Cheeseburger tater tot casserole has been around for a long time. One taste, and you'll know why! It's a tried and true comfort food that's totally customizable and ready to eat in under an hour. This is my version, and I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Layered with lean ground beef and flavorful seasonings in a cream of mushroom sauce, topped with cheese, tater tots, then more cheese. Oven baked until the cheese melts and the tater tots are crispy crunchy.
Use your leftover frozen tater tots to make this Buffalo Chicken Tater Tot Casserole! It's also a creamy, cheesy, and easy meal to make!
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Why You'll Love It
This super easy recipe makes about 4 adult-size servings, but you can easily double the recipe for a larger crowd or if you just want to make a double batch and freeze one for later.
Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole is a family-friendly meal that the kids and adults will love. It's also fun to make with the kids - they love to line up all the tater tots!
The leftovers are fantastic the next day making this casserole great for meal prep.
This tater tot casserole can be a budget-friendly meal The main ingredients are ground beef, tater tots, cheese, and seasonings. The store-brand ingredients are generally inexpensive and easy to find in most grocery stores.
What It's Made Of
Ground Beef - one pound of lean ground beef. Or use ground turkey or ground sausage. Use half ground beef and half ground sausage for even more flavor!
Frozen Tater Tots - the plain tater tots work well but you could experiment with the veggie tots and maybe sneak in some extra veggies for the kiddos. No need to thaw the tater tots so prep time is pretty short.
Cream of Mushroom Soup and Milk - creates the flavorful, creamy texture.
Shredded Cheddar Cheese - for the best flavor and texture, shred your own cheese!
Seasonings - The seasonings are just like what you'd season a hamburger with. This casserole is flavored with steak seasoning (I use Montreal Steak Seasoning), garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. I also use Montreal Steak Seasoning to flavor my Mashed Potatoes.
Ingredient Substitutions
Instead of the dried steak seasoning blend, use 1-2 teaspoons of bottled steak sauce, Worcestershire sauce, or BBQ sauce.
Substitute the cream of mushroom soup with condensed cream of celery, cream of onion, or cream of cheddar cheese soup.
Use Velveeta cheese instead of the cheddar cheese.
Use tater crowns instead of the tots.
Substitutions to Avoid
Here are a few substitutions that I would not recommend when making this casserole.
- Don't use feta or parmesan. The cheeses do not melt well and will alter the flavor of the casserole.
- Avoid using seasoned or flavored tater tots, as their flavors could clash with the other ingredients in the casserole. Stick to plain tater tots for the best results.
- Don't use a non-creamy soup such as tomato soup because it would change the taste and texture of the casserole, resulting in an entirely different dish.
Recipe Tips
You'll likely have more tater tots than you need for this recipe. Save the remaining frozen tots for another meal or double this recipe with a 9 x 13-inch dish, and use the whole bag.
Make it a one-pan meal by using a large oven-proof skillet or pan. Cook the ground beef in the skillet and drain the grease. Mix in the soup, milk, and seasonings. Add half the cheese, all the tots, then the remaining cheese. Bake as directed.
What Goes Good With It
Make it your own; be creative; serve with your favorite side dishes. This easy Mac and Cheese and even this Broccoli Bacon Salad are always a hit. There's always the classic go-to sides which are a green salad and a roll or bun.
Add some cooked bacon pieces on top of the tater tots before baking.
Serve with a dollop of sour cream, sliced jalapenos, and chopped green onions on the side.
Go wild and serve a scoop of tater tot casserole on a hamburger bun with all your favorite condiments, lettuce, tomato, and pickles!
Best Way to Cook Ground Beef
Cooking (or browning) hamburger meat seems like the simplest task for those who've been cooking for years. But are you doing it right or do you just need a beginner's lesson? I've found a great instructional video on YouTube How To Brown Ground Beef that's less than 3 minutes long. Give it a look!
Recipe FAQs
Store the cooked and cooled casserole covered in the refrigerator and eat within 3 days. You can also freeze it for up to 2 months.
Yes you can fix it and forget it! But the tater tots won't be as crispy! Layer the ground beef mixture at the bottom of a crock pot. Add ½ cup cheese, then a layer of tater tots. Cook on low for 2-3 hours or until the tater tots are nice and hot. Then add remaining cheese and cook for another 30 minutes.
Kinda. Tater tot hotdish usually has the same ingredients but can sometimes contain a can of drained corn or some sort of mixed vegetables.
There is no need to thaw the tater tots! Isn't that great!
More Comfort Food
If you tried this recipe, please let me know by leaving a comment! I'd love to hear from you.
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Recipe
Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole
Equipment
- pan to cook ground beef
- measuring cup(s)
- measuring spoons
- 9" by 9" pan or an 8" x 8" pan
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 10.5 ounces cream of mushroom soup
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon steak seasoning (such as Montreal Steak Seasoning) or use ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1-½ cups shredded cheddar cheese (divided) shred your own for best flavor and texture
- 16 ounces frozen tater tots. No need to thaw. (you'll need about 60 tots if using a 9x9-inch square pan) Buy the 32-ounce bag but you'll only use about half the bag.
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F.
- Cook the ground beef in a pan until it is no longer pink. Break up the ground beef into small pieces while cooking it. Remove the pot from the heat. Drain off the grease.
- Add the cream of mushroom soup, milk, and seasonings to the ground beef. Stir to combine. Taste test and add additional steak seasoning (or salt) if needed.
- Evenly spread the meat mixture into a 9" x 9" square pan.
- Evenly spread ½ cup cheese on top of the meat mixture.
- Add a layer of tater tots on top of the meat and cheese. I can usually fit about 60 tots across the top.
- Place the pan on the middle oven rack and bake uncovered for 30-35 minutes or until the tots are hot and crispy. Add the remaining cheese and bake for another 5 minutes.
- If desired, serve with your favorite cheeseburger condiments and toppings on the side such as mustard, ketchup, pickles, lettuce, tomato, etc.).
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy to my readers. I'm not a nutritionist and I don't guarantee the accuracy of this data. The data may differ according to the brands I used versus the brands you use. To calculate the data yourself using your brands, try using an online nutrition calculator or app.
DebB
Holy Smokes!
We ate the whole thing!
Anne Clark
Love it!!! I'm excited y'all loved this casserole, Deb! Thank you for taking the time to come back and leave a comment and 5 stars!!!! You made my day!