Turkey Tater Tot Casserole
Tater Tot Hotdish is my husband’s favorite nostalgic dish. His Grandma made this for him every time he’d visit and she’d even make an extra for him to take home with him. I am happy to say this lightened-up turkey tater tat casserole is husband and toddler approved.
I’m no stranger to casseroles. Teriyaki chicken casserole, Bic Mac casserole and chicken pot pie casserole are some of my favorites because they’re the easiest things to make! You throw ’em together, toss ’em in the oven and enjoy all week long.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- This turkey tater tot casserole uses minimal ingredients.
- Both kids and adults will love this recipe.
- This dish has 27.3 grams of protein per serving.
- This recipe has well rounded macros and is easily customizable to fit yours!
What is Turkey Tater Tot Casserole?
This is a take on the well known Tater Tot Hotdish or casserole. Instead of using ground beef this recipe uses turkey with additional seasonings and spices to make it a easy and flavorful dish. Typically in a casserole, you’ll find meat, potatoes, vegetables and cheese. I left out vegetables in this dish to be the tried and true grandma copycat but you can add your favorite vegetables.
Can you use other meats besides turkey?
I love turkey because it’s lean and takes on flavor so well. It’s great for turkey stir fry or turkey chili. That being said, this turkey tater tot casserole would be great with any ground meet like chicken, turkey, beef or pork.
What size casserole dish should you use?
I am using a 12 inch cast iron skillet for this recipe so that it’s easily one pan to oven. If you do not have a oven safe pan you can transfer it to a 9 x 13 inch baking dish and then add on your cheese and tater tots for this turkey tater tot casserole.
How to lower the fat per serving
If you need to lower the fat in each serving use a reduced fat cheese or omit the cheese altogether. Reduced fat cheese will not melt as well but will save some calories and grams of fat per serving in this turkey tater tot casserole.
Ingredients and Substitutes:
These are the main ingredients and substitutions. See recipe card below for full ingredients list and instructions for Turkey Tater Tot Casserole.
Ground Turkey: this recipe uses lean 99/1 ground turkey. You can use any percent turkey but the nutrition facts will change. There is no flavor lost in this dish using the lean meat. You can also use ground chicken, beef or pork.
Cream of Mushroom Soup: you’ll use one 10.5 oz. can of 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup. You full fat if you do not mind a higher fat content.
Mesquite Liquid Smoke: the secret ingredients. Do not skip this one! You can find this on amazon linked here or in your local grocery store. This gives the dish a bit of mesquite smokey flavor without overpowering the dish.
Cheddar Cheese: this recipe uses full fat cheddar cheese. You can use pre shredded or shred directly off a block. I would not suggest using low fat as it does not melt as well as full fat but that is entirely up to your preference.
Tater Tots: another KEY ingredient are the Alexia Foods Crispy Seasoned Potato Puffs. These potato puffs pack a punch and add so much flavor to the dish. You can use regular tater tots as well.
How to make this casserole:
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Step 2
Heat a large cast iron or pan over medium and warm 1 tbsp. of olive oil. Add garlic and chopped onion the oil and cook until fragrant.
Step 3
Add the raw ground turkey to the dish and break with a spoon into small bite sized pieces. Cook until cooked through.
Step 4
Once the turkey is cooked through add the cream of mushroom soup, salt, liquid smoke, fresh cracked pepper to taste and mix together well to combine. If using a baking dish transfer this mixture to the dish. If using a cast iron continue with the cast iron.
Step 5
Top the mixture with 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. Then arrange the tater tots over the top and top with the second 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese.
Step 6
Place the pan in the oven uncovered and bake for 30-35 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and the tater tots are crispy. Remove from the oven and enjoy!
What to serve with this recipe?
This turkey tater tot casserole is great as a standalone meal. You could also serve with a side salad or roasted vegetables.
Optional add ins:
While this casserole is delicious as is you could also sneak in some vegetables like green beans, peas, carrots and corn.
What is the serving size for this casserole?
Nutrition facts are an estimate. As always, for the most accurate measurement per serving weigh your final dish and divide by the serving amount. My favorite way to do this for a casserole like this Turkey Tater Tot Casserole or Cracked Out Tater Tot Casserole is to weigh the dish you’re using empty before filling. Then weigh the final cooked dish once baked and simply subtract the weight of the dish from the total weight. That gives you the total weight of your meal to divide by servings.
The serving size is approximately 290 grams.
Check out some of our other easy meals!
- Honey Mustard Sheet Pan Chicken
- Easy Cabbage Salad
- Pumpkin French Toast Casserole
- Dairy Free Egg Casserole
Turkey Tater Tot Casserole
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Ingredients
- 1 lbs. lean ground turkey 99/1
- 1/2 yellow onion chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- fresh cracked pepper to taste
- 1/2 tsp. Mesquite Liquid Smoke
- 1 can 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup 10.5 oz.
- 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded split in half
- 5 servings Alexia Foods Crispy Seasoned Potato Puffs 420 grams
Instructions
- Pre heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Heat a large cast iron or pan over medium and warm 1 tbsp. of olive oil. Add garlic and chopped onion the oil and cook until fragrant.
- Add the raw ground turkey to the dish and break with a spoon into small bite sized pieces. Cook until cooked through.
- Once the turkey is cooked through add the cream of mushroom soup, salt, liquid smoke, fresh cracked pepper to taste and mix together well to combine. If using a baking dish transfer this mixture to the dish. If using a cast iron continue with the cast iron.
- Top the mixture with 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. Then arrange the tater tots over the top and top with the second 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese.
- Place the pan in the oven uncovered and bake for 30-35 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and the tater tots are crispy. Remove from the oven and enjoy!
Notes
- To lower the fat, use half the cheese or omit entirely.
- Add vegetables to the turkey mixture prior to topping with cheese and tater tots.
- Use any type of ground meat.
- You can use any tater tots but Alexia Foods seasoned give the turkey a ton of flavor.
- All nutrition facts are a estimate.
My family LOVED this so much that they chose seconds over dessert! My store didn’t have Alexia tots, so I used regular but I will definitely be making again once I find those!
So great to hear you loved it. Yes, definitely try the seasoned tots, adds such a great extra flare.
This was so good! My husband has been wanting tater tot casserole for a long time and I was so happy to find a healthy version. It was a huge success! All your recipes have been successful in this family. Thank you!
I love to hear that!
I’m not usually a huge tater tot casserole fan, but this with the ground turkey, and the cream of mushroom soup was so delicious! Also, really easy to make an all one cast-iron skillet. Great leftovers!
I am so glad you tried it out and loved it!
I might have to start making doubles of this recipe. My family of four (with two small girls) practically devour a whole pan. And that is no small feat with toddlers. The best part is that it’s cooked all in one pan and so easy to throw together. It has quickly become a part of our rotation.
yay!
So easy to make and absolutely delicious !
Thanks Monica!
This was SO easy to make and absolutely delicious!!! I will definitely be adding this to our menu often. My husband and I are big eaters so we got closer to 4 servings. I think next time I will serve alongside a veggie or something to keep it at a 5 serving dish.
This recipe is delicious!! Made it as it’s written and personally I think it tastes better than the ground beef version I grew up on! Will definitely be adding it to our dinner rotation.
10/10!! My husband is a die hard tater tot casserole lover and this passed the test! We added green beans!
I have never made so many recipes from an online source before. Thank you Danielle for these amazing and delicious recipes!! I subbed cream of chicken and used ground beef. It literally tastes like a Big Mac in a skillet. The liquid smoke is also an essential for an extra depth of flavor. 10/10 would recommend. I love that most of these recipes are so customizable to preference in taste & dietary restrictions
Made this with ground chicken breast it was delicious and a great comfort food!
My husband loved it and can’t wait for me to make it again!
I didn’t use the liquid smoke
This looks delicious! Can this be made ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to bake?
Everyone should make this!!!! It was delicious, my husband was bummed there wasn’t another skillet. Ha. I used lean ground beef because that’s what I had and I’m excited to try it with Turkey. I’ll definitely be adding this to the lineup!!