Spicy tater tot casserole with ground beef, hot sauce, cheddar cheese, homemade cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, spicy seasoning, and jalapeños to give a nice kick to this family favorite dish.
Tater tot casserole is a classic, savory family casserole many love. It’s perfect for feeding a large crowd and easy to throw together.
I decided to try to put a spicy spin on the hamburger tater tot casserole recipe because my family loves spice.
I added hot sauce to the meat and a layer of jalapenos on top of the cheese. They sure liked it and now I am making it this way every time.
I leave half of the casserole without jalapenos because not everyone in my family likes them, but we all like Frank’s Red Hot sauce in the hamburger.
It gives it a special flavor!
What ingredients are in tater tot casserole?
There are many variations for tater tot casserole.
A traditional tater tot casserole has ground beef, cream of mushroom soup, shredded cheddar cheese, and tater tots.
Spicy Tater Tot Casserole Ingredients
- Frozen Tater Tots
- Ground Beef
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Frank’s Red Hot sauce
- Jalapeños
- Shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese
- Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup (Recipe is included below!)
- Sour Cream
- Cumin
- Cayenne Pepper
- Black Pepper
- Salt
Variations of Tater Tot Casserole
- Green Beans
- Corn
- Peas
- Onion
- Cream of Chicken Soup in place of Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Ham
- Bacon
- Sausage
- Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
- Garlic
How to Make Spicy Tater Tot Casserole
Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 40-45 minutes until tater tots are golden brown and cheese is bubbling.
How do you layer spicy tater tot casserole?
From bottom to top:
- Ground Beef + Worcestershire + Salt & Black Pepper
- Cream of Mushroom Soup + Sour Cream + Hot Sauce + Cumin + Cayenne Pepper + Salt & Black Pepper
- Shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese
- Jalapeños
- Frozen Tater Tots
Can you freeze tater tot casserole?
Yes! If you plan to freeze it, layer it in a casserole dish that you can store airtight.
Allow it to thaw overnight in the fridge before baking. It can be kept frozen for 3 months.
You can also bake it and then freeze it, and follow the same directions for thawing.
It can be refrigerated for 24 hours before baking.
Try these other great meals!
- 20 Easy Make-Ahead Freezer Meals
- Air Fryer Stuffed Mushrooms
- Cheesy Potatoes
- Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Creamy Loaded Potato Soup
- Easy Breakfast Casserole with Sausage and Potatoes
- Garlic Parmesan Roasted Carrots
- Instant Pot Beef Stroganoff
- Instant Pot Hamburger Helper
- Maid-Rite Copycat Recipe
- Old Chicago’s Italian Nachos Copycat Recipe
- One-Pot Chicken & Rice
- Ratatouille
Enjoy!
Spicy Tater Tot Casserole
Ingredients
- 30 oz Bag of Frozen Tater Tots
- 2 lb Ground Beef
- 2 tablespoon Worcestershire
- 2 teaspoon Frank’s Red Hot Sauce, or your favorite hot sauce
- 2-3 Jalapenos, sliced or a 16 oz Jar of Sliced Jalapenos
- 2 cups Shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese
- 8 oz Sour Cream
- ½ teaspoon Cumin
- ½ teaspoon Cayenne pepper
Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup
- 3 tablespoon Butter
- 12 oz Sliced Mushrooms
- ¼ cup All-Purpose Flour
- [1 cup Half & Half]
- 1 cup Chicken Broth
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Black Pepper
Instructions
- Spray 13" x 9" casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Brown ground beef in a large pan over medium-high heat for about 7-8 minutes. Drain the grease from the pan. Stir in Worcestershire sauce and season with salt and pepper. Add the ground beef to the bottom of the 13" x 9" pan and spread evenly.
- To make cream of mushroom soup, melt butter in the same large pan. Add mushrooms and cook until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Coat mushrooms with flour. While continuously stirring, slowly add half and half until well blended and smooth. Add chicken broth, salt, and pepper. Allow to simmer for 3-4 minutes as it thickens.
- Stir in sour cream, hot sauce, cumin, and cayenne pepper.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Pour cream of mushroom soup mixture on top of the ground beef and spread evenly. Add a layer of all the cheddar cheese, followed by jalapenos, and a single layer of frozen tater tots on top.
- Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes, until tater tots are golden brown and cheese is bubbling.
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I’ve made this several times and make it a little different each time. I use ground venison , add a gar of diced jalapeños, add onions. mix the meat, soup, add cheese to the mixture. Pour it into a casserole dish more cheese on top then the Tater Tots, oh I added corn to this time as well. It’s one of my go to meals when I’m cooking for myself. It’s really good. Thanks for the recipe
This was very very good and have made it several times. First time as posted, then subbing the jalapeños for t jar of pickled hot and sweets. Often use pepper jack instead of the cheddar. Very good, very quick, very adaptable
I did cheat and used canned cram of mushroom soup.