How To Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Cook/crumble ground beef and onions until cooked through. Add garlic and bell peppers and cook for 2 minutes. Drain grease.
Mix in salt/pepper, ketchup, yellow mustard, and tomato paste. Sprinkle in flour and stir to combine. Cook for 2 minutes.
Add the beef broth/seasoning mixture in small splashes and use a silicone spatula to clean the bottom of the pot, as this will add more flavor to the sauce.
Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. Let it thicken and reduce for 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
Top with corn, then with cheese.
Add tater tots in an even layer on top. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and add additional ½ cup cheese. Bake 5 more minutes.
Optional: Garnish with chives and crispy bacon or bacon bits prior to serving.
Easy Cheesy Tater Tot Casserole
Have you ever gotten so excited about a recipe?! Well, today Im SO excited to share this Tater Tot Casserole recipe that we made last week. Im so ecstatic to share it because it was LOVED by the whole family and ended up tasting so cheesy and delicious. In fact, my husband and sisters claimed it the best casserole they had ever tried. Hows that for quickly becoming a family favorite?!
With the holidays quickly approaching, I know its always fun to have great recipes on hand, and this Tater Tot Casserole will be perfect for those get togethers. This particular dish has a tater tot base and a cheesy, creamy center and a fried onions top. All these layers together make an amazing potato casserole that everyone loves.
We have used Frenchs® Crispy Fried Onions for many of our classic holiday dishes , but love that they added the perfect amount of flavor and crunch to this casserole. In fact, as I made this recipe I realized that they would be great additions to any casserole, potatoes or salads. They add so much to a recipe and are perfect for all your holiday dishes!
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So Many Varieties So Little Time
Have you ever really looked at all of the varieties of Campbells condensed creamed soup! Campbells makes over 70 varieties of condensed creamed soup, from cream of asparagus soup to cream of shrimp soup and everything in between. Condensed creamed soups are here to stay. I for one am glad because every now and then, all you want for dinner is a good ol fashioned casserole or bake dish or hot dishdepending on where you live.
CasseroleClassic
Tater tot casserole has got to be one of those casseroles that everyone has had, at least once in their life. Either your mom made it, your grandma made it, a childhood friends mom made it, or you ate it in the school cafeteria. After all, tater tot casserole has been around forever! This is my families version on the classic, Tater Tot Casserole.
Hot Dish or Casserole
The word Hotdish is said to have originated in the Upper Midwest region of the United States, therefore many feel that Tater Tot Hotdish originated in this same area. Having grown up Wisconsin where I know for a fact that casseroles or hotdish rule to this day. Hotdish basically means a dish that is cooked in a single baking dish, and served hot. Aggie always used the term casserole when referring to hotdish But my sister-in-law and my in-laws always say hotdish.
How To Make Tater Tot Casserole Without Cream Soup
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Tips & Tricks For The Recipe
- We always look for ways to make dinner a little healthier, so we often use ground turkey instead of ground beef, and we throw in some frozen peas, broccoli, or green beans. The kids roll their eyes about it, but they know we care
- Fortunately, using cream of chicken soup or cream of celery soup, whatever you have in your pantry, also works well in this recipe.
Tater Tot Baked Casserole Variations
Fortunately, you can change up this delicious family dinner in a million different ways.
Your family will love any one of these Tater Tot Casserole variations! Try one today!
- Taco Tater Tot Casserole Green chiles or jalapeños, corn, diced tomatoes, and pepper jack cheese gives this recipe a spicy flavor
- Chili Tater Tot Casserole Add chili, corn, and olives to the base and top with tater tots and cheese
- Breakfast Tater Tot Casserole Layer those gorgeous, crispy tots with eggs, crumbled sausage, and cheese. You will not be disappointed!
- Green Bean Tater Tot Casserole to make your tater tot casserole with veggies, just add a 15-ounce can or about 2 cups frozen green beans.
- And, of course, you can make a Crock Pot Tater Tot Casserole!
Tater tots arent just for lunchrooms and cafeterias. You can enjoy them anytime. You can easily double this recipe to eat throughout the week, which is a huge time saver for busy moms!
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Tips From The Betty Crocker Kitchens
- tip 1 Take the time to cook up Applewood smoked sliced bacon. Cut the slices crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces and cook them up in the 10-inch skillet until crisp. Scoop out the pieces of bacon and drain them well on paper towels. Then brown the beef and onion in the same skillet.
- tip 2 For a truly loaded dish, offer a dish of more sour cream thats mixed with a little hot sauce to spoon onto each serving.
- tip 3 Cream of mushroom soup can be used in place of cream of onion soup in this recipe.
- tip 4 Using ground bison or ground turkey would make a good variation in this casserole.
I Make Tater Tot Hotdish With Homemade Gravy
Blake was admittedly skeptical when I told him I was going to create a homemade gravy base for my tater tot hotdish. He questioned, Why mess with a good thing?
Because, I told him, I was convinced that I could create a tater tot hotdish recipe that tasted even more amazing than the one I had always made with canned cream of mushroom soup.
His skepticism fueled my fire.
I was going to do this!
Feel free to use my recipe that utilizes the canned soup, it will save some time and its still very good. But I beg you to try my version with gravy made from scratch.
The gravys texture is perfectly creamy, less oddly gelatinous than the canned soup version, with a cleaner, richer flavor. Hatti, Tessa, and I all agreed that the hotdish with the homemade gravy was indeed superior to the canned version, as our family scrutinized both compositions side by side in a weekday supper taste test.
But Blake, holding fast to his love for canned tradition, said that hed eat either one just the same. I think he was secretly surprised that I actually made his beloved tater tot hotdish without opening a can, and got it to taste that good!!
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What You Need To Make This Tater Tot Casserole
- With all those layers you need at least a 2-inch deep 8 or 9 inch baking dish. Square, round, oblong doesnt matter!
- You dont want large pieces of garlic in this casserole so you can either buy minced garlic or use a garlic press. This is the one my husband bought me for Christmas and I love it!
- I think freshly grated cheese makes the cheese melt so much nicer so grab a cheese grater and get to work!
- When dinner is this is, I think clean-up should be too! Make sure to spray your baking dish with a good quality non-stick cooking spray before assembling your casserole.
Key Steps For Tater Tot Casserole
1. Use onion soup mix to flavor the beef. To eliminate the need for canned soup and take away the extra step of cooking fresh onions, we turned to an envelope of soup mix. When added to the browned beef, the soup mix flavors the gravy that coats the beef and vegetables.2. Make a pan gravy. Adding just a little flour to the beef will thicken the broth and milk mixture, creating a creamy gravy that holds this casserole together.3. Bake until bubbly and golden. Once the beef and gravy are transferred to the casserole dish, top with frozen tater tots and bake until the gravy is bubbly and the tots are tender but crisp.
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Yummy Tater Tot Casserole Recipe
Tater Tot Casserole is the perfect comfort food recipe! Crispy tots, ground beef, and gooey cheese! This kid-friendly tater tot recipe satisfies the entire family and is on the table in just over 30 minutes! An easy weeknight dinner.
Who doesnt love tater tots?? They remind us of childhood, so we could basically eat them anytime and be perfectly content. Now our kids devour them, so making the best tater tot casserole with beef was a no-brainer for us!
You can also make Tater Tot Casserole in the Crockpot! Its so good!
Did you know Americans consume approximately 70 million pounds of tater tots per year? Guess were not the only ones who love them.
This is also called a Hot Dish Casserole in some parts of the country.
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How Do You Cook Tater Tots In A Convection Oven
If you want the tater tots crispy, put on some timer for 15 minutes. Then, toss every 5 minutes. The trays should be fitted with a layer of pastry, followed by a sprinkle of salt on them, anhing oil, and sprinkle some salt over the tots. When the timer is set at 14, it takes the time to cook on Air Fry in the unit.
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What Can You Add To Gluten Free Tater Tot Casserole
Don’t be afraid to customize this recipe!
Add some shredded cheese on top of the tater tots, or add some sweet corn to the filling.
Or skip the green beans. Or add some peas.
Tater tot casserole is kind of like an easier version of the classic shepherd’s pie.
Creamy, meaty, savory filling topped with some good ole potatoes.
This is an instant favorite, right up there with my gluten-free enchiladas , gluten free tuna casserole, and one pan mac ‘n’ cheese.
Nothing wrong with a nice healthy helping of comfort food!
If I understand correctly, in some regions it is called tater tot hot dish instead of tater tot casserole.
Whatever you call it, in the words of my toddler it is “a tasty dinner.”
How To Make Tater Tot Casserole Recipe
- Lightly grease an 8 or 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Brown the ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Drain excess fat.
- Add the onions to the skillet and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes until translucent.
- Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for an additional minute.
- Stir in Worcestershire sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Transfer ground beef mixture to the prepared baking dish and spread evenly.
- Top with cream of mushroom soup, followed by green beans, followed by the cheddar cheese. Make sure to season the green bean layer.
- Finally, top with tater tots.
- Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until tater tots are golden brown and cheese is melted.
- Serve immediately.
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Ingredients In Tater Tot Casserole
- Ground Beef: This recipe uses two pounds of 80/20 ground beef.
- Seasonings: Salt and Pepper are all you need from the spice cupboard here.
- Onion, garlic: These aromatic vegetables give this dish a home cooked feel and flavor.
- Flour: This will be used to make a fresh, thick, creamy sauce for our casserole.
- Milk: Without the canned soup, were making a cream sauce using milk.
- Beef Broth: This adds flavor and depth to the meat mixture, as well as moisture for the sauce.
- Worcestershire Sauce: This savory, umami flavoring goes really well with beef.
- Mixed Vegetables: For convenience, use frozen vegetables. I use a blend that includes peas, carrots, green beans, and corn. Any frozen vegetables will work in this recipe. Peas and carrots are great, or just peas, or just green beans. Use what you like!
- Cheese: Shredded cheddar is perfect for this recipe. Shred your own or use bagged cheese.
Can You Fry Tater Tots In A Frying Pan
Using the skillet you plan to cook cooked frozen tots , first heat the oil at a depth of one inch on the bottom of the skillet before adding the cooked frozen tots. Turn down the temperature a little bit when you prefer to keep things crisp. In addition to salt and pepper, drain the water by mixing them.
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How To Make This Easy Dinner Cowboy Casserole:
Start by preheating your oven to 375 degrees.
Then, in a large skillet add in the ground beef and diced onion.
Heat it all the way through until the beef is no longer pink and onions are transparent and soft.
Once the beef is cooked pour it into the colander to drain the grease from the meat.
Then return the meat back into the skillet and pour in the can of corn , cheese, milk, sour cream, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper to taste.
After everything has been added to the skillet, stir it all together until everything is well combined.
Then, pour the beef and corn mixture into the 9Ã13 baking pan and spread it out evenly.
Pull out the frozen tater tots and place them on top of the beef mixture.
Try as best as you can to keep the tater tots to one layer so that everything bakes evenly.
Then just sprinkle the remaining cheddar cheese on top of the tater tots until it is covered.
Now that cowboy casserole is put together, put the 9x 13 pan in the oven uncovered for about 25-30 minutes or until you see the cheese start to bubble.
Be sure to check the tater tots and see if they are cooked all the way through.
Tater Tot Casserole With Ground Beef
Of course timing at the end is subjective. If you want the tots to be browned then remove foil, bake for maybe 10 minutes, then add cheese to melt that.
If yall prefer frozen carrots instead of peas, by all means swap those out! What I love about this is that I can find all the ingredients at my local grocery store year round.
- Idaho beef is always right there in the meat department. Often times if I am running out I will grab several pounds and freeze it so I have it on hand.
It is an easy dinner recipe everyone in our house loves so I dont have to hear moans and groans at all. All Yeahhhhhs with this easy ground beef casserole.
Looking for other great ideas using the same meat? Try our air fryer stuffed bell peppers some night. Then, try this asparagus pasta salad with hamburger.
There are so many ways to make this type of beef and taters.
We love making this Crockpot tater tot casserole too. The texture is different when you make this one. Since it cooks for much longer and in this device it wont get crispy. You could of course take the pot out at the end and put into the oven. In a few minutes on 400 F the top would get a bit of a crunch.
What if you have leftovers? How do you save them? I have to be honest, this doesnt save well in the fridge. You can store it in a container for the next day and then transfer into a metal dish. Rewarming in the air fryer works a bit better so you can get the edges crispy again.
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