Overnight Hash Brown Casserole
Overnight Hash Brown Casserole recipe is a bacon, egg, hash brown casserole that you can prep ahead the night before!
Overnight Hash Brown Casserole recipe is a bacon, egg, hash brown casserole that you can prep ahead the night before!
- Carbohydrate 0.77 g
- Cholesterol 423 mg
- Fat 9.94 g
- Fiber 0 g
- Protein 12.58 g
- Saturated Fat 3.099 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (209g)
- Sodium 140 mg
- Sugar 0.77 g
- Trans Fat 1.667 g
- Calories 143 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat oven to 400
- Line a large rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper.
- Lay bacon on lined pan so that it's close but isn't touching.
- Bake for about 10 minutes or until tender-crisp. You don't want it to be crisp because it's going to bake longer when the casserole cooks.
- Let bacon cool on baking sheet.
- Remove to a paper towel-lined plate to absorb any extra grease.
- To make the casserole, heat butter in a large skillet.
- Add diced onion and peppers.
- Cook until onion is translucent and peppers have softened.
- Grease a deep 9x13-inch baking dish.
- Layer hashbrowns and cooked veggies.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Crumble cooked bacon over the top of the veggies.
- Top with 1 cup cheese.
- In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, and hot sauce.
- Pour over hash brown mixture.
- Top with remaining cup of cheddar cheese.
- Cover pan with aluminum foil, and place in the fridge overnight.
- In the morning, get casserole out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you want to bake it.
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Bake casserole, covered, for about 45 minutes.
- Uncover, and continue cooking for about 15 minutes longer, or until casserole is set and has baked through.
- I like to serve this with additional chipotle hot sauce or salsa.
Allowing the assembled casserole to rest in the refrigerator for eight to twelve hours requires careful thermal management the following morning. Pull the baking dish from cold storage thirty minutes prior to the oven going on to take the chill off the center, otherwise the exterior edges will overcook while the middle remains raw. This resting window also permits the starches in the thawed potatoes to hydrate fully in the dairy and egg mixture.
Baking thick-cut bacon only until tender-crisp prevents the meat from turning bitter during the second round of oven time. Laying the strips closely on parchment paper without overlapping ensures even fat rendering across the surface of the sheet pan at four hundred degrees. Removing excess grease on absorbent paper keeps the final slice from separating into an oily pool.
Sweating the diced white onion and chopped peppers in butter over medium heat drives out excess water before the vegetables hit the potato layer. Raw produce releases moisture as it bakes, which dilutes the custard and makes the hash browns soggy rather than structured. Cook these aromatics until the onions turn translucent and the bell peppers yield completely to pressure.
Dairy fats coat the protein strands in the eggs, raising the coagulation temperature and yielding a tender custard instead of a rubbery sheet. Whisking the milk thoroughly with the hot sauce distributes capsaicin evenly through the lipid matrix, balancing the rich cheddar and salty pork.
