Tater tot casserole for two. I've taken all of the amazing flavors of a classic tater tot casserole, and scaled it down to a smaller serving size. With homemade cream of mushroom soup, ground beef, and real cheese, you've got to try this version!
I know, you've been waiting your whole life for your favorite casserole to be scaled down to serve two. It's so true for me, too!
I had to wait until a really strong craving for tater tot casserole hit before I tackled it. I mean, sure, tater tot casserole always sounds good. But, I needed one of those 'gotta have it now!' cravings to hit before I could conquer the recipe. Only then could I eat spoonful after spoonful of the same dish with only a slight variation between batches.
I get a lot of requests for your favorite homestyle casseroles scaled down. I'm currently working on this perfect broccoli rice casserole. I'm having trouble deciding, though---with or without chicken?
Tater Tot Casserole
As you know, I'm an overachiever. So, I made cream of mushroom soup from scratch for this recipe. The recipe makes a heaping cup of homemade condensed soup. However, the store-bought can is only 10 ounces, so you could easily substitute. And I won't judge you one bit. Sometimes, dirtying up one more pan in the kitchen brings me to the brink. If you're not having one of those days, I say make it from scratch! I use extra-rich Kerrygold butter and a pinch of thyme to make my homemade condensed mushroom soup, so I think my from-scratch recipe is pretty special. Special, as in better-than-the-can, but really, this is a judgement-free zone--use what you like!
It's time to talk about this mini casserole baking dish. I got it at a really random store, and can't remember any details about it, but I found this similar small baking dish on Amazon. You're looking for any small ceramic baking dish for this recipe. If you pour water into it, it'll hold 2 cups of liquid.
One thing I really love about this recipe is that it doesn't use the whole bag of tater tots. So, my late night cravings for hot tater tots with ice cold ketchup swirled with mustard can still be satisfied. Tell me I'm not the only one who swirls mustard into ketchup.
Back on track: casseroles are warm and cozy and delicious and you love them. I love them, too. But really, we all just love tater tots, isn't this true?
Tater Tot Casserole
Tater tot casserole, made from scratch! Real homemade cream of mushroom soup, ground beef, and actual grated cheese make this the best casserole ever!
Ingredients
- ½ pound organic ground beef
- 1 small white onion, diced
- 5 ounces sliced mushrooms
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- pinch of freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ½ cup milk
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- frozen tater tots, to cover the entire surface of your casserole dish
- ½ cup shredded mild cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350, and spray a mini casserole dish (mine holds 2 cups of water to the brim) with cooking spray.
- In a skillet, brown the beef over medium-high heat. Break up the beef with a spoon as you go.
- Scrape the beef out of the pan and onto a paper-towel lined plate. Don't worry about leaving too many drippings in the pan-we're reusing it.
- Return the pan to the heat and add the butter, mushrooms, onion and thyme. Saute until the onions begin to soften, about 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the salt and pepper.
- Next, sprinkle the flour on top and stir and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the milk and cream, bring the mixture to a boil, stirring often.
- Turn off the heat to the thickened sauce, and stir in the salt and pepper.
- Place the ground beef on the bottom of the casserole dish. Top with a layer of tater tots. Spread the cream sauce on top, followed by the cheese.
- Bake for 25 minutes, or until bubbly and the tater tots are cooked through.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 492Total Fat: 33gSaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 117mgSodium: 828mgCarbohydrates: 21gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 28g
Jess says
My husband just saw that lead photo and said "mmmm". Guess we know what we'll be having for dinner this week. So true though - who doesn't love tater tots?
Chrissy says
It's slightly sacrilegious, but to make it a one-dish meal, I add a cup or so of cooked green beans. This is my very favorite casserole
Stefanie says
I did the same with green beans! This is turning out great. Perfect dinner for after trick-or-treat tonight.
Kristen from The Road to Domestication says
You have made a staple in my mom's kitchen while we were growing up look SO elegant! Fantastic!
Carol Vavra says
Love all your scaled down recipes! Went from a family of 8 to just 2 and I have a hard time adjusting recipes - especially baked goods. As a potato lover, I always have tater tots on hand. My husband made this tot casserole while I was in the hospital. Leftover chili in a baking dish, generous amount shredded cheddar then cover with tots. Bake 25 mins. Viola! Chili cheese tots casserole!
PS my husband makes stripes of ketchup and mustard on his plate for fries. Always, every time!
Allison says
Where can I get a mini casserole dish - you said you use a 16 oz one?? thanks!!
Kim says
I just tried this and followed the recipes exactly except I used half and half instead of cream and added a clove of crushed garlic in with the onion. It was so delicious.
Kat Linke says
This recipe is super awesome! New craveable comfort food for sure. I made this last night for dinner and on the spur of the moment I added a small (sad and limp) stalk of celery and a leftover broccoli stalk. Gave the dish some crunch and extra fiber. I recommend the addition of the raw celery at the last minute so it keeps it crunch.
Christina Lane says
So glad you liked it! :)
Diane A Nelson says
NO CONDENSED SOUP Yippeee!!
Krystal says
I have to throw this out there, someone mentions in a comment above how it's slightly sacrilegious but they added green beans and made it a one-dish meal ... well, growing up, tater tot casserole *always* had veggies. No mushrooms like in this recipe. The base under the tater tots was ground beef and a can (store-bought works, but my mother canned her own) of mixed veggies - corn, peas, carrots, green beans. Is this not a common thing? Because I cannot imagine tater tot casserole any other way lol. We also always watered down the cream of mushroom soup just a bit with a little milk so it poured over top of it all. And now I'm desperately craving that delicious comfort food scaled down for just me. Mmm. Thanks for the inspiration!