourself time, you can cut the potatoes in advance but ensure you store them in a ziploc bag and keep them in the fridge. Use within the next day or two.
You can also prepare the casserole entirely, with the exception of baking. Cover the baking dish with foil and keep in the refrigerator up to 2 days in advance of serving. Bake when you are ready to serve!
Storing Leftovers
Store in an airtight container and keep in the refrigerator. If stored properly, it can last in the fridge for up to three to five days. If frozen, it can last up to two weeks.
⭐ Recipe FAQs
It means that your dish will be sprinkled with bread crumbs and/or grated cheese and then baked golden brown.
The main difference: Au gratin often means it has cheese whereas scalloped potatoes are creamy but don’t necessarily include cheese. So if you love cheesy potatoes, you’re going to want au gratin style!
This can easily be paired with green beans, a pork chop, or whatever other veggies and protein you can’t get enough of.
📝More Potato Recipes
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Southwestern Cheesy Au Gratin Potatoes
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 4 Yukon gold potatoes peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoon Salted butter
- 2 tablespoon All purpose flour
- 2 cups Half and half cream
- 1 cup Cheddar cheese
- 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese
- ½ cup Fire roasted green chillies
- 1 teaspoon Garlic powder
- 2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
- 1 teaspoon Onion powder
- 1 teaspoon Smoked paprika
- Salt to taste
Equipment
- Mandoline optional
- Mini Cocottes optional
Instructions
- Using a mandoline or a sharp knife, thinly slice the potatoes into rounds. Try to make the potatoes as thin as possible, so they cook quickly.4 Yukon gold potatoes
- Arrange the potatoes into layers in a baking dish, or into individual ramekins if you are making individual sides. Do not pack the potatoes into the dish too tightly, as you want the sauce to seep into the layers.
- Heat a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Add the butter to the heated pan, and let it melt. Once the butter has melted, sprinkle in the flour, and combine with a whisk. The mixture should form a paste. Let the butter and flour mixture cook for 1-2 minutes to get rid of the raw flour taste.2 tablespoon Salted butter, 2 tablespoon All purpose flour
- Slowly stream in the cream while whisking the mixture vigorously, to ensure there are no lumps of flour. Continue to whisk the mixture occasionally until it comes to a simmer, and the sauce has thickened.2 cups Half and half cream
- Once the sauce has thickened to the point that you can coat the back of a spoon and you can draw a line through the back of the spoon, turn the heat to low. Add in the cheeses in batches. Whisk to combine the cheese, and then add another batch until all the cheese is combined into the sauce. Stir in the seasonings and fire roasted chillies, and remove from the heat.1 cup Cheddar cheese, 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, ½ cup Fire roasted green chillies, 1 teaspoon Garlic powder, 2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning, 1 teaspoon Onion powder, 1 teaspoon Smoked paprika, Salt to taste
- Pour the cheese sauce over the potatoes, or ladle into the individual ramekins if you are using them. Top with the reserved cheese. Cover the baking dish with foil.
- Bake the potatoes for 25 minutes with the foil on, and for another 20 minutes with the foil off. If you are baking in smaller ramekins, bake for 15 minutes covered with foil, and another 15 minutes with the foil off.
Notes
- Use freshly grated cheese! Pre-shredded cheese is covered in anti-caking agents, which will often make cheese sauces gritty and ruin that smooth texture you’re looking for.
- Use low heat! Adding the cheese to super high heat will also ruin the consistency of your cheese sauce.
- Taste the sauce before adding salt! Cheese is naturally salty, and so are some cajun seasoning blends. I recommend taste the sauce right at the end to see if you want to add more salt. For reference, I did not add any salt to my sauce as I found it did not need it.
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