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Loaded with hash browns, cheese, sour cream, onion, and kielbasa, this Smoked Sausage Casserole is a hearty, one dish meal with very little prep work. You can’t beat a dump-and-bake recipe that takes the stress out of mealtime! Serve the sausage and potato casserole with a green salad, a fruit salad, and a loaf of crusty bread, for an easy dinner or satisfying breakfast that the whole family will love!
Sausage and Potato Casserole
This sausage casserole recipe comes from a blog reader named Diana, who calls it “Country Comfort Casserole.” I can’t think of a better name for the cozy dish that’s made with smoked sausage, hash brown potatoes, sour cream, onion, and cheddar cheese. It’s warm, creamy and so darn easy! The dump-and-bake meal requires almost no prep work. Just stir together all of the ingredients in a large bowl, then bake it in the oven. It’s a perfect meat-and-potatoes dinner for busy weeknights, or a hearty breakfast casserole without any eggs!
Ingredients for Cheesy Smoked Sausage and Potato Casserole
This is a quick overview of the ingredients that you’ll need for an easy sausage and potato casserole. As always, specific measurements and complete cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Frozen shredded hash brown potatoes: thawed in the fridge overnight. The big 30-ounce bag is about 12 ½ cups of shredded potatoes.
- Smoked sausage: I use kielbasa, but you can substitute with any other fully cooked sausage, such as breakfast pork sausage or Italian sausage, or another cooked meat like diced ham or even hotdogs!
- Cheddar cheese: hand-grated cheese melts smoothest into the casserole.
- Sour cream: use full-fat sour cream at room temperature for the best flavor and texture.
- Onion: very finely diced so that it softens and becomes tender while the casserole bakes in the oven. If you’d like to add extra vegetables to the dish, sauté the onion with green bell pepper and mushroom in a large skillet before adding them to the hash browns and the rest of the ingredients.
- Butter: I use salted butter for extra flavor, but unsalted butter is also fine.
- Salt and pepper: to enhance the other flavors in the dish.
- Condensed cream of chicken soup: the creamy sauce that acts as a binder and brings the casserole together. Substitute with cream of celery soup or cream of mushroom soup, if you prefer.
How to Make Sausage Casserole
If you’re like me and you’d rather not spend all of your free time in the kitchen, then today’s recipe is just for YOU! It’s an easy dump-and-bake casserole that tastes like a big warm hug! You don’t have to pre-cook the meat, you don’t have to pre-cook the potatoes, and you don’t have to stand over a hot stove mindlessly stirring. Instead, just combine everything together and dump it in a pan! It takes about 10 minutes (at the most), and the oven does the rest of the work for you.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 13 x 9-inch dish, and set aside.
- Stir together all of the ingredients in your largest mixing bowl.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- Bake the casserole, uncovered, for about 40 minutes. It’s done when the filling is hot and bubbly and the top is lightly browned.
What to Serve with Sausage Hash Brown Casserole
We typically enjoy this dish for a quick weeknight dinner; however, it’s also an easy breakfast or brunch option (even without eggs). Here are some sides that go well with the sausage casserole:
- 3-Ingredient Sour Cream Muffins
- Homemade Crescent Rolls or Soft Dinner Rolls
- Aunt Bee’s 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits, Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits, Cheese Biscuits or Drop Biscuits
- Skillet Cornbread, Honey Cornbread or Corn Muffins
- Pumpkin Bread or Pumpkin Muffins
- Apple Muffins with Cinnamon Sugar or Apple Cider Donut Muffins
- Wedge Salad, Classic Caesar Salad, House Salad with Candied Pecans, or a Green Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette
- Fennel Salad with Apples and Creamy Cider Dressing
- Roasted Cabbage or Braised Red Cabbage
- Homemade Applesauce, Baked Apple Slices, or Fried Apples
- Garlic Bread, Homemade Focaccia, Breadsticks, Jalapeno Cheddar Bread, or a crusty loaf of No-Knead Dutch Oven Bread
- Sauteed Asparagus
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
- Sauteed Spinach with Garlic
Preparation and Storage Tips
- This sausage casserole is perfect for entertaining because you can prepare it in advance. Assemble the dish up to 24 hours ahead of time, keep it covered in the refrigerator, and then bake according to the recipe instructions. Allow the dish to sit on the counter and come to room temperature while the oven preheats.
- Leftovers will keep in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- I do not recommend freezing this dish, as sour cream and other dairy-based ingredients tend to separate or “break” when thawed.
Recipe Variations
- Add sautéed vegetables, such as bell peppers, tomatoes, or mushroom.
- Instead of cheddar cheese, try other good melting cheeses such as Colby, Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack, Colby Jack, Gouda, or Velveeta.
- Cooking for a Smaller Family? Cut all of the ingredients in half and bake the casserole in an 8-inch square dish.
- Instead of kielbasa, use cooked bacon, chicken, turkey or diced ham. You can also use a different kind of cooked sausage, such as breakfast sausage, Italian sausage, or even hotdogs!
Tips for the Best Sausage Casserole Recipe
- Find your largest bowl for mixing the ingredients!
- Dice the onion into very small pieces so that it softens and becomes tender while the casserole bakes.
- When possible, use a block of sharp cheddar cheese that you grate by hand, rather than a package of pre-shredded cheese. The hand-grated variety melts smoother into the casserole.
- Allow the sour cream to come to room temperature. Very cold sour cream has a tendency to curdle or separate when heated quickly.
- Garnish with sliced green onion or fresh herbs such as parsley, chives, basil or thyme.
More Sausage Casserole Recipes to Try
- Sausage Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole
- Italian Sausage Crescent Roll Casserole
- Baked Ziti with Sausage
- Sausage Breakfast Casserole
- Smoked Sausage Pasta Bake
- Slow Cooker Sausage Breakfast Casserole
Sausage Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 (30 ounce) package frozen shredded hash brown potatoes, thawed (about 12 ½ cups total)
- 1 (14 ounce) package fully-cooked polish sausage (such as Hillshire Farm Polska Kielbasa)
- 1 ½ cups grated sharp cheddar cheese (about 6 ounces total)
- 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 medium onion, very finely diced
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup (NOT diluted)
- Optional garnish: chopped fresh herbs or sliced green onions
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease a 13 x 9-inch baking dish and set aside.
- Cut sausage into slices, and then into quarters (so that you have small bite-sized pieces).
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together all of the ingredients until completely combined.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish.
- Bake, uncovered, for about 40 minutes (or until hot, bubbly, and lightly browned on top).
Notes
- Add sautéed vegetables, such as bell peppers, tomatoes, or mushroom.
- Instead of cheddar cheese, try other good melting cheeses such as Colby, Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack, Colby Jack, Gouda, or Velveeta.
- Cooking for a Smaller Family? Cut all of the ingredients in half and bake the casserole in an 8-inch square dish.
- Instead of kielbasa, use cooked bacon, chicken, turkey or diced ham. You can also use a different kind of cooked sausage, such as breakfast sausage, Italian sausage, or even hotdogs!
- Find your largest bowl for mixing the ingredients!
- Dice the onion into very small pieces so that it softens and becomes tender while the casserole bakes.
- When possible, use a block of sharp cheddar cheese that you grate by hand, rather than a package of pre-shredded cheese. The hand-grated variety melts smoother into the casserole.
- Allow the sour cream to come to room temperature. Very cold sour cream has a tendency to curdle or separate when heated quickly.
- Garnish with sliced green onion or fresh herbs such as parsley, chives, basil or thyme.
This post was originally published in December, 2017. The photos were updated in November, 2021.
You make the best dump and bake meals! Love how easy this is to make with those simple ingredients. Sounds like this would be perfect for breakfast or dinner! Yum!
Thanks, Gayle! That’s exactly right — it’s perfect for any time of day!
Hey there,
Thank you so much for this easy recipe! My boys love it even I do personally, reminds us of Potato scallops as I cut the potatoes diagonally for this recipe. It was awesome! Thanks again. Hope there’s more other recipes like this!
Wonderful! I’m so glad that your family approves! 🙂
Delicious recipe! My hubby and 2 year old loved it! Definitely making this again. I love your blog and recipes!
Thank you so much, Tiffany!
I made this and it was really delicious and then thought it would be more delicious with bacon, I’m going to try that next time.
Thanks, Patricia! You can never go wrong with bacon! 🙂
Thank you so much Blair for sharing this delicious recipe that our family has been enjoying for years. I hope that all of your followers enjoy it as well.
Thank YOU, Diana, for sharing! 🙂
Easy recipes are my favorite! Holidays are all about chilling and having a good time. We can’t spend all day in the kitchen! haha. This is a great idea for sure!. Thank you for sharing. Happy Holidays!
I agree! Thanks, Paul!
Ooooh, this would be a HUGE hit in our house! I’m going to have to try it whilst we have this random cold snap happening in what should be a hot summer!
Yes!!! I hope that you’ll give it a try! 🙂
I made this super-easy casserole for Christmas brunch yesterday . It was delicious and a big hit with my family… definetly a keeper ! I made fresh Pillsbury Country Biscuits to have with it…a great combination ! I made a little “potato pancake” in the frying pan along side my fried egg for breakfast with some of the leftovers this morning . Now l can hardly wait til supper time as l’m going to fry what’s left in some butter in a frying pan ! Yum ! I love your recipes…they never disappoint ! Merry belated Christmas , Blair , to your family from mine in a very cold Saskatchewan , Canada , where the temperature was -41°C Christmas morning !! 🙂
That’s great, Cindy! I’m so glad that you enjoyed it! Your leftovers sound delicious, too. Merry Christmas!! I can’t believe how cold it is there! 🙂
Hi Blair,
I’ve only just started using your recipes but being from South Africa I’m struggling with some of the ingredients. What can be substituted for the Polish susage.
Hi, Patricia! It’s great to “meet” you! 🙂
You can substitute any precooked sausage for the Polish kielbasa. Even hotdogs would work!
Reading on your site and wouldn’t cooked ham or leftover ham cut in cubes also work?
Hi, Mary! Yes! Leftover ham would work very well!
Hi Blair,
Thanx, I’m going to try it the weekend.
Great. Enjoy!
Would it be OK to add extra sausage or would that throw the whole recpe out of whack?
Hi, Laura! Sure — go ahead and add more sausage! The casserole will still be great! 🙂
Thanks so much for all your help! I found your site this morning through a link on Kath Eats and I’m already obsessed. I printed two of your dump and bake recipes and I’m so excited to make them for my family this week. 🙂
That’s awesome! I’m glad to “meet” you, Laura! 🙂 Kath was so kind to share my Brunswick Stew last week!
Enjoy the easy recipes, and thanks again for stopping by!
Hey, Stephanie! Thanks so much for your note! The soup is NOT supposed to be diluted, so that explains why yours was a bit wet. Thanks for the heads-up — I just updated the recipes to specifically clarify the undiluted soup. 🙂
Hi! I could only find frozen hash brown patties at the small grocery store I shopped at this week. The package says to keep them frozen until you cook them…do you think I can layer them on the bottom and put the rest of the ingredients mixed together on top? Thanks!
Hi, Laura Beth! Yes, I think it would work to just layer them on the bottom. It would be like a “hash brown crust.” 🙂
Another option that you could try would be to cut up/dice the hash brown patties into bite-sized pieces. Stir those together with the rest of the ingredients, just like you would the other shredded hash brown potatoes. Either option should do well!
If it were me, I would thaw the patties in the refrigerator before using them in the casserole. That might not be optimal according to the package instructions, but the package assumes that you’re going to prepare them as individual patties (rather than including them in a casserole). You don’t have to thaw them first, but it would make the baking time shorter and you wouldn’t risk overcooking the rest of the ingredients while you wait for the potatoes to heat through.
Hi Blair,
I usually add frozen peas to this recipe to add a little color and veggie!
Sounds like a great addition, Dona! Thanks for that suggestion! 🙂
This sounds sooo good and such a great way to use up leftovers too!
Ooooh, this would be a HUGE hit in our house! I’m going to have to try it whilst we have this random cold snap happening in what should be a hot summer!
Was so nice to cook an easy meal after cooking constantly through the Holidays. I actually lived in my apron. This sausage casserole was outstanding and super easy to make. Thanks for the reprieve.
Thanks, Debbie! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed the recipe, and thank you for taking the time to leave me a note.
I made this recipe last night and it was very good. Even my picky eater liked it. I used parchment paper in the bottom of the pan so had no problem with sticking. I followed the recipe exactly except for no added salt. The sausage, cheese and chicken soup all have lots of sodium so figured it did not need any more. I was right. I cooked it for 40 minutes at 350 in a convection oven and it did not look done enough so I added 10 more minutes. Next time I may add 20 minutes. My only issue with this recipe is #1 finding a bowl big enough for everything and #2 it was a real effort to try and stir that much volume of ingredients. I think when I make it again I will layer things in the pan much as one would make lasagna. This was really very good! I even had a little extra taste at bedtime which I rarely do. Thanks for making this recipe available.
Thank you! Glad that it was a hit! 🙂
I made this for our dinner tonight and it was delicious! Easy to make and yummy…. good comfort food. We both loved it! 🙂 Thanks for another great recipe Blair. 🙂
Oh, good! I’m so glad that you enjoyed it, Tess. Thanks for letting me know! 🙂
Has intone tried adding eggs to this recipe?
Hi, Kami! I haven’t tried eggs with this particular recipe, but here is a similar recipe that uses the eggs, hash browns, and cheese. You can add smoked sausage instead of hte breakfast sausage if you like! https://www.theseasonedmom.com/bacon-cheese-hash-brown-breakfast-casserole/
This was a hit with my family, does this freeze well?
Hi, Paula! I haven’t tried freezing it, but I would be concerned that the dairy-based sour cream in the mixture may separate or break when thawed. Also, potatoes tend to have a grainy, mushier texture when thawed. It wouldn’t be my first choice, but you can certainly feel free to experiment if you’re feeling brave. 🙂
This was awesome!! Thank you for the recipe. So easy to make!! Highly recommend!!
Thank you, Nancy!
Hi, Blair! I’m sure this recipe is delicious as is but I was wondering which of the ingredients I could cut back upon. I get it that I need the quantity of hash browns but then a near pound of sausage, one and and a half cups of cheese, half a stick of butter and a cup of sour cream! I’m concerned partially about it being too rich for me and, honestly, the price. I was at the grocery today and I was just sick about the prices. My calculations are that the casserole would cost at least 10 dollars, maybe to 15 and that’s just too much for a casserole on my budget. Could I cut back to, say, half of the sausage and the cheese? Thanks!
Hi, Marion! Yes, ma’am — that should work just fine to cut the sausage and cheese in half. 🙂
Thanks!
Awesome dish! I made it a little creamy by adding a little milk. Am thinking of adding broccoli florets to it so it will include a veggie. Maybe peas and carrots? What are your thoughts?
Thank you, Barbara! We love to include sautéed vegetables, such as bell peppers, tomatoes, or mushroom. Hope that helps!