Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole Is the Game-Day Dish You’ve Been Dreaming Of

The Super Bowl is going to be here before you know it. Whether you’re feeding a crowd or just yourself, you’re going to want some delicious game-day grub. While dips, burgers, and fried foods are always really popular snacks to enjoy during the big game, the idea of melding both beefy and cheesy flavors into one dish is rather exciting.

Sarah Crawford of Broma Bakery created a recipe for a Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole that feels like a modern take on Hamburger Helper. This dish takes some of our favorite game-day snacks and melds them into a perfect mash-up.

The beauty of this casserole is that while it’s sure to please a crowd, it’s actually very simple to make. It’s about building flavors, and placing them together in one show-stopping dish. 

You’ll start by sautéing onion in butter and then adding in ground beef to that pan along with some garlic and taco seasoning. Your meat will begin to brown and mix in with the flavors of the onion and spices before you turn down the heat to add in tomato paste and cornstarch. Next, add in the designated amounts of half-and-half, salt, red pepper flakes, and tomato sauce.

Let this mixture simmer for a while, until the sauce thickens (your cornstarch will help with that). You’ll then remove it from the heat and cover with shredded cheese (it is a cheeseburger casserole, after all). Then it’s time to grab some tater tots from the freezer and add them to the top of your beefy mixture. Finally it’s off to the oven to bake at 400°F for 25 minutes, or until the tots are a lovely golden-brown.

At that point, you can add any sort of toppings you want to the casserole. This could be sour cream or guacamole, tomatoes, scallions, or even bits of bacon and slices of pickle! But be sure to serve it immediately, because this kind of dish will be best when cheesy, crispy and fresh out of the oven. Leftovers might not have that same level of golden crispiness once the casserole has sat in the fridge for a while — but something tells me with a snack like this, that won’t be an issue.

You can get the full recipe here.