Creamy Mushroom Tater Tot Casserole
I love mushrooms so much! I love putting them in any recipe I can! And you already know I’m obsessed with casseroles! This weekend was super rainy, then it was sunny and warm-ish, and later on in the week, we’re getting snow! YAY! Not! This Creamy Mushroom Tater Tot Casserole was the perfect cozy comfort food for a rainy, dreary day! The mushrooms were tender and juicy, the tater tots were golden and crispy, and that beefy filling was so creamy and flavorful! This was too good. There was a ton of leftovers for the rest of the weekend too, not like my family got any of it…whoops!
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Where did the idea for tater tot casserole come from?
Tater tots were invented in 1953 by F. Nephi Grigg and Golden Grigg who owned Ore-Ida company in Oregon. They came up with this idea as a way to use up leftover potato scraps from French fry production. They formed the scraps into little cylinders and deep fried them! This idea blew up, of course! I mean, who doesn’t love potatoes!? By the mid 1950’s, tater tots could be found in grocery stores all over the country, appealing to families looking for something affordable, versatile, and frozen!
Over time, with the popularity of casseroles rising thanks to the invention of canned condensed soups, tater tot casserole was born! It became a Midwest staple, often times referred to as “tater tot hotdish!” It was seen as a great meal to feed a family and use up some pantry staples!
Did you know?
Only a small fraction of mushrooms are actually edible! There are thousands of mushroom species in the world and only about two dozen are cultivated for food and widely acceptable for eating! Isn’t that wild?!
Because mushrooms are rich in glutamates – the same compounds found in tomatoes, soy sauce, and parmesan – they have this “meaty” sort of vibe to them! They naturally create umami and have almost no fat! They’re also packed with copper, potassium, B vitamins, selenium and contain very little calories! I love them so much. I mean, it’s hard to have mush-room for anything else in my diet! Ah, I’m here all week guys!
What ingredients do I need to make this?
For the filling:
Ground Beef
Onion
Baby Bella Mushrooms
Garlic
Beef Broth
Worcestershire
Olive Oil
Sour Cream
Parmesan
Shredded Mozzarella
Italian Seasoning
Salt
Black Pepper
For the topping:
Tater Tots
Flaky Salt
Cooking Spray
For serving:
Chives
Parsley
What equipment do I need?
- Large Skillet
- Cutting Board
- Chef Knife
- Cheese Grater
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- 9×13 Baking Pan
- Spatula
How do I make it?
To prep the ingredients:
To get started on this recipe, first let’s prep the ingredients! Wash the veggies and herbs, then dice the onion. Mince the garlic and parsley, then slice the mushrooms. Thinly slice the chives and shred the parmesan cheese! Preheat the oven to 425 F and then let’s get started on the filling!
To make the filling:
In a large skillet on medium high heat, heat oil. Add the mushrooms in a single layer and allow them to cook for a minute or so undisturbed. Flip and allow them to cook another minute or two, until golden in color.
Pro Tip: By doing this hard “sear,” essentially, the mushrooms give off richer umami flavors and hold up perfectly during the baking process!
Next, add the onion and cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until translucent. Then add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
Add the ground beef to the skillet, break it up with a spatula, and allow it to cook for a minute or so before stirring, pushing down with your spatula to create some crisp! Since we are still cooking over this higher heat, the ground beef gets a crunchy char to it, which adds more texture to the dish!
Give everything a good stir, turn the heat to medium, and continue cooking until beef is no longer pink. Next, stir in the spices, Worcestershire, and the beef broth.
Simmer until the mixture has reduced a bit. Then, remove from heat and stir in the cheeses and sour cream, until melty!
To make the creamy mushroom tater tot casserole:
Get out a 9×13 baking pan and grease with cooking spray. Add the filling to the pan in an even layer.
Top with the frozen tater tots. I didn’t end up needing all of mine because I laid them out in even little rows but, you don’t have to! You can definitely just sprinkle them on there and call it good!
Spray the tots with cooking spray, sprinkle on the flaky salt, and bake uncovered for a while! When it’s done, broil on high for a few minutes until golden and bubbly!
To serve:
Allow the creamy mushroom tater tot casserole to rest for a few minutes before cutting into it and serving! Garnish with chives and parsley, enjoy!
Tips:
- I used baby bella mushrooms for this recipe, but you could also use white mushrooms or cremini!
- This casserole will keep for 3-5 days if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It’s also freezer friendly for up to 3 months! Additionally, you could allow the filling to cool, assemble this baby, and freeze it before baking!
- Since I skipped the draining step, I used 90/10 beef for this – but you could get away with 80/20 and scoop some of that grease out before you add the broth, spices, and Worcestershire to the skillet.
- If you don’t have sour cream, just toss in a can of cream of mushroom soup instead!
Obsessed with mushrooms too? Check these out!
Want some more comforting casserole recipes?
Creamy Mushroom Tater Tot Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
For the filling:
- 1 lb. Ground Beef 90/10 but 80/20 can also work
- 1 Yellow Onion diced
- 8 oz Baby Bella Mushrooms sliced
- 2 Garlic Cloves minced
- ¾ cup Beef Broth
- ½ cup Sour Cream
- ½ cup Parmesan freshly shredded
- ½ cup Shredded Mozzarella
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tsp Worcestershire
- 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
- 1 tsp Salt
- ½ tsp Black Pepper
For the topping:
- 32 oz Frozen Tater Tots
- ¼ tsp Flaky Salt
- Cooking Spray
For serving:
- 2 Chives thinly sliced
- 1 tsp Parsley minced
Instructions
To make the filling:
- First, preheat the oven to 425℉.
- Next, heat oil on medium high heat in a large skillet.
- Add the mushrooms in a single layer and allow them to cook for a minute, undisturbed.
- Flip and allow them to cook another minute, undisturbed.
- Stir those up, and cook 1-2 minutes more, until tender and golden in color.
- Next, add the onion and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until translucent.
- Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute.
- Add the ground beef to the skillet, break it up with a spatula, and allow it to cook for 1-2 minutes before stirring, pushing down with the spatula to create some crust! Since we are still cooking over this higher heat, the ground beef gets a crunchy char to it, which adds more texture to the dish!
- Give everything a good stir, turn the heat to medium, and continue cooking until beef is no longer pink, 3-4 minutes more.
- If you used 80/20 beef, use a ladle to scoop some of that grease out, but not all of it! If you used 90/10, proceed to next step without draining.
- Next, stir in the spices for the filling, the Worcestershire, and broth.
- Simmer until the mixture has reduced a bit, 3-5 minutes, then remove from heat and stir in the cheeses and sour cream, until melty!
To make the creamy mushroom tater tot casserole:
- Get out a 9×13 baking pan and grease with cooking spray.
- Add the filling to the pan in an even layer, then top with the frozen tater tots. I didn't end up needing all of mine because I laid them out in even little rows but, you don't have to! You can definitely just sprinkle them on there and call it good!
- Spray the tots with cooking spray, sprinkle on the flaky salt and bake uncovered for 30-32 minutes!
- When it's done, broil on high for 2-3 minutes until golden and bubbly!
To serve:
- Allow the creamy mushroom tater tot casserole to rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting into it and serving! Garnish with chives and parsley, enjoy!
Nutrition
Please be aware that nutritional values are approximate and intended as a helpful guide
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