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Enjoy these creamy, ‘cheesy’, and comforting vegan scalloped potatoes for the holidays or year-round! They’re easy to make with minimal ingredients and are always an instant hit with family and friends.
Creamy and Comforting Vegan Scalloped Potatoes
These rosemary roasted potatoes and vegan potato latkes are both top-tier vegan potato dishes, but there’s no comparison when it comes to ultra-cheesy and creamy vegan scalloped potatoes. They’re almost too good to be true!
The classic scalloped potato recipe originated in England but hasn’t changed much to this day. To make it, thinly sliced potatoes and onions are layered in a baking dish and then smothered in a cream-based sauce. Baked until gooey and golden, it’s an ultra-creamy potato dish that’s served during the holidays or as a side dish with everyday dinners.
I have great news for you: you don’t need dairy to make the best scalloped potatoes! Our plant-based version swaps the heavy cream and milk for non-dairy substitutes but is just as cheesy, creamy, and heavenly as the classic. Best of all, it’s easy to make with less than 10 ingredients and has plenty of room for customization.
Craving more irresistibly creamy and comforting vegan side dishes? You’ll love our brown rice risotto, curried carrot ginger soup, and vegan mashed sweet potatoes recipes!
The Ingredients and Substitutes
This popular vegan side dish requires less than 10 ingredients, all of which may already be in your pantry!
If you happen to be gluten-free, you can use all-purpose gluten-free flour instead of the all-purpose flour in the roux.
What Could I Add to This Potato Vegan Casserole?
- Onion and garlic: For deeper savory flavors, sauté a sliced white or yellow onion and 3 minced garlic cloves in a skillet before layering them in with the potatoes. Or, for extra savory goodness, caramelize the sliced onions and roast the garlic first!
- Vegan parmesan: Top the scalloped potatoes with vegan parmesan cheese during the last 15 minutes of baking for upgraded ‘cheesy’ flavors.
- More spices: Stir a generous pinch of paprika, dried mustard, dried thyme, and/or dried parsley into the vegan cream sauce when you add the other spices.
- Fresh herbs: Stir fresh thyme, sage, parsley, or oregano in with the vegan cream sauce, or use the herbs as a garnish on top of the baked potatoes.
- Vegan shredded cheese: Once assembled, top the potatoes with a layer of your favorite vegan shredded cheddar cheese.
How To Make Vegan Scalloped Potatoes
Step 1: Thinly slice the potatoes into ⅛ inch rounds. You’ll save lots of time and get even slices if you slice the potatoes with a mandolin or a food processor fitted with a slicing blade.
Step 2: Melt the vegan butter in a large pot over medium heat, then whisk in the flour for 2 to 3 minutes.
Step 3: Whisk the plant milk and broth into the roux.
Step 4: Stir in the nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt until the sauce thickens.
Step 5: Layer the potato slices in a casserole dish, then pour the vegan cream sauce over top.
Step 6: Cover the dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 35 minutes or until golden.
Make sure the vegan cream sauce seeps in between the layers of potatoes to help them become pillowy soft and super creamy.
We like the scalloped potatoes best when they’re hot and bubbly, fresh from the oven. However, you’re more than welcome to store the baked batch and reheat it later on. Find the instructions in the FAQs below!
FAQs
Sure! Bake the vegan scalloped potatoes as normal, let them cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Before serving, cover the potatoes with foil and bake at 350ºF for about 30 minutes or until the potatoes are warmed through.
While we haven’t tested it, making vegan scalloped potatoes with sweet potatoes should work just as well! Remember to slice the potatoes very thin before assembling and baking.
Yes, the potatoes should be covered with foil for at least the first 25 minutes of baking. This traps the steam in the casserole dish, which helps the potatoes soften and cook faster.
Pro Recipe Tips
- Use the right potatoes: The best potatoes for scalloped potatoes are Russet potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes because they both become super soft and creamy when baked.
- Thin potato slices are key: Not only do thinly sliced potatoes cook faster but they also make it easier for the creamy sauce to make its way through every layer. We like to use a mandolin for thin, even slices, although a food processor fitted with a slicing blade will work just as well.
- To peel or not to peel: We like to keep the potato peels on for a little extra nutrition and to save time, but you’re welcome to peel them first.
- If the plant milk/broth mixture is too thin: The sauce will thicken as the potatoes cook and as they’re cooling out of the oven. Still, if it initially looks too thin for your liking, stir 1 tablespoon of cornstarch into the plant milk/broth before cooking.
- Let the casserole cool: After it comes out of the oven, let the vegan potato casserole cool for 15 to 20 minutes before serving. This helps the texture firm up and the flavors develop, giving you less messy scoops and the best bites!
Serving Suggestions
Vegan scalloped potatoes are one of our go-to holiday side dishes, just like vegan stuffing and green bean casserole. One look at these gooey, golden, glistening potatoes and our friends and family can’t help but dig in!
They’re a must-have on vegan Thanksgiving menus, along with a hearty seitan roast and caramelized brussels sprouts on the side. Don’t forget the vegan pumpkin pie for dessert!
What’s better is that you’re not limited to only enjoying scalloped potatoes during the holidays. They’re a fantastic side dish to make year-round! Here are a few of the many ways we like to serve them:
- Alongside lentil bean chili for cozy cold-weather meals.
- With baked mac and cheese or lentil sloppy joes for everyday family dinners.
- Kids can’t resist the creamy potatoes paired with tofu fried chicken, quinoa tater tots, and breaded tofu sticks.
- On the side of classic vegan dinners like eggplant pasta, stuffed peppers, and veggie burgers.
Storage Instructions
Allow the creamy baked potatoes to cool to room temperature before transferring them to an airtight container. Store the leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Scalloped potatoes also freeze well for about 1 month. Allow the leftovers to thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
To reheat, transfer the potatoes back to a baking dish and reheat in a 350ºF oven for 20 to 30 minutes or until they’re heated through. You can also reheat individual servings in the microwave but the potatoes will be a little soggy.
Vegan Scalloped Potatoes
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- ~4 pounds of russet potatoes, rinsed and dried
- ¼ cup of vegan butter
- ¼ cup of flour
- 3 cups of plant-based milk
- 1 cup of rich vegetable broth
- ⅓ cup of nutritional yeast
- 2 teaspoons of garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons of onion powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoons of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and lightly grease a 9×13-inch casserole dish.
- Thinly slice the potatoes into ⅛-inch rounds. I like to keep the peels on for nutrition and time-saving reasons, but you’re welcome to peel them first. If you have a mandolin or food processor attachment, that’ll save time.
- In a large pot over medium heat, melt the vegan butter. Whisk in the flour and stir until the sauce thickens and becomes a roux, about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Whisk the plant-based milk and vegetable broth into the roux. Stir in the nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt until the sauce thickens, about 5 to 8 minutes.
- Layer half of the potatoes in the casserole dish, pour half of the sauce spreading evenly over the potatoes and allowing it to seep through the cracks. Layer the rest of the potatoes and spread the rest of the sauce over them evenly. Cover with tin foil and bake for 30 minutes.
- Uncover the casserole and bake for another 35 minutes.
Notes
- Use the right potatoes: The best potatoes for scalloped potatoes are Russet potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes because they both become super soft and creamy when baked.
- Thin potato slices are key: Not only do thinly sliced potatoes cook faster but they also make it easier for the creamy sauce to make its way through every layer. We like to use a mandolin for thin, even slices, although a food processor fitted with a slicing blade will work just as well.
- To peel or not to peel: We like to keep the potato peels on for a little extra nutrition and to save time, but you’re welcome to peel them first.
These potatoes are the absolute best!
Why no onions???
Feel free to add some if you’d like!
I have to admit I adapted this because I only had 1.5 lbs of potatoes. I kept all the seasoning the same and used 2 cups of almond milk, just omitted the broth. It was delicious and nicely saucy.
That’s great to know! Glad it turned out just as delicious!
We have a couple dairy allergic people in the family. This was an excellent Christmas dinner side dish! Everyone-meat eaters, cheese eaters, loved these potatoes! I’ll have to try more of your recipes. Appreciate it.
That’s so awesome to hear! They’re so delicious and easy to love!
This dish was a hit at a family gathering! I got so many compliments on it and people kept going for seconds!
Thank you so much! 🙂
Recipe worked wonderfully! Just added Vegan Parmesan and Paprika on top!
So glad you enjoyed it!:)
Can I freeze the leftovers? It looks delicious!
Yes! You can definitely freeze the leftovers. Enjoy! 🙂
We loved it from the Netherlands 🙂
My boyfriend usually doesn’t like a lot, but did he asked the recipe.
Love that! So glad you guys enjoyed this potato recipe!
I really liked this recipe. It was easy and delicious. I had three helpings after I took it out of the oven because it was so good. I am wondering how to stop the potatoes from soaking in the sauce once it is refrigerated and reheated? It was still good but no longer had the creamy sauce texture mixed in that it had when I took it out of the oven. I was thinking of making an extra batch of the sauce and putting some on top each time I reheat it.
Thank you so much for this recipe! I have to eat non-dairy now, and it tastes just like I remember from childhood! Also, it was easy to make with ingredients I already had. I didn’t have broth, so I used all almond milk for the liquid and doubled the salt. I also added 1/4 teaspoon each of paprika and dried mustard. It was a big hit with the family, and the leftovers are already gone!
That’s so awesome! So glad it was a hit with you and the family! It’s such a yummy dish!
Can these be made with sweet potatoes?
Hi! We at plant-based on a budget haven’t tried that out yet so can’t guarantee the results. If you give it a go, please let us know how it turns out 🙂
I made this yesterday and it was fabulous! Thank you so much for the recipe.
Wohoo! So glad you enjoyed them! They’re such a delicious potato recipe!
I hope it’s ok to cook these at a lower temp. for longer. I have a ham in the over for my hubby, son & brother so these are cooking in the oven with it. My oven is at 350. I have them foil covered and will bake them for about 45 min covered then I will uncover. I have my fingers crossed as this is there side dish for Christmas dinner but my main dish! I will let you know how they turn out. I did have a problem with the milk/broth mixture not getting thick, so I added a smidge of corn starch.
So glad you gave it a go! Hope everyone enjoyed it!
CAn this be made ahead of time?
We at PBOAB haven’t experimented with prepping it ahead of time yet so please let us know if you end up trying it out 🙂
the next day, the potatoes had absorbed the sauce and it was heavier and not creamy any longer.
dont get me wrong, we still ate it but talked about making a second batch of sauce to put on-but did not due to not wanting added calories.
I made this the day before Christmas and cooked them on Christmas day. When I took them out of the fridge, they were very runny, but thickened up as they cooked. They ended up with a lot of thin sauce, but it was super delicious. No one would have guessed they were vegan!:)
love these vegan scallop potatoes. They turned out perfectly!
So cheesy and delicious!