Southwest Tater Tot Casserole a delicious take on classic comfort food! You’ll love the zesty flavors in this cheesy ground beef casserole topped with crispy tater tots!
This cheesy hamburger casserole is a filling and delicious dish that everyone in your family is sure to love. Make easy tater tot casserole for a fantastic solution to busy weeknights, this dish is inexpensive to make and tastes absolutely amazing.
The BEST Hamburger Casserole Recipe!
When life gets a bit hectic, having simple recipes for fast and delicious meals is so important. This casserole is the answer for your dinner time struggle! It is made by simply mixing and cooking some tasty ingredients together, top with tater tots and cheese, then pop it in the oven to cook. Sounds easy right? The combination of flavors in this casserole recipe are heavenly too, the spiced meat mixture with the crunchy, cheesy potatoes is incredible. Give this easy casserole recipe a try today and see for yourself how amazing it is!
Why you’ll love this amazing casserole recipe
- Prep ahead to enjoy later. I love this recipe because you can prepare the casserole ahead of time to bake and enjoy later. This is a great recipe to prep in the morning, then pop it in the oven right when you get home. Dinner will be cooking while you tend to other things!
- Versatile recipe. A great thing about this recipe is that you can adjust it to your families taste. If you prefer a different kind of meat, use it. Or if you do not like tomatoes with green chiles, leave them out. Really, you can adjust the ingredients as needed to make this a fantastic dish for YOUR family.
- Tasty ingredients. This casserole is packed with so many amazing flavors and textures, it tastes absolutely incredible. The list of ingredients is not too extensive either, it is likely you have some of the items needed already in your kitchen.
Ingredients for Cheesy Tater Tot Casserole
Cooking oil: Use 1 TBSP of cooking oil to cook the meat and other ingredients.
Onion: For some amazing flavor in this dish, add in ⅓ cup of chopped onions (red, yellow or sweet onion).
Ground beef: You will need 1 pound of ground beef for lots of protein in this easy casserole dinner.
Seasonings: You’ll need 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon chili powder (you can substitute with cayenne pepper), 1 teaspoon garlic powder (onion powder works well) and ½ teaspoon ground pepper, for wonderful flavoring in this dish.
Tomatoes: Using one 10-oz can of diced tomatoes with green chilies, drained (I used Rotel), will add amazing taste to this casserole.
Cream of mushroom: For a wonderful texture, add in one 10.5-oz can of cream of mushroom soup.
Sweet corn: Adding in a 30-oz can of sweet corn (about 2 ½ cups, two 15 oz cans), will give this dish the Southwest feel we are going for. You can also use frozen corn if that is what you have on hand.
Sour cream: Using 1 cup of sour cream will give this dish a lovely cream texture and taste.
Tater tots: You will need one 28-oz package of tater tots, frozen, to top this amazing casserole off well.
Cheese: A casserole is not complete with cheese! Add 2 cups of shredded Mexican Blend cheese (or Colby Jack or Cheddar) to the top for even more amazing flavor!
How to make Southwest Tater Tot Casserole
Prep
Start by preheating the oven to 375 degrees F. Then, spray a 9 x 13 bake dish with nonstick spray & set aside.
Also, chop the onion into small pieces.
Cook mixture
Next, in a skillet, over medium heat, add the cooking oil to the pan and heat for 2 minutes. Then add the chopped onions and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
After that, add the ground beef. Using a heat-proof spoon, break the meat into pieces and cook until the meat is no longer pink.
Now, add in the salt, chili powder, garlic powder, and ground pepper. Mix well to combine the seasonings throughout the meat mixture.
Continue to add the diced tomatoes, cream of mushroom soup, corn, and sour cream. Stir well to combine.
Proceed to spread the meat in the prepared 9 x 13 baking dish and place the tater tots in a single layer on top of the meat.
Bake
Cover the dish with foil and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
Next, take the cover off, sprinkle the cheese on top and bake for an additional 15 to 17 minutes. Or until the cheese is nice and melted and the tater tots are golden.
Let cool for a few minutes, then serve and enjoy!
Make this recipe your own! Here are some ideas:
- Make it spicy: When cooking the meat add some garlic cloves, cayenne pepper. Use a spicier cheese Pepper Jack, Monterey Jack.
- Make it kid-friendly: Substitute the Mexican Blend cheese for a Colby Jack or a Cheddar. Add a bag of thawed frozen vegetables when cooking the meat.
- Make it Deluxe: Sauté some onion and mushrooms. Add to the meat mixture. Substitute Mexican blend cheese with Gouda or Smoked Gouda. Sprinkle some grated Parmigiano and a dash of Gorgonzola.
Southwest Tater Tot Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp cooking oil
- ⅓ cup chopped onions red, yellow or sweet onion
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp chili powder you can substitute with cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder onion powder works well
- ½ tsp ground pepper
- 10 oz diced tomatoes with green chilies drained (I used Rotel)
- 10.5 oz cream of mushroom soup
- 30 oz sweet corn about 2 ½ cups, two 15 oz cans (you can use frozen corn!)
- 1 cup sour cream
- 28 oz tater tots frozen
- 2 cups shredded Mexican Blend cheese or Colby Jack or Cheddar
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13 bake dish with nonstick spray & set aside. Also, chop the onion into small pieces.
- Cook mixture: In a skillet, over medium heat, add the cooking oil to the pan and heat for 2 minutes. Then add the chopped onions and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
- After that, add the ground beef. Using a heat-proof spoon, break the meat into pieces and cook until the meat is no longer pink.
- Add in the salt, chili powder, garlic powder, and ground pepper. Mix well. Stir in the diced tomatoes, cream of mushroom soup, corn, and sour cream.
- Spread the meat in the prepared 9 x 13 baking dish and place the tater tots in a single layer on top of the meat.
- Bake: Cover the dish with foil and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Take the cover off, sprinkle the cheese on top and bake for an additional 15 to 17 minutes. Or until the cheese is nice and melted and the tater tots are golden. Let cool for a few minutes, then serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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How do you store leftover Cheesy Burger Casserole?
You can store the leftovers of this casserole in an airtight container, in the fridge, for up to 4 days. To reheat, place the desired portion in a heat-proof container and microwave for 1-2 minutes. You can also reheat in the air fryer at 330 degrees F for 5 to 7 minutes.
CAN I FREEZE THIS CHEESY CASSEROLE?
You sure can! This is a great recipe to freeze for use later, the ingredients will hold up well after being frozen and reheated. This is a great dish to meal plan with, you can freeze and use over the course of a couple weeks or months. Be sure to defrost and then reheat, that will help keep the moisture of the dish intact.
WHAT GOES WITH HAMBURGER CASSEROLE?
Because this dish is a whole meal, you don’t really need a lot to go with it. If you want to boost your vegetable intake, you can also serve it with MEXICAN COLESLAW and CHEESY CORNBREAD MUFFINS.
Need more casserole recipes? Here are some of our favorites:
- TWICE BAKED POTATO CASSEROLE
- CHEESY POTATO CASSEROLE
- CHICKEN TORTILLA CHIP CASSEROLE
- CHEESY BAKED EGG CASSEROLE
- BUFFALO CHICKEN TATERTOT CASSEROLE
- HASH BROWN BREAKFAST CASSEROLE
- MAPLE PECAN SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE
- CHICKEN BROCCOLI CASSEROLE
- TACO CORNBREAD CASSEROLE
- HOLIDAY HAM & CHEESE BREAKFAST CASSEROLE
Southwest Tater Tot Casserole a fantastic alternative to a classic comfort dish! You will fall in love with the zesty flavors in this cheesy ground beef casserole with tater tots!
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