Tater Tot Casserole + Video
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Tater tot casserole is a delicious ground beef dinner full of veggies and cheesy tots. This recipe makes the best kid-friendly, comfort food!
Making meals with ground beef usually means they’re economical, and it always means they’re delicious.
This hamburger casserole is no exception. Kids love tater tots, and if you ask me, adults love them too.
The best part is, casseroles are simple to make and they’re a great way to use leftovers!
Plus, if you like easy meal prep, you can make tater tot casserole ahead of time. Then, freeze it and bake it whenever you’re craving easy comfort food.
Ingredients in tater tot casserole
- Ground beef – You’ll be draining the grease, so you can use whatever type of ground beef you have on hand. This being said, you can use lean ground sirloin and save yourself the mess of draining the grease off.
- Yellow onion, diced – If all you have on hand are white or red onion, they’ll work just fine. Even shallots will work in a pinch! If you want to use frozen diced onions, it is probably best to thaw them first. Otherwise, there will be some excess water in the casserole.
- Garlic powder – If you don’t have any on hand, minced fresh garlic works as well. If you omit the salt, you can even use garlic salt.
- Salt – Kosher or sea salt offer the best taste, but iodized salt will be fine.
- Worcestershire sauce – This gives the hamburger casserole some additional meaty flavor. You can omit it if you don’t have any. I even use steak sauce in a pinch!
- Canned green beans, drained – Frozen green beans are fine. If you steam them in the microwave for 2 minutes first, you can even use fresh.
- Canned niblet corn, drained – The same rules apply for the corn. I just always have a can or two in my pantry.
- Cream of mushroom soup – You need to use condensed soup, not the ready to eat variety. If you don’t like using condensed soup, you can make it yourself! I have a recipe for condensed cream of chicken soup that will work perfectly, or this condensed cream of mushroom soup recipe from Kevin is Cooking looks great.
- Shredded cheddar cheese – You can substitute the cheddar with any shredded cheese your family enjoys, or don’t use any at all…
EQUIPMENT YOU’LL NEED:
- 9 x 13-inch casserole dish – Some casserole dishes have the capacity stamped on the bottom of the dish. You want to use something that holds at least 2 quarts.
- 10-inch large skillet – I have had this pan since 2006. It is my go-to large skillet. It heats evenly and quickly. The stainless steel cleans up beautifully with a little baking soda so they still look brand new.
RECIPE TIPS
- Keep the tater tots in the freezer until right before you add them to the casserole. As a result, they’ll stay nice and crispy in the oven. Nobody enjoys mushy tater tot casserole, right?
- To make serving the hamburger casserole easier, be sure to lightly grease the casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- The reason that this meal is sometimes known as tater tot hotdish is because it tastes best when it is served immediately. After it sits for a while, it can get a little mushy.
- Refrigerate any leftovers and use them within 5 days.
HOW TO FREEZE TATER TOT CASSEROLE
The recipe is easy to make ahead and freeze for baking later.
Assemble the casserole according to the directions in the recipe card.
Then, wrap the casserole with a double layer of plastic wrap and a layer of aluminum foil over the plastic. It will keep well in the freezer for 3 to 4 months.
When you’re ready to serve it, you can remove the plastic wrap and recover with the foil and pop it right into a preheated oven aluminum foil still covering it. You’ll need to add 20 to 25 extra minutes of cooking time.
After the first 45 minutes, you should remove the foil. This will help the tater tots to become crispy and the cheese to turn bubbly and golden brown.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
The casserole includes meat, healthy veggies, a starch (potatoes), and dairy (cheese). As a result, you really don’t need to serve anything with it.
If you really want to add a side dish, a garden salad is a good choice, or maybe some raw veggies with ranch dressing for dipping.
Enjoy!
With love from our simple kitchen to yours.
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Tater Tot Casserole + Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef, (I use 88% lean)
- 1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 10.75 ounce can cream of mushroom soup
- 15 ounce can green beans, drained
- 15 ounce can kernel corn, drained
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 16 ounce package frozen tater tots
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Warm a large (10”) skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground beef, onion, garlic powder, and salt to skillet. Cook until the beef is cooked through, using a spatula to break up the ground beef as it cooks.
- Add mushroom soup, green beans, corn, and 1/2 cup cheese to the beef in the skillet. Stir to combine.
- Spread the beef mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- Arrange tater tots in a single layer over the ground beef mixture.
- Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top of the tater tot casserole.
- Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes until tots are golden brown and hot.
Video
Donna’s Notes
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe’s nutritional value will vary depending on the ingredients used, measuring methods, and portion sizes.
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Hi Donna! I love your cooking web site! My oven went out on my electric stove and I was wondering if this delicious looking Tater Tot Casserole could be assembled and cooked in a crock pot??
Can Broccoli be used instead of the corn and green beans?
I just put this in the oven! I didn't see when to add the Worcestershire in the instructions so I added it in with the garlic etc. 🙂
I love everything except the tater tots. I think I would serve this over mashed potatoes or rice.
I used a half a bag of hash browns much better. Also over mash potatoes was good
Just Made this last night for the family. Big hit. 2 kids (ages 1 and 10) loved it , so did husband. I will say that the tator tots weren’t enough for the 9×13. I had to use a 16 oz bag and a half.
Can you make meat mix a day or two before hand?