Taco Tater Tot Hotdish
Taco Tater Tot Hotdish is a festive update on the original with south of the (Minnesota) border flavors, including taco seasoning, jalapenos, and salsa con queso!
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 157kcal
Equipment
- 7x11 baking dish
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small-to-medium-sized onion diced
- ½ green bell pepper
- ⅔ cup beef stock
- 1 1 ounce packet taco seasoning
- 1 teaspoon chipotle chili pepper
- 1 15.5 ounce can corn drained
- 1 15.5 ounce can pinto or black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 4 ounce can jalapenos diced
- 1 15 ounce jar salsa con queso (I used Tostitos)
- 1 28 ounce bag tater tots (extra crispy)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Seriously, don’t skip this step; no one likes soggy tots.
- Heat a large skillet to medium-high heat. Add the ground beef to the skillet, using a spatula to break the meat apart. Cook, stirring frequently, until the meat is completely browned, which will take 6 to 8minutes. Remove the skillet from heat and drain off any excess grease.1 pound ground beef
- Return the skillet to the stovetop. Add diced onion and green bell pepper, taco seasoning mix, chipotle chili powder, and beef stock.1 small-to-medium-sized onion, ½ green bell pepper, 1 1 ounce packet taco seasoning, 1 teaspoon chipotle chili pepper, ⅔ cup beef stock
- Simmer for 5 minutes, uncovered, or until the excess liquid has been absorbed. Remove from heat and add corn, jalapenos, (pinto or black) beans, and salsa con queso. Stir until well combined.1 15.5 ounce can corn, 1 15.5 ounce can pinto or black beans, 1 4 ounce can jalapenos, 1 15 ounce jar salsa con queso
- Spray a 7x11 inch baking dish with cooking spray; you don’t want this deliciousness sticking to the dish instead of the inside of your belly.
- Pour the contents of the skillet into the greased baking dish and gently pat down into an even layer. Arrange the tater tots in a single layer on top.1 28 ounce bag tater tots
- Bake, uncovered, on center rack for about 40 minutes, or until the tater tots are golden brown and crispy. Crank the heat up to 450 during the last 3-5 minutes to finish crisping up the tots.
- My recommendation is to put a baking sheet under the pan, in case of boil over (as you can see, mine did).
- Remove from oven and let cool for at least 5 minutes before eating, or you’ll burn your face hole, don’t ‘cha know?
- I like to eat my Tex-Mex Tater Tot Hot Dish with all the fixings. Thinly sliced black olives, green onion, and jalapeno, as well as sour cream or crema and maybe even some salsa or hot sauce if I’m feeling particularly zesty.
Notes
*Nutrition information is approximate and was calculated using an online nutrition calculator.
After cooking the ground beef, strain off any excess grease to avoid a greasy casserole. I like to run cooked ground beef through a fine mesh strainer, followed by a rest on a bed of paper towels.
Increase your heat towards the very end of cooking time to blast those tater tots with a last-minute high dose of heat designed to crisp 'em up. In the oven, do this by turning the heat to 450 degrees Fahrenheit and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes or so.
Or, transfer to an air fryer and crisp up the tots by cooking at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 5-6 minutes.
Nutrition
Calories: 157kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 40mg | Sodium: 92mg | Potassium: 225mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 42IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 16mg | Iron: 1mg