Best Ham and Potatoes Au Gratin
Looking to switch up your holiday potatoes? Or maybe you have some leftover ham that needs a delicious destination? This ham and potatoes au gratin recipe is it. It has layers of tender potatoes, cream, smoky ham, flavorful gruyere cheese, and fresh thyme. This delicious side dish is fancy and luxurious enough for your holiday tables or a delicious way to enjoy leftover ham or a bag of potatoes.
I created this ham and au gratin potatoes recipe for Jones Dairy Farm and their Thanksgiving guide and they were kind enough to let me share it here with you!
Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
What You’ll Love About Potatoes Au Gratin
- Incredible flavor
- Perfect perfect side dish for your holiday table
- Layers of tender potatoes, smoky ham, and cheesy gruyere
- Can be prepped ahead
- Made with simple ingredients
- Pairs with any mains – turkey, roasted chicken, ham
Ingredients
- Potatoes – Use russet potatoes here as we want something basic with a lighter and fluffy texture, starchy potatoes work well. They become a bit more soft when baked as opposed to a waxy potatoes
like yukon golds or red potatoes. - Jones Dairy Farm Ham – I’ve used the uncured heritage ham and it is delicious! It’s made with just a handful of ingredients and seasonings and has rich and smoky flavor that pairs so well with the cheesy potatoes.
- Heavy cream – Cooking the potatoes in a heavy cream gives them a luxurious and rich flavor and texture and is the base of the creamy sauce.
- Butter – Use high-quality unsalted butter for best results.
- Sea salt, black pepper
- Cheese – We’ve used gruyere cheese for a creamy, but flavorful addition. You could use a different cheese like swiss if you prefer but I would recommend shredding the cheese yourself for the best quality and using the best cheese you can.
- Thyme – Use fresh thyme for best results.
How to Make Au Gratin Potatoes
This is an overview on how to make homemade au gratin potatoes, the detailed instructions can be found below in the recipe card.
FAQs
What is potato au gratin made of?
There are many different variations of au gratin potatoes, but this version (adapted from Julia Child’s Gratin Jurassien (Scalloped Potatoes with Heavy Cream and Cheese) is made with thinly sliced potatoes, heavy cream, butter, diced ham, grueyere cheese, and fresh thyme. It’s heavenly.
What’s the difference between au gratin and scalloped potatoes?
If you take a quick online search looking for the difference between scalloped potatoes and au gratin potatoes, the findings will leave you even more confused! Here in the U.S. they have morphed into the same meaning – sliced potatoes layered with a sauce that will vary (milk, cream, or a roux-based sauce) and often times cheese. Sometimes additions like ham are also added.
Gratin dauphinois is another name that you might see and that refers to a potato side dish that is described as “scalloped potatoes with milk, cheese, and a pinch of garlic,” according to Mastering The Art of French Cooking. Child, J., Bertholle, L., Beck, S. (2012).
Storage Instructions
Store leftover au gratin potatoes and ham in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
How to reheat
Reheat leftover potatoes in a 350 degrees F oven, a hot skillet, or in the microwave until heated through.
Can you freeze cheesy ham and potato casserole?
Because this recipe is made with cream and cheese – neither of which free well, I don’t recommend freezing.
More Holiday Recipes
If you like this au gratin potato recipe, you might also like some of these other holiday-worthy recipes:
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Best Ham and Potatoes Au Gratin
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 80 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Side
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: French
Description
This ham and potatoes au gratin has delicious layers of thinly sliced potatoes, cream, smoky ham, flavorful gruyere, and fresh thyme.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. russet potatoes, peeled and sliced with mandoline
- 6 oz. cooked Jones Dairy Farm ham, diced
- 1 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 Tbsp. melted butter
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 8 oz. gruyere cheese, shredded by hand
- 3 sprigs of thyme, leaves removed from stem (about 1 tablespoon), plus more for garnish
- fresh cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Prep potatoes. Wash, dry, peel, and thinly slice potatoes using a mandoline slicer.
- Prep cream mixture. In a large glass measuring cup, melt butter. Stir in heavy cream and sea salt.
- Layer au gratin. In a generously buttered (or spray with cooking spray) 2.4 qt. baking dish, layer about 1/3 of the sliced potatoes so they are slightly overlapping each other in an even layer, 1/3 of the cream mixture, 1/3 of the diced ham, 1/3 of the thyme, and 1/3 of the shredded cheese. Repeat with remaining two layers, but don’t add cheese on top layer yet.
- Cover with foil and bake for 60-80 minutes, until potatoes are fork tender. Remove foil, top with remaining shredded cheese, and bake for another 15-20 minutes, until cheese is melted and golden brown. Garnish with thyme and serve with freshly cracked pepper to taste.
Notes
- Make Ahead: Follow recipe and bake for 60-80 minutes, without top layer of cheese on it. Cook until potatoes are fork tender. Let cool completely, top with remaining cheese and thyme, and cover in aluminum foil in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Take out of fridge about an hour before cooking to come to room temperature. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40-60 minutes, until heated through and cheese is golden brown.
- Inspired by Julia Child’s Gratin Jurassien (Scalloped Potatoes with Heavy Cream and Cheese)
Food styling and photography by Loren Runion.
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