Mexican Tater Tot Casserole
This Mexican Tater Tot Casserole was a hit with my family! It was spicy, hearty and tasty. Comfort food for the win.
I originally intended to make a hashbrown casserole, but that did not pan out. Do you know how hard it is to find shredded hashbrowns in Canada? To me, it feels impossible!
I checked every single store in my area and came up empty. They only had the diced hashbrowns. Then I saw the Tater Tots and a new idea was born. Scrap the hashbrown casserole idea and hello Tater Tot casserole. It was a huge hit!
Mexican Tater Tot Casserole
I’m sure you’ve seen Tater Tot casseroles before and probably have even made them yourself. This was my first attempt. I decided to give mine a Mexican flair using taco seasoning, peppers and queso. Hello Mexican Tater Tot Casserole!
The bottom layer is a mixture of spicy ground beef, peppers and onions. It tastes like you would expect – the filling for a taco. Then I topped it with an entire jar of queso.
Queso is basically melted cheese sauce with chiles. Look for it in the chip aisle with the tortilla chips and salsa. The one I used was Tostitos brand.
Frozen Tater Tots covered the top of the casserole dish. Don’t worry, they will thaw and cook in the oven. During the last five minutes of baking, I added shredded cheese. If you had this at the beginning, it will burn. You only want it to melt on the top.
It’s a little spicy, hearty and a yummy comfort food to fill your belly. John told me it’s one of his favourite meals I’ve made. I’ll be adding this recipe to our meal plan regularly! I may try other combinations to experiment a little. If I find any good ones, I’ll share the recipe, pinky promise.
How to Make Mexican Tater Tot Casserole
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To start, you’ll want to cook the ground beef, onions and peppers. Add them to a large skillet over medium heat to cook for about 7 to 8 minutes.
I like to use a Meat chopper to break up the ground beef. It makes the job effortless.
Once you’ve got the ground beef and veggies cooked, stir in the taco seasoning. I used a whole packet. You can also use 2 tablespoons of homemade taco seasoning instead.
Time to assemble the casserole! Grease a 9×13 casserole dish with cooking spray. Spread the ground beef mixture on the bottom. Top with Queso and then cover with frozen Tater Tots.
Bake the casserole for 40 minutes at 400F. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese. Bake an additional 5 minutes for the cheese to melt.
Helpful Kitchen Tools
Can You Freeze Mexican Tater Tot Casserole?
Yes, you can freeze Mexican Tater Tot Casserole. Just make sure it’s covered and eaten within 3 months. No one likes freezer burn!
Tater Tot Casserole Recipes
We love Tater Tot Casseroles! In fact, I have a couple different varieties shared here in my recipe box.
- Tater Tot Casserole: A classic comfort food casserole your family will love! It has a layer of ground beef mixed with a creamy veggie sauce and topped with crispy Tater Tots and melted cheddar cheese.
- Lasagna Tater Tot Casserole: Easy, delicious comfort food! This casserole is one of my family’s favourite weeknight meals.
- Pizza Tater Tot Casserole: This comforting casserole has three layers of goodness. Use your favourite pizza toppings to create the perfect family meal.
- More Tater Tot Casserole Recipes: A list of 20 mouthwatering recipes to enjoy.
- Sloppy Joe Tater Tot Casserole: Made with sloppy joe beef topped with crispy tater tots and melted cheddar cheese, it’s a quick and easy family recipe everyone enjoys.
- Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole: Perfect for breakfast or brunch, this easy and hearty breakfast recipe is made with simple ingredients like eggs, breakfast sausage, cheese, bacon and, of course, tater tots! Kids love this delicious breakfast that will soon become a family favorite.
If you are looking for more comfort food casseroles, try my Slow Cooker Beef Enchilada Casserole, Slow Cooker Ham & Potato Hash, Santa Fe Chicken Tortellini Casserole and Spaghetti Pie. I also have a Casserole Pinterest board.
You’ll also like Mexican Meatballs, Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole, Chicken Tortilla Soup, Fish Tacos, Pico de Gallo, Taco Casserole, garden salsa and Mexican Stuffed Peppers.
Do you make Tater Tot casserole?
Mexican Tater Tot Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1 sweet onion chopped
- 1 red pepper chopped
- 1 orange pepper chopped
- 1 yellow pepper chopped
- 1 package taco seasoning
- 1 jar queso 394 ml jar
- ¾ of a 1 kg package of frozen Tater Tots
- 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions, peppers and ground beef. Cook until beef is no longer pink and onions and peppers are softened, about 7 to 8 minutes. Stir in taco seasoning.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a large casserole dish with cooking spray. Spread the beef mixture on the bottom evenly. Pour queso on top and spread to cover beef mixture. Cover with Tater Tots. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Bake an additional 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Serve hot.
Video
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Wow, this looks so tasty!! I have a tater tot appetizer recipe that is similar, but yours looks so much better than mine!!:) Loved it!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful creativity with us at Friday Favorites! I hope you will join us again this week! Hugs- Christine at Must Love Home
Oh my goodness! This looks like ooey gooey yumminess! 😉 Thanks for sharing! #SmallVictories
This was delicious !! I added a can of Rotel with Green chiles to it 🙂
Kid approved too!!!
Do you strain the meat and veggies after you’re done browning the meat?
If you find it overly greasy, you can strain it after browning.
Never made it before, but I am trying it tonight!
add sliced cherry tomatoes too……just top with cheese bake as directed.
Mmm, this dish looks so yummy! Got all my ingredients yesterday and they’re locked and loaded on today’s to do list! Can’t wait, I hope the dish is a hit with the family. I’ve been looking for things outside of our normal!
So I got it the oven!! Rather than the bell peppers, I used a can of total instead! Here’s to hoping my tots don’t go to mush and the family likes the meal!
The Mexican Tater Tot Casserole is out-of-this world DELICIOUS!!! Unfortunately, I had to make a few substitutions. I forgot to purchase a jar of queso at the grocery store, and was too lazy to go back. So, I made some homemade nacho cheese sauce and added diced tomatoes. I used only a green bell pepper and didn’t have enough money to purchase red, orange and yellow bell peppers. I did use taco seasonings. During the last five minutes of baking, I added shredded cheddar cheese, since the tater tots was already crispy and brown. I served the tater tot casserole with some garlic bread sticks. This is the FIRST recipe I made from your blog, and thank you so much, Stacie. 🙂
Stacie,..when you couldn’t find shredded hash browns in Toronto & settled with tator tots was it because you didn’t want to make hash browns at home?
I know it can be pain in the butt when there’s no much water that makes the scratch made soggy & not able to brown.
But now I discovered a method by accident that takes care of that problem.
Just microwave 2-3 whole potatoes for about 3-4 min, then allow them to cool down. If you’re not in a rush do this before the day you make them.
For me I take them to a window do they cool down faster, or outside on the patio table. Once they’re cool off, just shred them with a standing grater the shredded hash is completely dry ready to fry.
I was lazy and settled for tater tots! I’m going to try your method though. Thanks for sharing!
@ Elizabeth with the tomatoes is great idea to which I would add some Mozz to the cheddar for an Italian/pizza version. Oh and mushrooms as well.
And Lauren with green chiles also great idea, perhaps add a layer of refried beans. One of life’s best cheap eats were those Taco Bell green bean & cheese burritos .79 late 70s to mid 80s.
It was just a slather of refried beans with that crazy good green sauce I could’ve drank it.