Tater Tot Casserole (with Ground Beef)

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This Tater Tot Casserole is the best comfort food meal. It’s made with flavorful ground beef, green beans, and corn smothered in a creamy gravy, topped with melty cheddar, and finished with crispy golden tots. 

Looking for more amazing casserole recipes? Try our Cheesy Hash Brown Casserole, Cheesy Ranch Ground Beef and Rice, or our Broccoli Rice Casserole

Wooden spoon scooping cheesy potato puff casserole.

Easy Tater Tot Casserole with Green Beans and Corn

In our household, John the casserole fan. I’ve been adding more and more casseroles to my list through the years. When it comes to this Cheesy Tater Tot Casserole, it’s one of John’s favorites!

This recipe takes just 10 minutes to prepare, but the end result is delicious, creamy, cheesy, and flavorful with the perfect amount of crispy tot in every bite. 

What is Tater Tot Casserole Made Of?

Tater tot casserole is made with super simple ingredients…a lot of which you may already have in your kitchen.

  • Ground Beef: I recommend lean ground beef to prevent your casserole from being too oily. Make sure you drain out any excess grease after cooking.
  • Aromatics: white onion and garlic.
  • Salt and Pepper: Since the soups already have plenty of seasoning, I keep the additional seasonings simple with just salt and pepper.
  • Green Beans and Corn: I use canned green beans and canned sweet kernel corn for this recipe. 
  • Canned Soup: You’ll need one can of cream of chicken soup and one can of cream of mushroom soup. Or, if you want to skip the canned soup, you can use this cream of chicken soup substitute instead. 
  • Milk: Whatever milk you have on hand works great.
  • American Cheese: I use sliced American cheese, but you can swap the slices out for two cups of shredded cheese.
  • Tater Tots: You’ll need 32 ounces of frozen tater tots to top of your casserole.

How to Make Tater Tot Corn Casserole

This tater tot casserole recipe takes just about 10 minutes to prep. Just throw everything together, toss it in the oven, and dinner is served. Here’s a summary of the recipe:

Scroll to the recipe card below for ingredient amounts and full instructions. 

  1. In a large skillet, cook the ground beef with onion and garlic until browned. Drain the grease, then return to the pan and season with salt and pepper.
  2. To the beef mixture, add corn, green beans, canned soup, and milk.  Heat until bubbling, then remove from the heat. 
Ground beef and onion in a skillet.
Cream soups, green beans, and corn on top of ground beef.
  1. Transfer to a greased baking dish, cover with cheese, then finish with a layer of frozen tater tots. 
  2. Bake at 425ºF until the filling is heated through and the tater tots are golden-brown. Cool for several minutes before serving.
Cheese slices on top of a ground beef casserole.
Frozen tater tots on top of a casserole.

Tips for Tater Tot Casserole

  • Grease the baking dish! The layer of oil helps prevent the bottom of the casserole from burning or sticking to the pan. 
  • You can prepare your casserole in a 12-inch, oven-safe skillet or in a 9×13” casserole dish. Either works great.
  • Depending on the size of the pan you use, you may not need all of the tater tots.
  • After you cook the ground beef, make sure you drain any excess grease out of the pan so you don’t end up with oily tater tot casserole. 
  • Make sure you cover the casserole completely with the tots. This helps prevent the cheese from burning. 
  • You’ll need 2 (10.5 ounce) cans of condensed cream soup. Use whichever combination of soups you like. Cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, cream of celery, etc.
  • Cool for 10-15 minutes before serving. This gives the filling a little bit of time to thicken up…and also helps ensure you don’t burn your taste buds off. If you scoop the casserole without letting it cool, it will just fall apart.
  • You can use frozen corn and green beans for this recipe. However, they’ll need to be thawed and drained before adding them to the skillet. 

Storage and Reheating

Refrigerator: Leftover tater tot casserole will last covered in the fridge for up to 5 days. 

Freezer: You can store the leftover casserole in the freezer for up to 3 months. To do so, let it cool completely, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and foil, then freeze.

Reheating: To reheat, thaw in the fridge if frozen, then warm covered in the oven at 250ºF until heated through. 

Cheesy hamburger and potato puff casserole in a pan.

Do You Thaw Tater Tots for Casserole?

Nope! There’s no need. The tater tots get layered onto the casserole while they’re still frozen, and they come out perfectly golden and crispy.

If you prefer your tots a little bit crispier, I recommend thawing them just a little beforehand, but not completely. 

What Goes Well With Tater Tot Casserole?

This tater tot casserole has green beans and corn, so it’s a great dinner all on its own. However, you can totally bulk your meal up with a side dish or two. Here are just a few ideas:

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Close up view of tater tot casserole with corn and green beans.

Tater Tot Casserole (with Ground Beef)

4.7 from 19 votes
Print Pin
Author: Kimberly
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Cool Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 10 Servings

Ingredients

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 425°F, and grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Set aside
  • In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the ground beef, onion, and garlic until no longer pink. Drain any excess grease, and return the beef to the pan. Season with salt and pepper.
    1 pound ground beef
    ½ cup white onion
    2 garlic cloves
    ½ teaspoon salt
    ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • Add the corn, green beans, cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soups, and milk. Increase the heat until the mixture bubbles, then remove from heat.
    15 ounces sweet kernel corn
    14 ½ ounces green beans
    10 ½ ounces cream of chicken soup
    10 ½ ounces cream of mushroom soup
    ½ cup milk
  • Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish, and top with enough slices of cheese to cover the filling. If you used an oven-safe skillet, place cheese slices on top of the filling.
    12 to 16 slices American cheese
  • Arrange the frozen tater tots in an even layer over the cheese slices.
    32 ounces frozen tater tots
  • Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the tater tots are golden brown and the filling is bubbly. Allow to cool for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
  • Scroll up and see post for tips, FAQs, and storage information.

Suggested Equipment

Notes

*The calories listed are an approximation based on the ingredients in the recipe card and a serving size of about 1 cup of casserole. Actual calories will vary.
*For more information, tips, and answers to frequently asked questions, please refer to the post.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cup | Calories: 453kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 60mg | Sodium: 1404mg | Potassium: 679mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 712IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 322mg | Iron: 3mg
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4.74 from 19 votes (19 ratings without comment)

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2 Comments

    1. Hi Hunter!

      Yes, the tater tot casserole can be frozen. I’d cook it first, and make sure it’s in a freezer-safe baking dish or transfer it to a freezer-safe container. Wrap it in a layer of plastic wrap then a layer of aluminum foil. It will stay good for about 2 months in the freezer.

      To thaw, place the casserole in the refrigerator overnight. Reheat the entire casserole in the oven on 250°F for 20-30 minutes or until heated through, or place individual portions in the microwave. Hope this helps! Have a great day!