Hobo Casserole is a delicious easy weeknight family meal that is easy to prepare and everyone will love it. Easy casseroles are a family favorite for us and this one is no exception.
There is no special time of year for this casserole. It is just as good in the spring as it is in the fall, as it is in the winter. I would call it an evergreen casserole.
I like to cook it in a cast iron skillet. It's a nice, even distribution of heat and it's also a great camping recipe, should we need a casserole recipe for then.
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❤️ Why you'll love it
- Easy, inexpensive ingredients.
- It takes less than 10 minutes to assemble.
- It pretty much cooks itself so it's an easy meal.
- It's a full meal. You don't need any other sides.
- You could make this casserole on the camp fire or in the oven.
🧅 Ingredients
- Lean Ground Beef
- Small Onion
- Russet Potatoes
- Cheddar Cheese
- Cream of Chicken Soup
- Cream of Potato Soup
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Milk (not shown in image)
- Creole Seasoning
- French's Fried Onions
- Salt and Pepper
See recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities.
🥣 Instructions
This is an overview of the recipe steps. For more detailed instructions visit the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Step 1: Pat ground beef into the bottom of your cast iron skillet and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Step 2: Sprinkle some diced onions on top of beef.
- Step 3: Slice medium potatoes and Layer evenly on top of the onion layer.
- Step 4: Sprinkle the grated cheese on top.
- Step 5: In a medium mixing bowl add both cream soups, the Worcestershire sauce, milk and Creole seasoning. Mix with a whisk.
- Step 6: Spoon over the top of the cheese layer, evenly.
- Step 7: Cover with aluminum foil and bake in the oven for 90 minutes.
- Step 8: Remove from the oven and sprinkle the fried onions on top. Broil to give a slight brown-ness (about 2-3 minutes).
Hint: You could use a casserole dish instead, or even a dutch oven.
🔄 Substitutions and Variations
- Cream of Mushroom Soup - instead of chicken.
- Cheese Slices - instead of grated cheese.
- Green Beans - these could be added for extra vegetables.
- Hot Dogs - I've heard of this meat being used.
- Sour Cream - could be added for richness.
- American Cheese - instead of cheddar.
- Ground Turkey - instead of beef.
- Ground Venison - instead of beef.
- Chili Powder - to add a little extra spice.
- Tomato Sauce - for more tomato flavor.
- Hot Sauce - to add some heat.
- Garlic Cloves - add this with the onions.
- Barbecue Sauce - add a few spoons of this.
- Tomato Juice - for more tomato flavor.
- Green Bell Pepper - add with the onions.
- Tater Tots - instead of the potatoes.
- Pinto Beans - add some canned pinto beans.
- Smoked Sausage - chopped sausage could be good.
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🔌 Equipment
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I use a 10" Cast Iron Skillet for this recipe. Plus a mixing bowl and whisk, but in a pinch you could use a regular large skillet (as long as it's oven proof).
A hobo dinner should be versatile.
You could also try making this hobo casserole in individual foil packets, for a great way to make this easy casserole outdoors.
I have some affiliate links in the recipe card below if you're interested to know more.
📘 More Casserole Recipes
- Hamburger Potato Casserole
- John Wayne Casserole
- Big Mac Casserole
- Crockpot Cracker Barrel Cheesy Hash Brown Casserole
Try finishing it off with these Banana Pudding Tacos, they're super popular right now and it's not hard to see why!
🧊 Storage
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
It does freeze well. Transfer to a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months.
💡 Tips
Expert Tip: The 'Cream Of' soups really give this recipe a great flavor. I find the combination of chicken and potato are perfect. Some people like cream of mushroom too. This is personal preference. If you've cooked this type of casserole before you'll know what you think you'll prefer. If you haven't tried it this way before though, I would give it a shot.
If you’ve tried this Hobo Casserole Recipe or any other great recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section below, how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers!
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Hobo Casserole
A tasty, easy layered dinner of ground meat, potatoes and cheese with soup and seasonings.
Ingredients
- 1lb Lean Ground Beef
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1 Small Yellow Onion, diced
- 4 Medium Russet Potatoes, peeled and sliced
- 8oz Cheddar Cheese, grated
- 1 (10oz) Can Cream of Chicken Soup
- 1 (10oz) Can Cream of Potato Soup
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
- ¼ Cup Milk
- 1 teaspoon Creole Seasoning
- ⅓ Cup Crispy French Fried Onions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Add the ground beef to a 10" Cast Iron black Skillet (or a small casserole dish), and press down.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Sprinkle with diced onions.
- Lay the sliced potatoes over the top in an even layer.
- Sprinkle the cheese over the top of the potatoes, evenly.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the chicken soup, potato soup, Worcestershire sauce, milk and Creole seasoning. Mix well with a whisk.
- Pour over the cheese and carefully try to evenly spread.
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake in the oven for 1-½ Hours.
- Remove from the oven, remove the foil and sprinkle the fried onions on the top.
- Place under a broiler for a few minutes to brown.
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Nutrition Information
Yield 6 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 513Total Fat 25gSaturated Fat 12gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 10gCholesterol 111mgSodium 854mgCarbohydrates 34gFiber 3gSugar 3gProtein 35g
Sharon says
Can not wait to try. Looks delicious 😋
Melanie Cagle says
Thanks Sharon, I know you'll love it!
Yolanda Hall says
Me to I want to try it too
Laura says
Do you put the meat in raw or do you brown it and then do the additional steps.
Melanie Cagle says
I put the meat in raw. Make sure to use lean ground meat and it doesn't get greasy.
Danielle says
Would it lessen the time in the oven if you did brown the ground beef first or doesn't that really make a difference?
Melanie Cagle says
The potatoes will still need to cook through, so I would say, the time won't change that much.
Sandra christensen says
Is it spicy or hot with the creole seasoning
Melanie Cagle says
No, not at all.
Lynn Rook says
I don’t normally have creole seasoning, don’t ever use it,! What else can I use without buying some creole that I will never use again?
Melanie Cagle says
You could use an All-Purpose seasoning, that will be fine.
Linda says
I forgot to purchase cream of potato. Would 2 cans of cream of chicken work?
Melanie Cagle says
it'll work, or cream of mushroom, or celery is also good.
Connie says
What if you don't have a cast iron pan.
Melanie Cagle says
If you don't have a cast iron skillet like I used, you could use a dutch oven.
Cindy Cooper says
What about cooking this in a crockpot?
Melanie Cagle says
You could most definitely cook this in a crock pot. Although I haven't done it, I would layer it exactly like in the original Hobo Casserole Recipe, in the crock pot then cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6. Adjust from there.
Cynthia says
Hobo casserole is a flashback to my childhood. I don't have the right size cast iron skillet. Does it change anything about the cooking time if I use a regular casserole dish?
Melanie Cagle says
Hi Cynthia, if the size of the casserole dish is roughly the same then it shouldn't change too much.
sharon garofalow says
I just made this hobo casserole and everyone LOVED it! Such a great family meal idea.
Brandi says
I'd never heard of Hobo Casserole before, but I can't wait to make this! It has all of the things that my teen/young adult kids love to eat and won't cost me an arm and a leg to make.
Holly says
We do the hobo packets all the time, but this is genius to turn it into a hobo casserole...who knew? thanks!
One Crazy House says
I've been craving a cheesy, creamy comfort dish! I can't wait to try making this hobo casserole!
Marye Audet-White says
This hobo casserole recipe looks so cheesy and creamy! Do you think it would work with cream of celery soup?
Melanie Cagle says
Cream of celery would work fine - may have to adjust the seasoning a little (maybe).
Julie Evink says
Adding this to my favorite casserole list!! Hobo Casserole is amazing, the kids devoured it and so easy to make.
Melanie Cagle says
Thanks Julie, so glad you liked it!!
Cindy says
The kids giggled at the name 'Hobo Casserole' but my picky eaters loved it - thank you!
Becky Mansfield says
I had never heard of Hobo Casserole until I saw this recipe & tried it - wow. I'm so glad that I did! It was a huge hit!! I'll be making it again.
Rita Joy says
Oh, my goodness! It's time for me to make dinner as I stumbled onto this recipe for hobo casserole, and now my mouth is watering! This looks absolutely delicious and my family will LOVE it.