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This easy Crock Pot Scalloped Potatoes and Ham recipe is perfect comfort food, featuring cheesy potatoes, savory ham, and a creamy sauce – made in your slow cooker!
A Cheesy and Delicious One-Pot Meal
This Crock Pot Scallped Potatoes and Ham dish is no-fuss, and one of the best scalloped potato recipes ever! The prep takes just a few minutes, and you’ll love the way the tender potatoes melt into the cheesy sauce. Add any kind of baked ham or spiral ham and you have an entire meal in one pan. Serve it with a side salad and you have a complete meal. This also makes for a hearty side dish to a larger meal or brunch buffet. However it is served, you’ll love how the savory ham, tender potatoes, cheese, and cream sauce combine together for the ultimate comfort dish!
Ingredients for Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
- Potatoes – I like to use Russet potatoes in this recipe, but you can also use red potatoes. Try to make your potato slices as thin and even as possible so they’ll cook evenly and turn out nice and tender. You can use a mandolin slicer or a very sharp knife to scallop your potatoes.
- Onion – A yellow onion or sweet onion works best for this recipe.
- Diced Cooked Ham – Typically, I use ham leftovers in this recipe. Since ham freezes well, you can freeze leftover ham and save it for recipes like this. Add the ham straight from the freezer. You can use diced bacon, too!
- Cheddar Cheese – Sharp cheddar cheese is my favorite option for a tangy cheddar cheese sauce, but feel free to experiment with different types of cheese!
- Cream of Mushroom Soup – This condensed soup makes up the base of the sauce in this Crock Pot Scalloped Potatoes and Ham recipe. If you aren’t a fan of canned condensed soups, then try our Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup. You can also use our Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup Substitute in place of the can of cream of mushroom soup in this recipe.
- Milk – The milk adds creaminess to the sauce. You can substitute a little heavy cream to make the cream sauce even more rich and indulgent.
- Thyme – This herb has a light mint and lemon scent and taste.
- Salt, and Pepper – Start with a teaspoon salt and half a teaspoon pepper, but season to taste.
- Herbs – Experiment with all sorts of herbs and spices as you season. Chives are delicious, a sprinkle of garlic powder, some paprika, etc.
What is the Difference Between Potatoes Au Gratin and Scalloped Potatoes?
The term “Au Gratin” is French and refers to a casserole dish topped with grated cheese and/or browned bread crumbs. It is difficult to achieve the browned look of au gratin potatoes when cooking in a crock pot, but the taste of these Scalloped Potatoes with Ham is pretty much the same. The potatoes along the sides and bottom of the slow cooker do brown a little as they bake. If you gently stir the potatoes before adding the cheese on top, that will bring some of the more browned potatoes to the top.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Crockpot Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
- First, peel and slice the potatoes. In a large bowl, toss the potato slices with a few pinches of salt. Then, chop up the onion.
- Spray the crock pot with cooking spray. Next, add half of the potatoes, onion, ham, and cheese to the pot.
- After that, add a second layer of potatoes, onion, ham, and cheese.
- In a small mixing bowl, stir together the condensed cream of mushroom soup, milk, thyme, salt, and pepper.
- Pour the soup mixture over the potato mixture.
- Finally, cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours, or LOW for 6-8 hours.
What Kind of Potato Makes the Best Scalloped Potatoes?
When making Crockpot Scalloped Potatoes and Ham, you want to use a nice, starchy potato such as Russet, Idaho, or Yukon Gold potatoes. Russet is the cheapest and easiest to find, which is why most people prefer to use them. They are high in starch. Idaho potatoes are very similar to Russet potatoes. If you like a more creamy, buttery taste, go with Yukon Gold. You really can’t go wrong with any of these options. Yukon golds are nice because the skin isn’t as thick and dry as a Russet so you don’t have to peel them perfectly. In fact, leaving a little bit of the peel on adds nutrients and gives a nice texture to the dish. If you want the best of both worlds, use half of each!
Make it Vegetarian
If you want to make this a vegetarian dish or use it only as a side dish (we love using this as a side dish for Easter dinner), then you can substitute mushrooms, carrots, or extra potatoes for the ham.
Frequently Asked Questions
Potatoes (or the starch in the potatoes) can sometimes remain tough if you cook them in something acidic like sour cream. Try cooking the potatoes in milk or heavy cream, to achieve a nice and soft texture.
If you find your scalloped potatoes don’t have enough flavor, add herbs and seasonings! Thyme is a great one to start with. You can also add some garlic powder, diced chives or extra salt and pepper for an added flavor boost.
If your sauce is too runny just using milk, add some heavy cream or whole milk to create an extra thick sauce.
READ NEXT: 60+ BEST Potato Recipes
More Crock Pot Recipes
Crock Pot (Slow Cooker) recipes are the best! It is so great to make dinner ahead of time and have it ready to serve after a busy day. After you’ve tried this Crock Pot Scalloped Potatoes with Ham recipe, try some more of our favorite Crock Pot Recipes.
Crockpot Lasagna
Crockpot Pizza Casserole
Vegetable Beef Soup
Kalua Pork
Crockpot Baked Beans
Crockpot Taco Dip
How to Make Crock Pot Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
Crock Pot Scalloped Potatoes with Ham
Equipment
- Crockpot
Ingredients
- 8 potatoes medium-sized
- 1 onion diced
- 2 cups cooked ham cubed
- 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese
- 10.25 ounces cream of mushroom soup homemade recipe
- 2/3 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme or more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper or to taste
Instructions
- Peel and slice potatoes, and tossed with a few pinches of salt. In a slow cooker, layer half of the potatoes, onion, ham, and cheese.
- Repeat layer.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together soup, milk, thyme, and fresh ground pepper. Pour over potato layers.
- Cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours, or on LOW for 6-8 hours.
Video
Notes
- For best results, use starchy potatoes like Russet, Idaho or Yukon Gold potatoes.
- Yukon golds are nice because the skin isn’t as thick and dry as a Russet so you don’t have to peel them perfectly. In fact, leaving a little bit of the peel on adds nutrients and gives it a nice texture. If you want the best of both worlds, use half of each!
- If you want to make this a vegetarian dish or use it only as a side dish (we love using this as a side dish for Easter dinner), then you can substitute mushrooms, carrots, or extra potatoes for the ham.
Caan you use boxed scalloped spuds in this dish?
I haven’t tried that. I imagine it would work but fresh potatoes would taste best.
Wow, this was truly amazing. Loved the flavor and easy to make. I did make our own cream of mushroom soup which was also excellent. Made it a couple of weeks ago and making it again tonight. It is even good cold.
Thank you, Judy! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe.
This was amazing! I made the cream of mushroom soup from scratch. Next time I might try melting the cheese into the soup or use a softer cheese. I might try ham bouillon, too. But this was full of flavor and delicious and definitely Will make again and again.
It is definitely best with cream of mushroom from scratch! So glad you liked it!
Can I use onion powder? Or sautee them to a soft texture before adding? Sadly, my SO does not like onions.
Either of those options would work!
I substituted country gravy for the cream of mushroom soup to avoid going out in a snow storm. It turned out great! Creamy, delicious and savory. Thanks!
Mine has 1 hour to go, but it is very watery and not creamy. Can I thicken with flour???
I would use a cornstarch and water mixture to thicken the sauce!
I used cream of celery and a little extra thyme. So tasty!
Can you freeze this after cooking?
I wouldn’t recommend it because frozen potatoes can store a lot of liquid and it will make the dish watery when reheated.
This was absolutely amazing & exactly what I was looking for!
Omg, I made this for Thanksgiving, and it’s wonderful!! I used to think ham steaks and cut them into 3 pieces each. It was so good, and I will make this again, and I’m not a big ham person!
They are delicious & so easy . Can I bake them in oven instead of crock pot ?
We haven’t tried them in the oven, but let us know how it goes if you try it!
They are absolutely delicious. Can they be baked in oven instead if crock pot?
This was so awesome , omg hubs & son loved it , I am a very hearty eater also . We don’t like mushroom soup so I made some homemade cream sauce w/chicken broth, roux,milk & added Velveeta too .. lotsa chunks of cheddar and omg out of the park . I started it off on high 2 hours and low last 3 hours . Thank you Echo
How do I adjust the crockpot temperature to have this ready in five hours? High for two hours then to low for the remaining hours? Thank you for any advice.
Yes that should work!
In the crockpot now. I’m guessing it’s going to be a hit with the family tonight. We will see!