This hamburger hashbrown casserole with sour cream recipe is the perfect brunch or Christmas morning breakfast idea! A creamy hearty meal using a homemade hamburger mix or a great way of how to cook frozen meatballs with shredded potatoes that is creamy and delicious all year round.
I could eat breakfast for dinner most nights. This cheesy hamburger hashbrown casserole with sour cream is one of our favorites! Perfect year round but also great if you’re serving brunch and a great addition to our Christmas morning spread. This is definitely one of our favorite quick and easy casseroles. (affiliate links present)
Hash Brown Casserole
Casseroles to me are great, and the perfect way to use leftovers of any kind really. I always have cups of shredded cheese and cream of mushroom in the house. We have had this for dinner too a few times and the kids love it. It’s a complete meal all by itself and the perfect comfort food for all ages.
You can make it with any kind of meat really but we used frozen meatballs this time. It is a great leftover ham casserole too. You can stuff it full of whatever meat you have left over really. A bit like our Meatball Casserole with Sour Cream except we used shredded potatoes instead of noodles this time. 😉
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Hashbrown Casserole with Sour Cream
Now if you didn’t want or have sour cream on hand there is an alternative, Greek yogurt. Choose plain instead of flavored just be aware that the flavor will be different than with this original ingredient. You will want them defrosted, no need to cook frozen hashbrowns ahead of time but not rock solid.
- You will need a bag of frozen hashbrown potatoes
- I typically use whatever brand of frozen hashbrowns are on sale
- 1 Bag of premade meatballs defrosted on counter, microwave or pressure cooker frozen meatballs directions
- or precook your own, (we use whatever brand is on sale)
- you can use diced leftover ham or leftover turkey
- could use browned ground beef too
- Diced onion
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Homeamde cream of mushroom soup or use a can
- Sour Cream
- Butter
- Salt and pepper and any other seasoning you love
- Casserole dish or baking dish 9×13″
How do you make a casserole without cream of mushroom soup?
If you need a dairy free option I have found Daiya brand to offer great shredded lactose free cheddar that tastes pretty close to the same. As far as using condensed soup goes we have our Hash Brown Casserole without Soup for you too.
Hashbrown Casserole with Frozen Meatballs
We love making it super creamy….. This time you can see I kept the ground beef meatballs whole, but cutting them into quarters works really well especially if kids are going to be eating it so they are bite sized!
It is really wonderful after Easter using our leftover ham as well, we make this and our little turnover leftover ham recipe then as well to use it ALL up.
If you are just trying to crisp those without adding them into a casserole or other dish then yes it is recommended to defrost them ahead of time. Reason for this is that they will get crispier without ice on the outside of your shredded potatoes. Go a step further and lay on paper towels to absorb the excess moisture before frying in a skillet with a bit of butter or oil.
There are so many dishes you can make with frozen meatballs. Defrosted you can cut in half and throw into spaghetti to add protein. Fold into a casserole like we did here along with shredded potatoes and cheese for a hearty brunch idea. Toss in a sauce for an easy appetizer, or dice up and it makes a great alternative to ground beef in chili.
Recipe with Hash Browns and Ground Beef
It is a great breakfast, or occasionally we make breakfast for dinner like our Ground Beef Hash Brown Casserole and it’s super easy to throw together. In the case that you don’t have hamburger on hand just defrost a bag of these babies, dice it up into small pieces and it can be used just like if you browned it yourself from raw.
What to do with frozen meatballs
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Leave meatballs or hamburger and hash brown potatoes on the counter so they become room temperature.
- If using ground hamburger, brown and set aside.
- In a rush you can microwave meatballs and frozen hashbrowns on 50% power until they’re defrosted.
- In a bowl mix together all ingredients EXCEPT meatballs, 1 cup of your cheese and chives.
- Once well incorporated, fold in your thawed meatballs.
- For easier eating you can cut them into fourths so they’re bite sized.
- Dump everything into a greased casserole dish and bake for 30 minutes to 40 minutes until warmed in the center.
- Pull out, sprinkle remaining cheese and chives on top, bake for 10 – 15 minutes so it melts.
- Serve!
Our cheesy potato casserole recipe always gets raving reviews using diced russet potatoes and of course lots of cheese.
How to save a leftover casserole
You certainly won’t have room for the entire dish in your fridge, nor would you want to save it in the same pan you cooked it in. There will be too much room around it to cause it to dry out. You want the least amount of air around it possible, that is the key.
Instead, when it is at room temperature transfer it into a freezer bag, my personal choice. Suck all the air out of it and leave in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When you reheat put it on a plate with a Tbsp of milk on the top to make it moist again and heat in the microwave for about 1 minute until warmed to your liking.
Hamburger hashbrown casserole recipe
Crock pot breakfast casserole has similar ingredients in it but is made in a slow cooker which is nice during the holidays for sure.
- Instant Pot breakfast casserole is great if you use your pressure cooker for all the things like I do.
- Crockpot cinnamon roll monkey bread is a sweet treat you can try sometime too.
Give it a whirl and let us know what you think. Did you add some other type of meat that turned out great? Let us know, I’d love to try your version too.
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Hamburger Hashbrown Casserole with Sour Cream
Equipment
- 1 9×13 pan
Ingredients
- 1 bag frozen meatballs defrosted
- 2 c cheddar cheese
- 1/4 c chives optional
- 3/4 onion diced
- 24 oz frozen hashbrowns defrosted
- 1/2 c butter melted
- 1/2 tsp salt optional
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup
- 2 c sour cream light is okay
- 1 can chiles diced
Instructions
- Leave meatballs and hashbrowns on the counter for 1-2 hrs. or until they are mostly defrosted (or use microwave at half power for 1 minute at a time, stirring in between until they are mostly defrosted).
- Empty hashbrowns and all other ingredients except 1 c. of your cheddar cheese, chives, and your meatballs. Stir well.
- Fold in meatballs (can cut them into fourths or leave them whole…or use leftover ham instead).
- Dump mixture into a baking dish and put it into the oven at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes or until bubbly and warm.
- Sprinkle the last cup of shredded cheese on the top and put back into the oven for 10 minutes or until bubbly and cheese is melted.
- Sprinkle with remaining chives and serve!
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