Tater Tot Casserole Recipe

It's so gross, it's good!

The first time I made this dish for my husband, he took one look at it and announced, "No way". You see, unlike myself, Tim was raised in a household serving decidedly classier fare than the country cooking I grew up on. Once when I asked him what's his favorite type of chili dog, he answered that he had never eaten one. Oh, the horror! Needless to say, I had to undo that one quick.

While I was eating pinto beans cooked in fat back and cornbread baked in bacon drippings, he was enjoying a healthy balanced meal that included a salad that wasn't crafted out of Jell-O. Therefore, I just had to introduce him to the grand behemoth of cheap, country-style cooking-- the tater tot casserole, which blends together a whole mess of Southern church cookbook-styled ingredients from Velveeta cheese to cream of mushroom soup all laid out in pure oven-baked glory.

So, did he eat his tots you ask? Oh, yes he did. Over the course of several days, Tim polished off nearly all of it, making me one very happy wife and his mother totally mortified. Yes, I have ruined him.

Tater Tot Casserole

Serves 8

This easy-to-assemble dish contains a bevy heavily processed canned and/or frozen goodies, so feel free to take your time eating it since arguably it will never spoil.

2 pounds ground beef
1 large onion, diced
1 (15-ounce) can mixed vegetables with half the liquid drained off
1 (11-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
1 (11-ounce) can cream of celery soup
1 (8-ounce) package of Velveeta Cheese, cut into cubes
1 (1-pound) bag frozen tater tots

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Brown ground beef and drain off any fat. Add onions and cook until translucent. Spread beef and onion into a large casserole dish. In another bowl mix together canned vegetables, soups and cheese. Spread mixture over beef mixture and top with tater tots.

Bake uncovered for 1 hour or until your casserole is bubbly and the tots are browned.

Originally published in "White Trash Gatherings: From-Scratch Cooking for Down-Home Entertaining" by yours truly and Ten Speed Press, 2006.

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