Cheesy Hamburger and Potato Casserole

This cheesy hamburger and potato casserole is the epitome of comfort food.

Layers of potatoes are covered with ground beef and melted cheese.

If you love meat and potatoes, this is the dish for you. It’s stick to your ribs comfort food.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter, plus extra to generously butter a 9 x 13 inch baking dish
1-1/2 cups diced onions
8 ounces white button mushrooms, sliced
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 pounds ground beef (15 to 20% fat)
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon celery salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 chicken bullion cube
2 tablespoons flour
1-1 2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup ketchup
1-1/2 cups heavy cream
5 lb Yukon Gold or Russet potatoes
2 cups shredded cheddar and jack cheese blend
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (do not use fat free or low fat)

Directions to make the Cheesy Hamburger and Potato Casserole

For the meat sauce

Add 2 tablespoons of the butter to an extra large pan or cookware. Add the onions and cook on low-medium heat for about 4 minutes.

Raise the heat to medium and add the mushrooms along with another tablespoon of butter. Season with the salt and cook for 6 to 7 minutes. The salt will help draw out the moisture from the mushroom. We want to get most of the moisture out of the mushrooms before adding the rest of the ingredients.

Add the ground beef to the pan. Sprinkle in the onion powder, celery salt, garlic powder, black pepper, and chicken bouillon cube. While stirring, cook until no longer pink. This will take about 4 to 5 minutes. For best flavor, do not drain the fat. This will be absorbed by the potatoes and add a lot of flavor to your dish.

Stir the flour in to the ground beef and cook for an additional minute or two. We are using this to thicken the sauce.

Pour in the chicken stock, ketchup, and 1/2 cup of the heavy cream. Lower the heat back to low-medium. Cook for 15 minutes while occasionally stirring with a wooden spoon.

The meat sauce can be made ahead of time and refrigerated overnight. On the day you plan to assemble and bake the dish, take the meat sauce out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before you plan to use it.

For the potatoes

Peel and slice the potatoes into approximately 1/3 inch thickness. No need to be precise since we are going to para-boil the potatoes ahead of using them in the dish.
Add the sliced potatoes to a pot of water. Bring the pot of water to boil. Cook until you can just start to be able to insert a knife into a slice of potato. You don’t want to over cook them since they are going to bake in the oven. Drain and set aside.

To assemble the casserole

Butter a 9 by 13 inch baking dish. Layer half of the potatoes in the dish.

Top the potatoes with half of the ground beef mixture, followed by half of the cheeses.

Layer the second half of the potatoes.

Follow that by the rest of the ground beef, and reminder of the cheeses.

Put the baking dish on a baking tray. This will save you a lot of clean up in the oven.
Cover with non stick foil and bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately 30 minutes. Then, bake uncovered for an additional 30 minutes.

This Cheesy Hamburger and Potato Casserole tastes a lot like a Lasagna, except with potatoes.

If you enjoyed this Cheesy Hamburger and Potato Casserole, you’ve got to try my Easy Ground Beef Taco Casserole.