Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole
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Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole is about to transform your idea of comfort food!
Imagine the savory, satisfying flavors of a juicy cheeseburger merged with the delightful crunch of golden tater tots, all melded together in a delightful, family-favorite hearty casserole.
This is a dish where two beloved American classics come together to create a taste experience that’s sure to impress at family dinners, potlucks, and friendly get-togethers.
Why this is the Best Tater Tot Casserole!
Effortless Meal Prep: One of the most significant advantages of this Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole is its simplicity.
You can even prepare some ingredients beforehand, making it a perfect choice for busy weekdays when you want a homemade, hearty meal without spending hours in the kitchen.
Ultimate Crowd-Pleaser: This casserole combines the iconic flavors of a juicy cheeseburger with the beloved crunch of tater tots—a combination that’s bound to win over even the pickiest of eaters.
A Delicious Spin on Classic Comfort Foods: Elevate your comfort food game with this mouth-watering, tasty casserole. The marriage of cheeseburger ingredients and tater tots creates a unique, satisfying flavor profile that takes comfort food to new heights.
Simple Ingredients:
What are the ingredients needed for a tater tot casserole?
- ground beef
- Worcestershire sauce
- seasonings: garlic powder, salt, and ground black pepper
- cheddar cheese condensed soup
- sour cream
- bacon
- milk
- shredded cheddar cheese
- frozen tater tots, keep frozen
How to make Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole
- Preheat the oven to 350 and grease a 9×13 casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Add the beef and heat over medium-high heat in a large skillet, stirring frequently, until the meat is browned. Drain grease.
- Season beef with Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Add soup, sour cream, bacon, and milk to the beef and mix well.
- Pour the meat mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- Add frozen tater tots and shredded cheese and mix well until evenly coated.
- Spread evenly into an oven-safe dish and bake in a preheated oven for 40–45 minutes or until the edges are bubbly and golden brown.
- For the perfect meal, serve hamburger tater tot hotdish immediately with a side of fresh vegetables.
FAQs
What is the prep time and total time required for making a tater tot casserole?
The prep time required for making a tater tot casserole is 15 minutes, while the total time needed for preparing and cooking the casserole is approximately 1 hour.
What type of cheese works best for a Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole?
Cheddar cheese is the classic choice due to its ideal melting point and rich flavor.
However, experiment with other varieties like Monterey Jack, Colby, or smoked Gouda for a gourmet twist.
Can I make prep Tater Tot Casserole ahead of time?
You can prepare the casserole by following all the recipe steps except for adding the frozen tater tots. Once assembled, cover the dish and place it in the refrigerator.
When ready to enjoy the casserole, preheat your oven, mix in the frozen tater tots, and bake it as directed. Just remember that it may need a few extra minutes in the oven if it’s coming straight from the fridge.
What’s the best way to store leftovers?
Leftovers should be cooled, covered, and stored in the refrigerator. They can be reheated in the oven or microwave.
Can I add other ingredients to my Cheeseburger Tot Casserole?
- Add-ons like cooked bacon, jalapenos, green beans (or mixed vegetables), diced yellow onion, or sauteed mushrooms can make this dish even more flavorful and customized to your tastes.
- Change the soup mixture: Instead of cheddar cheese soup, try cream of chicken soup or mushroom soup.
- Change the meat: We prefer lean ground beef in the ground beef mixture, but ground turkey, ground pork, or ground chicken can make their own cheesy tater tot casserole recipe.
Must-Try Tater Tot Recipes
You can create a “Breakfast Tater Tot Casserole” with sausage, eggs, and cheese for a morning twist or a “Chicken Bacon Ranch Tater Tot Casserole” for a delicious chicken variation perfect for the dinner table.
With hamburger as the main ingredient, the BBQ tater tot hot dish combines a cowboy casserole’s delicious flavors in one carb-loaded recipe.
Additionally, our tater tot casserole without meat has no proteins, making it an excellent choice for a side dish over a main dish.
Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole
Equipment
- Cooking Spray
- Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 10.5 oz. cheddar cheese condensed soup
- 8 oz. sour cream
- ¾ cup bacon cooked and chopped
- ½ cup milk
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 32 oz. frozen tater tots keep frozen
Seasonings
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9×13 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large skillet, add uncooked ground beef and heat over medium-high heat, stirring frequently until the beef is browned. After the beef is thoroughly cooked, drain any excess grease from the skillet. This step is crucial as it removes any excess fat, resulting in a dish full of flavor but not overly greasy.
- Season cooked beef with Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.
- Add cheddar cheese condensed soup, sour cream, cooked bacon, and milk to the beef. Mix all these ingredients within your skillet, ensuring every piece of beef gets coated.
- Pour beef mixture into prepped 9 x 13 oven safe pan.
- Add the frozen tater tots and shredded cheddar cheese and using a spatula, mix well until evenly coated.
- With everything in place, spread the mixture evenly into the pan, ensuring it's level. This will help your casserole bake uniformly. Bake in the preheated oven for about 40-45 minutes or until you see the edges bubbling.
- Enjoy this dish piping hot, when its flavors are at their peak.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer: The nutritional data provided here is auto-calculated and intended for your convenience only. As it’s generated via automation, its accuracy may be compromised. For precise nutritional insight, please compute the values utilizing the actual ingredients in your recipe through your chosen nutrition calculator or application.
Did You Make This Recipe?
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This was really, really good! Even the picky kids ate it. It was a little too mushy though (just our personal preferences.) Next time I will either bake the tator tots in a single layer on top so they get crispy, and then melt the cheese on top of those. Or I’ll bake the tots separately and add those and the cheese into the casserole. The recipe is delicious though! Definitely a keeper for our family:) thank you!
I love hearing when there is a meal the kids enjoyed! I know how hard that can be. Thank you for your comment and feedback!
Trisha
I made this once before and agree about the texture. Made it again tonight and baked the tater tots for about 30-35 min then assembled the dish and baked for 25 min more. Next time we’re trying pepper jack instead of cheddar!
Simply delicious!
I can’t get enough of this casserole!! I’ve made it two weeks in a row now and it’s definitely becoming a staple dinner for us. So simple too
Thank you for your valuable recipe feedback! I am so glad this has become a recipe yall love. It always makes me happy to hear that.
Trisha
Love this recipe! I did change a few things and thought it turned out delicious. I used minced garlic instead of garlic salt and Dale’s marinate instead of Worcestershire sauce. I put crumbled bacon on top, then cheese, then a layer of tots instead of mixing that all in. It was delicious!
I always double this recipe because my man loves it so much! Definitely an easy and yummy meal.
Would you have a general idea of how many calories per portion in this recipe? Thanks Robin
Our software does an estimate but I dont trust it, so you are better off using an app like Carb manager to drop ingredients and give you the portion size you want estimate. Anything with tater tots is not going to be calorie friendly.
This was very good! I read through the comments and made a few adjustments. I made my own cheese sauce and I baked the tots until they were very crispy then mixed them in. The tots stayed firm and crispy!! We will definitely make this again!!