This shredded potato casserole is adapted from Eastern Balkan cuisine and is a spin off the classic hashbrown casserole recipe.
It’s made with grated potatoes which are mixed with feta cheese and seasoned with savory and cumin.
It’s extremely easy to prepare and takes only an hour to cook from start to finish!
Shredded Potato Casserole With Feta Cheese Recipe
As someone who grew up in a family which came from the Eastern Balkans, I used to eat this shredded potato casserole with feta all the time.
Once I became old enough to cook, this was one of the very first dishes I learned how to prepare because it was so easy to make.
What amazed me, however, was that people in the US rarely used feta cheese in potato dishes.
That’s what prompted me to share this recipe with you as I believe you’ll love the way feta blends with the flavor of potatoes.
The other thing that sets this recipe apart is the use of savory. Savory is a widely used spice in Balkan cuisine with an aroma close to that of thyme.
This potato casserole is versatile enough to be served as both a main course and a side dish for meats like pork chops and whatnot. It’s great for just a regular dinner idea but also fits well in any holiday menu.
Ingredients
- Potatoes – The low moisture and high starch content makes russet potatoes and red potatoes perfect for this recipe. If you aren’t keen on the idea of shredding the potatoes yourself, you can use frozen hash browns instead.
- Feta Cheese – Feta cheese is an indispensable ingredient in Balkan cuisine, especially when it comes to cooking potatoes. Make sure you use hard feta cheese as it’s easier to grate.
- Butter – A few tablespoons of unsalted butter will greatly enrich the taste of the potatoes. If you only have salted butter at hand, you should entirely skip the salt from the recipe.
- Seasonings – A simple blend of cumin, savory, black pepper and salt is enough to elevate the flavor of this dish.
How to prepare
Check out the recipe card at the end of this article for detailed, step-by-step instructions.
- Boil the potatoes in hot water but not to completion – they need to be slightly underboiled. Boil them until they become somewhat tender but not to the point where you can’t grate them easily. Potatoes shouldn’t be too soft because you will later bake them.
- Remove the potato skins with a paring knife. Some people prefer peeling the skin off potatoes before boiling them because it’s easier but I’ve found that boiling them before peeling results in a better sealed taste.
- Shred the peeled potatoes alongside the feta cheese with a cheese grater.
- Layer half of the potato mixture in a baking dish, then spread the grated feta cheese on top.
- Cover with the rest of the potatoes.
- Season the potatoes with the spices and vegetable oil. I recommend using a neutral vegetable oil such as canola.
- Stir all of the ingredients with a spatula and then smooth the surface.
- Top the potato casserole with the butter.
- Bake until golden brown.
Variations & tips
- Sprinkle some corn flakes – Sprinkling a cup of cornflakes on top of the potatoes will give this casserole an even nicer crunch.
- Make it more creamy – If you want to make this dish more creamy you can add a cup of sour cream. Sour cream will enrich the taste of the potatoes and make them slightly tangy.
- Add some protein – Adding some chopped ham or bacon will complement the flavor of the potatoes and make them more nutritious.
- Add garlic – adding some chopped cloves of garlic right before the baking phase will enhance the flavor of the dish even further. Chop the cloves in four and add them wihtin the mix (not on top). I would not add more than 6 cloves in total.
If you liked this Balkan-style potato casserole then you’d probably love my Savory Potato Salad Cake as well. Or maybe try my Authentic Bulgarian Banitsa recipe.
Storage
In case you have any leftovers, you can safely store them in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Make sure that the leftovers have completely cooled down before refrigerating them.
This will decrease the chance of microbial growth and spoilage.
If you want to store your leftovers for a longer period of time, you should put them in an airtight container and keep them in the freezer.
Shredded potato casserole can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months before it spoils.
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Shredded Potato Casserole With Feta Cheese Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 lb potatoes 900 g
- 1/2 lb feta cheese 250 g, a harder variety for easier grating
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil mine was sunflower oil
- 1 1/2 tbsp savory spice
- a pinch of salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
Instructions
- Boil the potatoes with their skins on in a pot of water but don’t boil them to completion. The potatoes should not be too soft to be grated easily.
- Shred the feta cheese using a grater or a food processor.
- Peel the skins off the boiled potatoes with a paring knife and grate them into large pieces.
- Spread half of the potatoes in a 12-inch baking dish (30 cm), then layer the feta cheese on top of them. Cover the cheese with the rest of the shredded potatoes.
- Season the potatoes with the salt, black pepper, cumin, and savory, then pour over the vegetable oil.
- Mix all of the ingredients together, then smooth the top with a spatula.
- Divide the butter into four equal pieces and place it on top of the potatoes.
- Bake the potatoes for one hour in an oven preheated to 350°F (180°C).
Video
Notes
- You don't need to grease your baking dish as the potato mixture has plenty of vegetable oil to prevent it from sticking.
- The boiling time is just an estimate and it will depend on the size of the potatoes. When I was making the recipe you see in the photos, I boiled mine for 24 min.
- Make sure you don't boil the potatoes completely. They should have a tender texture, that's not overly soft. Otherwise, you won't be able to properly grate them.
- There's no need to wash your grater after you've finished grating the cheese. The cheese and potatoes will eventually get mixed.
- The feta cheese should be of the hard varieties. Look for something like Bulgarian brine feta cheese in the store. Preferably, touch the cheese you're about to buy and see if it's not too soft for grating.
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Nutrition
I do my best to provide you with the nutritional information for recipes but I'm not a certified nutritionist. The nutritional information provided should only be treated as an estimate since it will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
