Campfire potatoes au gratin on the grill can be made in foil for a camping trip. Or in a cast iron pan on the grill. Or make these camping potatoes at home, baked in the oven. This simple scalloped potatoes recipe is packed with enticing flavor from fresh garlic and gooey gruyere cheese. I dare you not to finish this easy campfire potato dish recipe in one sitting.
Looking for a traditional way to cook potatoes gratin in the oven? See this recipe for potatoes gratin with pesto.
Prepare the scalloped potatoes and cream sauce
Slice the potato and red onion to uniform ⅛ inch slices using a mandolin.
Make the sauce. On the stove in a pan on medium heat, combine heavy cream, parsley, and paprika. Let the sauce simmer for 5 minutes while regularly stirring. Reduce heat to medium-low for an additional 5 minutes.
Arrange the campfire potatoes au gratin in a cast iron skillet
Grease the bottom of a medium sized cast iron skillet with some butter. In a bowl, season potatoes with garlic, salt, red chili flakes, and one tbsp of parsley.
Arrange potatoes and red onions in the cast iron skillet.
Alternate 2 inches of potatoes with 1-2 sections of red onions.
Once potatoes and onions are tightly packed, pour the cream sauce over the ingredients.
Do not overflow the cast iron skillet with the cream sauce.
Drizzle the melted butter over the potatoes and cover the cast iron skillet with foil. Add them to a grill or fire, not directly over heat.
How long does it take to cook potatoes au gratin on the grill or fire?
The potatoes will take about one hour to cook.
You may not have accurate temperature information when dealing with an open flame, so keep checking the potatoes at the 45 minute mark to see if they are done.
Once potatoes can be pierced with a fork, they are ready for the final step.
The cheese…
Cook, uncovered for 5 minutes or until cheese bubbles.
Take off the heat and sprinkle remaining parsley on top.
How to prepare potatoes au gratin for camping
Campfire potatoes au gratin will be one of the first dishes to start cooking since this recipe takes about one hour.
Wrap potatoes in heavy-duty foil or grill bags for an easy cleanup.
Cooking directly on a flame may cook the potatoes unevenly, so rotate the campfire potatoes occasionally. To be sure potatoes are done cooking, pierce them with a fork. If the fork easily pierces the potatoes, they are ready for the cheese.
Add gruyere cheese to the top of the campfire potatoes and finish on the grill until the cheese is melted and bubbling.
Adapting Campfire potatoes au gratin for the oven
To bake scalloped potatoes au gratin in the oven, follow the recipe prep instructions and cook the potatoes at 375 degrees in a casserole dish for about an hour. The potatoes are done when they are tender enough to pierce with a fork.
Once the potatoes are done, sprinkle with cheese and melt in the broiler on high until the cheese is bubbling.
Tasty tips for making campfire potatoes au gratin on the grill
- It’s important to slice the potatoes evenly, which can be achieved with a mandolin
- Aim for potatoes sliced ⅛ inch thick
- To bake these in the oven, cook them at 375 degrees in a casserole dish for about an hour until the potatoes are tender enough to pierce with a fork
- Campfire potatoes can be made in mini cast iron skillets for personal servings
- Potatoes au gratin on the grill can be made in grill bags or foil packets for easy cleanup
- The creamy sauce may bubble and overflow from the heat, so cook these in a cast iron pan high enough to capture the overflow
- To jazz up the flavor, add ingredients like frozen peas, frozen corn and bacon
- Substitute garlic salt to season these campfire potatoes au gratin
- For a kick, drizzle Worscestershire sauce on the campfire potatoes au gratin before putting them on the grill
Let me know when you make this campfire potatoes au gratin recipe. Be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe. It means so much to hear from Sip Bite Go readers and I love seeing photos of your food! Don’t forget to tag me @sipbitego on Instagram so I can see how the recipe turned out. For more ideas you’ll love, sign up for the Sip Bite Go newsletter.
Campfire Potatoes au Gratin on the Grill Recipe (Sip Bite Go)
Ingredients
Sauce
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tsp paprika (or any spice you’d like)
- 2 medium russet potatoes peeled and sliced thin
- 1 tsp salt
- 4 cloves garlic diced
- 1 tsp red chili flakes (optional)
- 3 tbsp parsley chopped, divided
- 1 medium red onion sliced thin
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter melted
- ½ cup gruyere cheese shredded
Instructions
- Slice the potato and red onion to uniform ⅛ inch slices using a mandolin.
- Make the sauce. On the stove in a pan on medium heat, combine heavy cream, parsley, and paprika. Let the sauce simmer for 5 minutes while regularly stirring. Reduce heat to medium-low for an additional 5 minutes.
- Grease the bottom of a medium sized cast iron skillet with some butter. In a bowl, season potatoes with garlic, salt, red chili flakes, and one tbsp of parsley. Arrange potatoes and red onions in the cast iron skillet, alternating 2 inches of potatoes with 1-2 sections of red onions. Once potatoes and onions are tightly packed, pour the cream sauce over the ingredients. Do not overflow the cast iron skillet. The sauce will bubble up as it cooks.
- Drizzle the melted butter over the potatoes and cover the cast iron skillet with foil. Add them to a grill or fire, not directly over heat. The potatoes will take about one hour to cook. You may not have accurate temperature information, so keep checking the potatoes at the 45 minute mark to see if they are done. Once potatoes can be pierced with a fork, they are ready.
- Once you can stick a fork in them, the potatoes are ready for the final touch. Remove the foil and sprinkle gruyere cheese on top. Cook, uncovered for 5 minutes or until cheese bubbles. Take off the heat and sprinkle remaining parsley on top.
Notes
- It's important to slice the potatoes evenly, which can be achieved with a mandolin. Aim for potatoes sliced ⅛ inch thick
- To bake these in the oven, cook them at 375 degrees in a casserole dish for about an hour until the potatoes are tender enough to pierce with a fork
- Campfire potatoes can be made in mini cast iron skillets for personal servings, or in grill bags or foil packets for easy cleanup
- The creamy sauce may bubble and overflow from the heat, so cook these in a cast iron pan high enough to capture the overflow
- To jazz up the flavor, add ingredients like frozen peas, frozen corn and bacon
- Substitute garlic salt to season these campfire potatoes au gratin
- For a kick, drizzle Worscestershire sauce on the campfire potatoes au gratin before putting them on the grill
Nutrition
Emily says
Great recipe. I’ve never seen an au gratin dish served in a cast iron skillet like this. It’s a really cool presentation.
Luci's Morsels says
Ooh gruyere! And those red onions look like the perfect compliment to the potatoes and cheese! What a great camping recipe!!
Lisa says
This dish looks delicious, I mean who doesn’t love potatoes and cheese!?! And so versatile if you can make this camping!
Tawnie Kroll says
My fiance has been requesting this on repeat since I made it for him last – thank you for a delish recipe!
Geoffrey Swetz says
Hmm, I never thought about making this on the grill. Great idea. I’m not a huge fan of all the onions, but that’s just me. Worth a try.
Rachel @ www.theeverydaymomlife.com says
These look fantastic! I never thought about cooking them that way. What a good idea.
Corina says
Oh my word this looks too good to be true! I am pinning it for consumption this next week 😀
Jennifer says
What a delicious looking side dish. Our family loves potatoes, and I am always on the hunt for new recipes. YUM!!
Blythe Alpern says
It’s been so long since I’ve had scalloped potatoes. These look so delish. I love how you mixed in the red onions. I’ve never thought of making potatoes on the grill, but I think the added smokey flavor would add a lot to this the dish.
Kiwi says
Wow the presentation on this is amazing. Kind of drooling but a great switch up on potatoes!
christina aliperti says
YUM! This looks soooo good. I have to make it. The sauce sounds creamy and delicious, perfection if you ask me!
Heather says
I love scalloped potatoes! But, I have never made them before. This looks relatively easy, and I think I am going to have to try it!
Wendy says
This looks absolutely amazing! YUM! I love potatoes but have never made them this way. I’m going to give this a try when it cools off enough to grill.
Kimberly says
Great classic side dish. Looks easy to make and guests would love it.
Amanda Love says
It looks so good and it is the perfect side during barbecues and picnics. I don’t think I’ve tried cooking this dish using a grill before but it sure would be nice to give it a try! Thanks for the lovely recipe!
Debra says
Oh my word. This looks so good! I love making potatoes to go with dinner and I need to try this version for sure1
Carolyn says
I love this idea of mixing up the side dish. I would never have thought you could make this on the grill. Now I can have my husband make the meat and the side! Ha!
Michelle @ Sunshine and Hurricanes.com says
These look amazingly yummy! This is definitely getting pinned, a new twist on my potato rotation!
Cynthia @craftoflaughter says
I love potatoes and have never considered cooking them on the grill! These look incredible and I can’t wait to try your recipe!