47 Crowd-Pleasing Casseroles For Parties And Potlucks

When one thinks about classic, all-American foods throughout history, casseroles may not be the first food that comes to mind — but it really should! These comforting meals were the saving grace of American home cooks through the late 19th and 20th centuries, making it easier to feed families on tight budgets by combining leftovers and convenience foods like canned soups into one dish. Best of all, these hot dishes, made with meats, vegetables, and sauces baked together until melted and bubbling, can also be really delicious and comforting. 

We've pulled together the best Mashed casseroles for you to try. Recipes like hot dog casserole and chicken quesadilla casserole will bring fun and flavor to the family dinner table. Portable, one-dish meals like baked ziti and Funeral Potatoes are also perfect for sharing at work parties, community suppers, and large gatherings. Have a neighbor who could use a hot meal? Bring them a pan of ham and noodle casserole or creamy gnocchi bake. Super Bowl or other game day get-togethers will be so much more delicious with chili cheese tater tot casserole or roast beef sliders. That's not all: There are several breakfast and brunch casseroles, too.

Add our crowd-pleasing casseroles to your recipe box now, and you'll be prepared for any hot dish emergency. 

Make one of the best casseroles of all time: a baked ziti. Despite its humble appearance, this is more than just pasta in a pan. Our recipe layers cooked ziti coated in pasta sauce (some call this gravy) with a ricotta-Parmesan blend and shredded mozzarella cheese. After baking it's bubbling, melty, and unbelievably comforting. Use your own homemade marinara or meat sauce, or a quality jarred variety like Rao's. You can also add protein to this casserole in the form of meatballs or slices of cooked Italian sausage.

Recipe: Baked Ziti

This is a cheesy and flavorful casserole that everyone will love, even the pickiest eaters at the table. Bratwurst sausages are browned, then sliced and tossed in a baking dish with cooked potatoes, green beans, sliced mushrooms, and cream of mushroom soup. Cheddar cheese melts into every corner of this dish as it bakes. Precooked bratwurst or kielbasa can be substituted to save time. You can also assemble this dish overnight — just pull it out of the fridge the next day to bake up in less than an hour.  

Recipe: Cheesy Bratwurst Casserole

Use leftover cooked chicken from a Sunday roast or from a store-bought rotisserie bird to make this filling and super cheesy casserole. Layered into this Southern comfort food favorite are corn tortillas, condensed chicken and mushroom soups, shredded chicken, and diced tomatoes, and it's finished with shredded cheese. Like things a little spicy? Add sliced jalapeños or substitute spicy salsa for the diced tomatoes. It'll be a hit at any potluck gathering and can even be frozen for an easy dinner in the future. 

Recipe: King Ranch Chicken Casserole

It's a casserole but it's also several little sandwiches. Just think of all the events where these sliders will be so welcome: game day parties, potluck brunch, a weekend snack for your kids and their friends, or as a lunchtime surprise for your co-workers. Check your store for small buns like King's Hawaiian or slider-sized brioche rolls. Layer them with roast beef, Swiss cheese, and a brush of seasoned butter. The recipe makes six sliders, but you can easily double it to make a larger batch. 

Recipe: Roast Beef Sliders

Recipes from Food Network's Ina Garten are often elevated takes on comfort food classics, and are always full of flavor. Garten's mac and cheese is the perfect example: It has a rich sauce of Gruyère and cheddar cheeses, and is topped with sliced tomatoes and toasty breadcrumbs. Our twist on her recipe adds roasted garlic, mozzarella, and fresh basil to the dish, and these classic Italian ingredients make this mac and cheese even more incredible. The recipe makes eight servings, perfect for family dinners and special occasions.

Recipe: Ina Garten's Mac And Cheese

You just can't beat the flavor of homemade French toast, but standing at the stove to cook slice after slice isn't our idea of a relaxing morning. That's why French toast casserole is so magical: You get those toasty, creamy textures, and cinnamon flavor in a baked dish that's easy to assemble. It's a great choice to put together the night before: Just slide it into the oven and sip your coffee while it bakes the next morning. Our recipe includes day-old French bread, chopped nuts, brown sugar, and vanilla. 

Recipe: French Toast Casserole

When ranking the best and most indulgent comfort food casseroles, a tater tot casserole easily makes the top five. This super cheesy version mixes ground beef with cheddar cheese soup and shredded Cheddar cheese. The tater tots are arranged over the top in neat rows so that they get evenly browned and crisp as the casserole bakes. Your family will be thrilled to have this for dinner, and it's a great food for Super Bowl parties, too. 

Recipe: Tater Tot Casserole

French toast casseroles are a favorite make-ahead breakfast dish, and they tend to be pretty sweet. For those who'd rather have something savory for breakfast, this bacon-filled casserole is a dream come true. While it rests in the fridge overnight, bread cubes soak up a batter of eggs, milk, and cheddar cheese. Chopped, cooked bacon is scattered throughout the casserole: Use maple-flavored or hardwood-smoked, whatever you prefer. In the morning just bake and serve. 

Recipe: Overnight Breakfast Casserole

This casserole has all the components of a complete meal, which means home cooks should pin, print, and bookmark it as a go-to dish for weeknight dinners and group gatherings alike. This Mexican cornbread casserole features browned ground beef with spices, corn, and diced tomatoes layered between cornbread batter (feel free to use a boxed cornbread mix). Once baked, that meat gets nestled with melted cheese inside two fluffy layers of cornbread. All that's needed is another little sprinkle of cheese or a few diced scallions.

Recipe: Mexican Cornbread Casserole

If you didn't grow up eating this dish, the name may be a little startling, but don't let that put you off. This casserole, made with cheese, condensed soup, diced potatoes, and topped with Corn Flakes, has its origins in the Western and Midwestern U.S. and is a favorite in Mormon communities. Easy to make and full of comforting ingredients, funeral potatoes get their name because the dish is often shared at funeral receptions. However, funeral potatoes are also a delicious dish to make for potlucks, brunch, and as a side dish with dinner. 

Recipe: Funeral Potatoes

Here's a casserole with a lighter feel, thanks to cooked rice, diced chicken thighs, and sautéed vegetables combined in a white wine cream sauce. Just before it finishes baking, add shredded cheddar cheese to the top, then when it's gone, garnish with diced parsley. It's a great choice for a weeknight dinner, a freezer meal (you can cover and freeze the unbaked casserole for up to three months), or a dinner party. Save time by substituting diced rotisserie chicken for the chicken thighs. 

Recipe: Chicken And Rice Casserole

Whether for a savory breakfast or for dinner, this recipe makes enough huevos rancheros to feed a crowd, and bakes up in only 25 minutes. Simply layer corn tortillas with salsa, refried beans, enchilada sauce, and shredded cheese. Whole eggs are cracked on top just before baking. Customize this Mexican breakfast dish in a number of ways: Swap red salsa for green salsa, add diced breakfast sausage or crumbled bacon, and add some sliced jalapeños for a spicy kick. 

Recipe: Cheesy Huevos Rancheros Casserole

Canned condensed soups are a favorite shortcut ingredient of home cooks across the country because they make it easy to create creamy sauces for all kinds of meals — especially casseroles. In this recipe, cream of mushroom and cheddar cheese soup are the heroes, stirred together with diced ham, cooked egg noodles, veggies, and shredded cheese. After about 30 minutes of baking, you'll have a bubbling, comforting dish that smells amazing and tastes even better. 

Recipe: Cheesy Ham And Noodle Casserole

If you're dying to make a sweet French toast casserole but don't want to turn on the oven — or if you don't even HAVE an oven — the Instant Pot is here to help you. If you have a round cake pan that fits inside your Instant Pot, you can make a snickerdoodle casserole that feeds six and have it ready in only 30 minutes. It's made with brioche bread, cream, eggs, and plenty of cinnamon.

Recipe: Instant Pot Snickerdoodle French Toast Casserole

Pineapple, crackers, cheese ... no, this isn't some strange craving. It's a retro casserole recipe that combines these three, unlikely ingredients into a dish that's surprisingly delicious. The interplay of sweet and salty is key to this casserole's appeal: Crushed pineapple blended with sugar is the sweet component and crushed Ritz crackers are the salty topping. Cheddar cheese melts between the two for savory flavor and gooey, melty goodness. Don't knock it until you try it!

Recipe: Baked Pineapple Casserole

Make this really versatile casserole for dinner to enjoy with a salad and warm biscuits, or bring it to the party as an appetizer. Butterflied shrimp are neatly arranged in a baking dish, then surrounded with a savory mixture of Parmesan cheese, diced green onions, herbs, and breadcrumbs. The whole dish from start to finish takes less than 30 minutes, and yet the beautiful appearance and delicious flavor will impress everyone. 

Recipe: Baked Stuffed Shrimp

For lovers of savory breakfast dishes, this Mexican breakfast casserole is a recipe worth keeping on hand. Bake one up to enjoy with your family on the weekend, or for guests staying at your house. It's also a fantastic and filling choice as a make-ahead breakfast, since slices can be easily reheated in the microwave or toaster oven. The casserole includes spicy chorizo, black beans, shredded cheese, salsa, and plenty of eggs, and bakes up in just under an hour. 

Recipe: Mexican Breakfast Casserole

It's easy to feel stuck trying to come up with new meal ideas that everyone, including fussy kids, will love. If they like hot dogs, then this casserole is a winning recipe to add to the rotation. Sliced store-bought hot dogs are baked with mashed potatoes, baked beans, cheddar cheese, and spices, and together they become a tasty and comforting meal. Use instant mashed potatoes if you want to save a few minutes. You can even hide more veggies in the casserole, like chopped broccoli or diced tomatoes. 

Recipe: Hot Dog Casserole

Why add pumpkin puree to a classic baked macaroni and cheese? For one, it gives the dish a gorgeous golden-orange color. Adding pumpkin to this casserole also lends a bit of sweetness to the dish that pairs beautifully with the cheddar cheese, giving your mac and cheese cozy autumn vibes. Mac and cheese with pumpkin has a nutritional advantage too, with the addition of fiber and nutrients like vitamins A and C. 

Recipe: Pumpkin Mac And Cheese

Broccoli is so delicious when smothered in melted cheese, which is exactly why you and your family will surely love this creamy and filling casserole. Broccoli florets are sautéed with onions, then combined with cream of mushroom soup, brown rice, and two kinds of cheese. After just 30 minutes in the oven, this cheesy dish is ready to serve as a main dish or as a side with grilled or roasted meats. 

Recipe: Broccoli Rice Casserole

Keep these shortcut ingredients on hand in your pantry and freezer to easily whip up this baked pasta for dinner, an upcoming potluck, or to give to a neighbor in need. Combine a good-quality jarred spaghetti sauce with frozen meatballs and shredded cheese. Then, you just need to layer them with cooked ziti noodles and bake. It's a delicious and comforting casserole that hungry folks of all ages will love, and one recipe makes eight servings. 

Recipe: 5-Ingredient Meatball Pasta Bake

Parents love 30-minute meal ideas that make it easy to get the family together at the dinner table, even on busy weeknights. This dish combines canned tuna with a creamy white sauce that comes together in just two minutes. Stir in some frozen vegetables, spoon everything into a baking dish, and top it with refrigerated biscuits. Once baked, it's a creamy, savory, and filling dinner for six. 

Recipe: 30-Minute Tuna Pot Pie Casserole

Get all the flavors of a cheesy, pepperoni pizza and the texture of a pasta bake in this lower-carb casserole. The secret ingredient is spaghetti squash, which after roasting can be pulled into noodle-like strands. Build your casserole with the squash, shredded cheese, jarred pizza sauce, and slices of pepperoni. Add red pepper flakes for a spicy kick or extra meat in the form of sausage crumbles or diced Canadian bacon. After 30 minutes of baking, the casserole is ready to slice and serve.

Recipe: Low-Carb Pepperoni Pizza Casserole

With just a few ingredients and 30 minutes of your time, you can create a melty, cheese grits dish that can be served with so many meals. It's a delicious side dish, and can be easily paired with fried chicken, grilled sausages, or roasted vegetables. Cheesy grits are also great with breakfast, particularly eggs, bacon, and breakfast sausage. Leftovers are easy to reheat, and are tasty enough to eat all on their own as a comfort food snack. The ingredients include grits, eggs, your choice of shredded cheese, and seasonings.

Recipe: Cheese Grits Casserole

If you're looking for a crowd-pleasing baked dish to make, whether it's for dinner, a Super Bowl party, or a lunchtime potluck at work, this one is guaranteed to get folks excited. The base is a savory ground beef chili made on the stove — but don't worry, it comes together quickly and easily thanks to ingredients like canned beans and crushed tomatoes. The chili is topped with rows of tater tots and plenty of shredded cheese, then baked until golden and melted. 

Recipe: Chili Cheese Tater Tot Casserole

Make Cracker Barrel's famous hash brown casserole at home — it's so easy! Slices are tasty as a side dish with supper or for brunch or breakfast. The recipe starts with a simple white sauce made with butter, half and half, and flour that's ready in minutes. Combine it with frozen hash browns, cheese, and seasonings, then bake. Make a "loaded" version of this casserole by adding layers of shredded cheese and diced cooked bacon to the top before baking.  

Recipe: Copycat Cracker Barrel Hash Brown Casserole

Leftover meat from a rotisserie chicken or a roast is the perfect excuse to put together a flavorful bake like this. It's brimming with spicy salsa, black beans, and shredded cheese. White or brown rice layered on the bottom makes the dish especially filling. Once baked, serve slices of this spicy chicken casserole with cornbread, tortilla chips, or fold it into soft tortillas. With 12 servings, it's the perfect recipe to make for a big family dinner or to bring to a community supper. 

Recipe: Spicy Chicken Casserole

This egg bake is delicious, and with colorful red onion, diced tomatoes, and fresh basil leaves it's also gorgeous to behold. These qualities make it an easy choice any time you need a casserole recipe to bring to a brunch gathering or for overnight guests, however you should also make this easy recipe for yourself to enjoy. It bakes up in about a half hour, and leftovers are easy to reheat for a simple breakfast or lunch treat.

Recipe: Brunch Casserole

It's one of the most popular Thanksgiving side dishes: the green bean casserole. Though the recipe is usually made with canned cream of mushroom soup, what makes our version especially delicious is a from-scratch mushroom cream sauce. It takes only about 15 minutes to make using chopped mushrooms, garlic, onion, and cream. The recipe has green beans, of course, and those crispy fried onions on top, but with that homemade mushroom sauce it'll be the best-tasting green bean casserole you've ever tried.

Recipe: Green Bean Casserole

Add this dinner to the recipe box if your family loves baked pasta dishes. (And doesn't everyone?) This dish takes just a short time to prepare and assemble, and only 30 minutes to bake. It can also be assembled in advance and frozen for a time-saving meal down the road. This casserole is stuffed with browned, seasoned ground turkey, penne pasta, a creamy cheese and tomato sauce, and Parmesan cheese. Serve it with garlic bread or warm biscuits. 

Recipe: Ground Turkey Casserole

A potluck favorite, corn casserole has a soft, creamy, almost pudding-like texture and it's full of corn sweetness. It's an easy-to-make side dish to pair with burgers, grilled food, or with roasted and braised meat dishes. Shortcut pantry ingredients, including cornbread mix and creamed corn, make this dish quick to assemble. It can also be baked in advance and then reheated just in time to serve. The recipe makes enough to feed eight.

Recipe: Corn Casserole

When you hear sweet potato casserole, you might think it's a side dish served only at Thanksgiving. This recipe is so delicious, however, that it really deserves to make an appearance more often. The sweetness of mashed sweet potatoes is enhanced with brown sugar, butter, and vanilla extract. The potatoes are topped with a crunchy layer of brown sugar-coated, chopped pecans, then everything is baked until browned and fragrant. Make it to serve with your roast chicken, pot roast, or pork chops. 

Recipe: Sweet Potato Casserole

Casseroles are an ideal way to take leftovers and turn them into a completely new meal. If you have chicken left from a Sunday roast or a grocery store rotisserie bird, shred the meat and use it in this taco-flavored bake. Canned black beans, green chiles, and taco seasoning add flavor and moisture to the chicken, which is layered with tortillas and shredded cheese. Once baked, it becomes a bubbling, cheesy delight that's easy to slice and serve. 

Recipe: Chicken Quesadilla Casserole

While this recipe uses some basic pantry ingredients like dry pasta and breadcrumbs, because the meatballs are made from scratch, the dish has lots of flavor. Make the casserole as a special dinner for your family or when you have friends over for dinner. Use homemade pasta sauce or a quality, jarred variety like Rao's. The shaped sausage and beef meatballs are quickly browned, then layered with sauce, cooked pasta, and cheese. All you need to pair with this bubbling, melty casserole is some garlic bread and some good red wine. 

Recipe: Spaghetti And Meatballs Casserole

Here's a casserole that you can serve as a plant-based main dish or as a side dish with chicken or a beef roast. The star of this comforting casserole is cubed butternut squash, which are plentiful in stores and CSAs during the fall and winter. The dish has lots of flavor from sautéed onions, sage, spinach, and Parmesan cheese. Once baked, the squash gets tender and golden, and the breadcrumb topping browned and crispy. 

Recipe: Squash Casserole

The traditional Sicilian dish of arancini is balls of fried arborio rice with fillings that include meat, vegetables, cheese, and sauce. Recipe developer Christina Musgrave took inspiration from this dish to create a casserole with many of the same ingredients. It's important to use arborio rice, the type used for risotto, in this casserole for a soft and creamy texture. Add your favorite pasta sauce, seasoned ground beef, and top the layers with panko breadcrumbs for a toasty, crunchy finish. With eight servings, this casserole feeds a crowd. 

Recipe: Italian Rice Ball Casserole

Do you love hash brown casseroles? Here's one that's packed with even more potato, in the form of crunchy, salty, crushed potato chips. Sprinkle them over a filling of frozen hash browns, cream of chicken soup, and shredded cheddar cheese. This is obviously a delicious side to serve with dinner or brunch, but with all that cheese and potato chips, it's also a great treat to dig into as a late-night snack.

Recipe: Cheesy Potato Casserole

Trader Joe's likes to say that their frozen Four Cheese Mac N' Cheese "really does taste like you made it yourself." While we wish that were true, the fact is that mac and cheese always tastes better when it's homemade. Our copycat recipe will prove it to you. It has the same blend of cheddar, Swiss, gouda, and Havarti cheeses blended with cooked elbows, then baked in the oven. Plus you'll have enough to feed the whole family or to reheat and enjoy all week. 

Recipe: Copycat Trader Joe's Mac And Cheese

This vegetable casserole is a great choice to make as a side with grilled or roasted meats. Because the sliced zucchini are baked with lots of shredded Parmesan and cheddar cheese, it's a tasty way to eat more vegetables, get your kids to eat more vegetables, and use up the glut of fresh zucchini in the garden every summer. The casserole is ready in less than an hour, and can also be made in advance and reheated.

Recipe: Zucchini Casserole

This spicy baked dish is so loaded with savory, flavorful ingredients that one pan can feed as many as 12 people. Recipes like this one are ideal for potlucks or big family gatherings when you want lots of food without a lot of fuss. Our taco casserole is made with seasoned ground beef, but you can also prepare it with ground turkey, diced chicken, or plant-based crumbles. The layers include tortillas, black beans, and shredded cheese. Serve the dish with your favorite taco toppings. 

Recipe: Taco Casserole

Potatoes, sausage, and cheese make this breakfast dish especially hearty and satisfying, and the heavenly aroma of it baking will get everyone out of bed. It's easy to customize too: Swap the bell peppers for chili peppers, add black beans, or use a blend of cheeses like pepper Jack or mozzarella. For even more flavor and texture, instead of using thawed hash browns, fry the potatoes until they're crisp before adding them to the dish.  

Recipe: Sausage Potato Breakfast Casserole

If you've never tasted hominy, Masterclass describes the processed corn kernels as having a "chewy texture and nutty, earthy undertones." In our recipe, canned hominy is stirred together with sour cream, salsa, and cheddar cheese to make a creamy and spicy baked dish. Serve it as a side with tacos, burgers, steak, or roast chicken. It only takes 25 minutes from start to finish to get hominy casserole on the table. 

Recipe: Baked Hominy Casserole

With those thick noodles, traditional lasagna can be a very carb-heavy dish. Our version replaces the pasta with healthy spaghetti squash strands for a lighter main dish that still has texture and plenty of flavor — not to mention lots of melted mozzarella over the top. The recipe shows you how to bake spaghetti squash until it's easy to shred. Other ingredients include ground turkey, cottage cheese, and marinara sauce. 

Recipe: Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Casserole

Satisfy your family's Mexican food craving with one big, baked casserole. Our recipe has layers of spicy ground beef, tortillas, enchilada sauce, and shredded cheese. And it's easy to add more to this dish, like diced onion, bell peppers, slice jalapeños, or beans. Serve slices of enchilada casserole with sour cream, diced avocado, chopped cilantro, and tortilla chips. The recipe makes six servings and is ready in about 45 minutes. 

Recipe: Beef Enchilada Casserole

Don't use all of your pumpkin spice blend to make lattes: Save some to mix into this sweet French toast casserole. Choose loaves of sweet bread like challah or brioche for this recipe, and slice them into cubes. They'll soak up a batter of cream, pumpkin puree, eggs, spices, and maple syrup. The casserole is topped with a pecan streusel before it goes into the oven. You won't believe how incredible this smells as it bakes up! The only thing that beats the aroma is how delicious it tastes.

Recipe: Pumpkin Spice Baked French Toast

For team dinners, movie nights, sleepovers, and potlucks, slider casseroles are a tasty and convenient way to feed everyone. Use your 9x13-inch baking dish to cook the hamburger in one big piece, and then again to cook the sliders. The burger is tucked inside sweet Hawaiian rolls (you can also use other slider roll varieties) and topped with a homemade "special sauce." Turn them into cheeseburger sliders by layering in sliced or shredded cheddar, Swiss, pepper Jack, or American cheese. 

Recipe: Oven-Baked Hamburger Sliders

One creative way to enjoy gnocchi? In a rich, creamy, savory sauce and baked until golden brown. Sautéed onions, mushrooms, and crisp bits of bacon flavor the cream sauce, which comes together on the stove in about 20 minutes. Spread the dumplings and sauce in a casserole dish and top with cheese before baking. Find packages of premade gnocchi at supermarkets and stores like Walmart or Trader Joe's; they may be sitting along with the dried pasta, in the freezer case, or with fresh pastas in refrigerated sections.  

Recipe: Creamy Gnocchi Bake