If you’re looking for a hearty meal, this Slow Cooker Beef and Potato Au Gratin is the perfect recipe to try. Packed with hearty Russet potatoes, ground beef, and simple flavors, your family will love this dinner choice.

I love a hearty one-pot meal in the slow cooker like this one and my Seasoned Chicken and Veggies Recipe or Homestyle Pot Roast Dinner.

What is potato au gratin?

Au gratin potatoes are often confused with scalloped potatoes because they look similar. While scalloped potatoes typically call for a mix of milk and heavy cream, potato au gratin ingredients include lots of shredded cheese between its layers.

For this particular recipe, a combination of ground beef, white onion, and shredded sharp cheese are layered before slowly being cooked to perfection. Who knew you could make potatoes au gratin with ground beef?

Recipe Ingredients

• Potatoes: The potatoes go in the slow cooker peeled; though I don’t mind skin on for most recipes, this one tastes great without. Be sure the potatoes are thinly sliced.
• Ground Beef: Adding beef to the recipe makes this au gratin potato dish a complete meal.
• Seasonings: These potatoes need heavy seasoning, so I went heavy with salt and pepper and added garlic powder, paprika, and parsley.
• Onion: White onion adds flavor and heartiness to this delicious casserole recipe.
• Beef broth: Evenly poured over all the layers to help everything cook evenly. Chicken broth works in a pinch!
• Cheese: It’s best to use a block of sharp cheddar cheese for shredding as it melts the best in meals like this.

Step One – Brown ground beef on the stovetop in a large skillet; add salt and pepper to taste.

Step Two – Mix the paprika, garlic powder, parsley, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.

Step Three – Peel and slice russet potatoes thinly and lay them on the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker. Add half of the potatoes to the slow cooker. Sprinkle over half of the onions and half of the seasonings.

Step Four – Add half of the meat.

Step Five – Sprinkle over half of the cheese.

Step Six – Add the remaining potato slices, seasoning, and onion.

Step Seven – Add the remaining beef.

Step Eight – Sprinkle over the remaining cheese and drizzle over the beef broth.

How to serve

• Since this is a one-pot meal, you can serve it as-is by scooping a nice serving into a bowl. If anything, garnish the top with fresh parsley.
• You can’t go wrong with sour cream and extra cheese for additional tasty topping suggestions.
• This is a proper comfort food, so garlic bread, garlic sticks, or homemade rolls also complement this casserole perfectly.

Recipe FAQs

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Need an Instant Pot Version of this? Try this version:

Instant Pot Beef and Potato Au Gratin from The Centsable Shoppin’