Tater Tot Taco Casserole is going to be your new favorite way to enjoy taco night!
This easy casserole has layers ground beef and veggies topped with Tater Tots & cheese.
Once this Taco Tater Tot Casserole is baked and bubbly we top with with our favorite taco toppings to make this a meal that the entire family loves!
There’s a good reason my kids have dubbed this the BEST Tater Tot Casserole!
This was so easy to make (yay for me) and a HUGE hit with the family… even with little Miss I-don’t-like-melted-cheese-lasagna-casseroles-or-spaghetti. (Double yay for me)!
In fact, she had two helpings!
This cheesy tater tot casserole is made with veggies (like peppers and corn) with a zesty beefy taco inspired sauce and it is super easy to make!
The whole thing is crowned with Tater Tots and baked until they’re golden and crispy on top… adding the sauce and cheese at the very end keeps them from getting soggy as they do with some casseroles!
How Do You Make Tater Tot Casserole?
I’ve been making Tater Tot Casserole for as long as I can remember.
It’s almost like shepherd’s pie in a way with a saucy meaty layer, a potato layer (tater tots in this case) and a bit of cheese all baked until bubbly and hot!
This recipe starts with a layer of seasoned lean beef (I usually use a Homemade Taco Seasoning Recipe). I then add in either frozen (or fresh) veggies and sometimes beans. This helps stretch out the meal and is the perfect way to use up any veggies I have in the fridge.
While this is Taco inspired, you can mix in any sauce from mushroom soup to gravy (or in this case, a delicious taco inspired mixture). We’ve even made an awesome Sloppy Joe Tater Tot Casserole and Classic Tater Tot Casserole with mushroom soup.
Allowing the tater tots to cook for a while first (before adding the final toppings/cheese) helps to keep them crisp and delicious!
Are hash browns and tater tots the same thing?
While they’re not technically the same thing, you can certainly use either for this tater tot casserole (or even sub in mashed potatoes if you have them on hand)!
We serve this with a deliciously fresh Cucumber Avocado Salad for a perfect weeknight meal!
As far as we’re concerned, you can’t go wrong with any Mexican inspired dish in my house.
The zesty seasonings in the meat, baked with cheese until bubbly and hot and an array of fresh crisp toppings! Add whatever your toppings you love, we usually do sour cream, lettuce and tomatoes but this is great with jalapenos, avocados and of course more cheese!
More Casserole Recipes You’ll Love
- Layered Doritos Casserole
- Cowboy Casserole
- Tater Tot Casserole
- Million Dollar Spaghetti Casserole
Taco Tater Tot Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ounce taco seasoning 1 packet
- 1 cup enchilada sauce divided
- 1 ½ cups frozen corn thawed
- 1 ½ cups bell pepper red, yellow or green, diced
- 15 ounces canned black beans 1 can, drained and rinsed
- 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese divided
- 16 ounces frozen tater tots
- ⅓ cup salsa
- toppings as desired see notes
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 400°F.
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Brown ground beef, onion and garlic over medium high until no pink remains. Drain any fat.
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Stir in taco seasoning, ½ cup water, ⅔ cup enchilada sauce, corn, bell pepper & beans. Cook until thickened (about 5 minutes).
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Transfer the beef mixture to a 9×13 baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 ½ cups cheese and arrange tater tots on top.
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Bake 30 minutes. Combine salsa and remaining ⅓ cup enchilada sauce. Spread over tater tots and top with remaining cheese.
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Bake an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted & bubbly.
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Serve with desired toppings
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Tex Mex
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Repin this Fantastic Casserole!
I made this tonight and it was really good!!!! I will definitely be making this again and again!!!
made this exactly as written, everyone loved it! Will be checking out your other recipes.
Was reviewing previous comments to see if anyone made with ground turkey instead of beef, but did not see any. Is there any reason that ground turkey would not work in this recipe?
Thank you!
It will work just fine in this recipe!
Thanks for this recipe, Holly! Can I make this ahead of time?
Hi Sue, I haven’t tried making this recipe ahead of time but it should work well. I would love to hear how it turns out.
My grandkids devoured this! This will definitely be on our dinner table often
This really good. Not sure if you just randomly put the tater tot’s on but to cover the entire top of the casserole I used a 32 ounce day of tater tot’s. Maybe I put more on than needed but I like to cover the entire top! Thank you for the recipe! It’s super good!
I like to cover the top of the casserole with tater tots too! I am glad you enjoyed it.
Excellent! I followed it exactly except I didn’t add the onions and bell peppers because my husband doesn’t like them. We loved it!
Great recipe! So glad this recipe work. Tried a new the other day and was total disaster! So this one is a keeper
Love this recipe! We’ve enjoyed it many times! Would this recipe freeze ok? I’m looking to meal prep and was wondering if this would freeze well? Thanks!
This will freeze well Sarah! I am so glad you love this recipe.
Super good and easy! All family liked it.
Made this tonight and it was absolutely delicious! It’s a keeper!
Wondering if you could use a frozen pepper mix?
That should work just fine Celeste!
Super easy over top delicious very economical feeds a crowd too. Thx
I can’t wait to make this! We had your taco soup tonight and everyone liked it. This one looks like a great one for game day.
Awesome easy delicious budget friendly. What more can u ask for.
Easy to make and everyone loved it.