Cheesy Jalapeno Tater Tots
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This easy jalapeno tater tot recipe only has four ingredients. It’s the ultimate party food, and perfect for watching the game!
Having kids is great for a lot of reasons, but one of the little-discussed perks of being a parent is having an excuse to eat tater tots on a regular basis. Show me an adult who doesn’t admit a fondness for tater tots, and I’ll show you a liar.
There was a time, years ago, when I would just make tater tots for the kids. My husband and I would sit in sad silence while praying that the girls wouldn’t finish all of their tater tots so we could score some. (That never happened, by the way).
We’ve since gotten over ourselves, and now fully admit to loving tater tots just as much as the kids do. On tater tot night, I make a big ol’ tray full of tater tots for the whole family, and I have no qualms about fighting a 7-year-old for the last one.
Tater tots are delicious on their own, but over the summer I had a tater tot experience that elevated them from kid fare to delicacy.
At Irv’s pub in Hershey, PA we had tater tot nachos. The term nachos was a little misleading because they tasted more like jalapeno poppers to me. The tots were covered in a blend of cheddar cheese and sour cream, and topped with pickled jalapenos.
How to make Cheesy jalapeno Tater Tots:
- Bake a sheet pan full of frozen tater tots according to package instructions.
- Once they are fully cooked, remove the pan from the oven.
- Sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese generously over the tater tots, and put them back into the oven until the cheese has melted.
- Scrape the cooked tater tots and melty cheese mixture into a bowl.
- Add several dollops of sour cream and a large handful of drained, pickled jalapenos. Gently stir to combine and serve immediately.
Tater Tot Cooking Tip:
Nothing is worse than an under-cooked tater tot. To ensure that your baked tater tots are crisp, make sure you cook the tater tots right before you plan to serve them, and cook them WELL.
You might also want to drizzle a little oil into the pan to up the crisp factor. The tots should be really nice and crisp for this recipe so that the sour cream doesn’t make them soggy.
This is a perfect football-watching food, and it’s easy to throw together at the last minute…my favorite kind of appetizer! I’m pretty sure anyone you make these for will love you forever.
Cheesy Jalapeno Tater Tots
Ingredients
- 32 oz frozen tater tots
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup pickled jalapenos
Instructions
- Cook tater tots on sheet pan according to package instructions.
- After the tots are fully cooked, remove pan from the oven and sprinkle shredded cheese over the top of the tots.
- Return pan to oven for several minutes, until cheese is melted.
- Put the cheesy tater tots into a bowl and add dollops of sour cream, and a handful of drained pickled jalapenos.
- Gently stir to combine, and serve immediately.
Nutrition Facts
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17 Comments on “Cheesy Jalapeno Tater Tots”
Oh wow – these are so lovely! Perfect party entertainer and something my friends would really enjoy! I wonder if they are going to last more than 30 minutes though! LOL
What a wonderful recipe! I would watch a movie with these cute tater tots on the table! I am gonna surprise my family this weekend!
So simple and so delicious! Makes for such a great and quick appetizer! Yum!
Mouth watering. Would love to try these soon. So yummmy
Oh dear lord, this is precisely the type of dish I Can Not say no to. Ever. YUM
These look like a tasty alternative to nachos; my husband is going to love them! He’s a big fan of jalapenos, but me, not so much. I’m going to make these on game night!
The jalapenos are my favorite part, but I know not everyone likes them. This is definitely a good game night food.
We used to eat Sonic tater tots with cheese as kids. This reminds me of an adult version. So good. ;)
You know, I’ve never been to Sonic. If they serve cheesy tater tots, I might just have to go. :)
Was just at Irvs last night but couldn’t convince anyone to share them with me. Instead I ordered the kale & burrata salad and the mussels, shrimp, clam, and chorizo appetizer. All yummy! I will make them on my own!
Who wouldn’t want to share tater tot nachos?
Tater tot nachos?! Genius! My kids would love these for sure! Thank you for sharing!
If your kids can handle some spice they’ll definitely love these.
OMG!!! These look soooo good! I need to make these ASAP!
I hope you do! :)
These look really good! I don’t know why it never crossed my mind to use tater tots like this!
It never crossed mine either, until I had them at the restaurant. I’ve been obsessed ever since.