I love store-bought tater tots, but nothing beats homemade tater tots. Making these morsels from scratch is a fun activity for the entire family.
Even young children can help you in the kitchen. By the time they’re served, each bite will be a real accomplishment.
When you make homemade tots with your air fryer, you will end up with a healthy batch of small snacks. You don’t use a lot of grease with an air fryer.
Once you make your tater tots this way, you don’t have to deep-fry them anymore. You can then enjoy them guilt-free with your other recipes or your favorite dipping sauce.
Tater tots from scratch need only common ingredients that you always have in your pantry. The good news is, you can finish a batch using your air fryer. This saves you from eating deep-fried food.
You can enjoy your tater tots more if you use your air fryer. Tots come out crunchier and less greasy; this makes you think about getting an air fryer soon.
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Making tater tots
Grated potatoes make up tater tots. You can serve these little bites as a replacement for French fried or as a side dish. It’s common for tater tots to be deep-fried, but others also air fry or bake them.
People love tater tots because of their crispy outer crust, tenderness inside, and small, bite-sized portions.
The Ore-Ida company made tater tots famous. Because of this company, Tater-Tots became a well-known trademark of hash browns. Tater-Tots is a food brand that’s named after and focuses on children.
Other companies have recognized the awkward name that came up with alternative names, which don’t even give justice to the product.
Some of these alternative names are Tasti Taters, Tater Treats, and Potato Locos.
Getting that tater tot shape
Remember that the potato mix for tater tots is sticky, yet you can still work it with your hands. The type of potatoes you use determine the stickiness of the mixture.
There is no strict rule in shaping tots. You can shape them like small balls, small cubes, or even the conventional cylindrical shape. I always go for the cylindrical tots.
I make them by using the nigiri sushi technique. I roll small portions with one hand and use my other hand to flatten the bottom and the top of each tot.
Tater tot mold
You’ll find the process easy eventually. The most efficient way to shape the tots is to moisten your hands as you go.
- Scoop nearly a tablespoon of your potato mixture.
- Shape it into a small cylinder with your fingers.
- Feel free to make bigger tots by scooping a couple of tablespoons.
Making tater tots stick together
Tater tots meld together because of the combination of proteins and wet starches. When these two sticky ingredients increasingly touch each other, the sticker and chewier the tater tots become.
Can you freeze tater tots?
Yes, you can freeze them. Even so, you should remember some points. One is that freshly air-fried tater tots immediately taste excellent when you reheat them. That is why I highly recommend air frying your tots.
Yet, if making tater tots in advance and freezing them is something you should do, you can freeze them uncooked or cooked.
In my experience, the most effective way to prepare big batches of tots is by following the Ore-Ida technique; this is by pan-frying them quickly.
After that, spread them on a sheet tray and freeze them for at least four hours until they harden. When your tots are frozen, you can place them in a freezer bag for more extended storage.
You don’t need to thaw them before frying them. Freezing your tater tots transforms their texture into an unbelievable one.
Best way to cook tater tots
#1 Use Your Air Fryer
Directions for frozen uncooked tater tots
- Turn on your oven and preheat it at 400°F for three to five minutes.
- Put your frozen tots in the basket of your air fryer.
- Cook those tots for 12 minutes to 15 minutes, until your tots become beautifully golden brown.
- Checking if the tots' internal temperature is 140°F helps ensure the doneness of the tots.
- If your tots have reached this temperature, expect them to be softer than if your tots were pre-cooked and frozen or if they had just been cooked.
Directions for frozen cooked tater tots
- Turn your air fryer on and preheat it at 400°F for three to five minutes. Put your frozen taters in the basket of your air fryer. Cook them for 10 minutes.
- Expect these taters to have a much thicker outer coating because they were already cooked before they were frozen.
- Once they are done, they will have a bit drier and harder texture.
# 2 Use Your Frying Pan
- Get a medium-size saucepan and fill it half full with canola oil. Heat the oil up to 375ºF.
- Fry your taters until they turn golden brown, for about five to six minutes.
- The moment they are done, remove them from the hot oil and drain them on some paper towels.
- Let them cool a while and when you’re ready to serve, sprinkle some salt on them.
You can pair your taters with your favorite dip.
Important Note:
You should consider some specific things if pan-frying is new to you.
Choose a type of oil that can take high temperatures before you fry. Canola oil is an ideal type of oil for frying.
It is better to use canola oil because it only starts to smoke at 425ºF. You will have a better frying experience with this oil, especially with your taters. Fry them at a temperature of 350ºF to 375ºF.
Just keep your kitchen thermometer handy to ensure you have a consistent level of heat in your oil. Be sure not to let it smoke because this usually leads to fires.
#3 Using Your Oven
How to make crispy tater tots in the oven
If you always have bacon, it is only logical to save the drippings. The flavors in the fatty residue can make any dish pop. Save it in a glass jar and store it in your fridge. Bacon drippings will make your taters scream with deliciousness when you fry them in your oven.
Bacon fat and tater tots
The mouth-watering secret to oven-fried taters is bacon fat.
How to make frozen tater tots crispy
Here’s how to make it happen:
- Scoop some bacon fat onto your sheet pan. Preheat your oven and place the sheet pan in it. Let the bacon fat melt.
- Place your taters on the sheet pan and toss them in the drippings. Season them lightly with salt.
- Bake your tots at 400°F for approximately 10 minutes, until they become golden brown.
- Halfway through the cooking time, flip them. You will only get crunchy and yummy taters in the end.
Ingredients
- 2 large Russets potatoes
- ½ cup melted butter
- 1 tablespoon chopped, parsley, thyme, and rosemary
- 3 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- canola oil (or peanut oil) for frying
- salt and pepper to taste
Step by step instructions
- Start by preheating your oven to 400°F
- Then clean the potatoes, wipe them dry and sprinkle with some salt. Wrap them in foil.
- Bake the potatoes for one hour.
- Once the time is up, you can check the potatoes if they are fork-tender and remove them from the oven. Let them cool down completely before peeling the skin.
- Use a box grater (if available) and grate the potatoes, place the shreds into a large bowl. Set aside.
- Meantime, heat the saute pan on medium-low heat, then add ½ cup of butter, let it melt then add 1 tablespoon each of chopped rosemary, thyme, and parsley.
- Let the butter and the herbs infused for about 1 minute but don't let them turned brown.
- Pour the butter medley into the grated potato, add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour and mix the ingredients until well combined.
- If you have a ring cutter, use it to shape the grated potato mixture or you can mold them using the nigiri sushi technique.
- After the tots are molded into your desired shape, dust them with the leftover all-purpose flour. Ensure that each side is dusted thoroughly. Set aside.
- Now, fill your saucepan with oil halfway and heat it at 375°F.
- Drop the tater tots (don't overcrowd) and fry for about 4-5 minutes or until they turned to a nice golden brown. Once cooked, remove from the oil and let them drain on paper towels.
- Plate the tots and sprinkle some salt and pair them with your favorite dipping sauce.
Notes:
1.) You can freeze the tater tots by placing them in a single layer baking sheet, pop them in the freezer for approximately 30 to 45 minutes. Then, you can place them in a Ziploc freezer bag and put them back in the freezer for later use.
2.) To reheat frozen tots - bake them in the oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown at 400°F.
What is the right dipping sauce?
It’s undeniable that ketchup is anyone’s first choice. Although this is a given, you can also use barbecue sauce, honey, mayonnaise, or mustard.
If you like to try a new dip, try the Cowboy Dipping Sauce.
Fries or tots and this dip are delicious together. With just two ingredients, you can bring life to your tater tots with herbs and sweetness. Try it, and it will be a staple for your taters as well.
Ingredients for the dipping sauce
- ¼ cup of barbecue sauce
- ½ cup of Ranch dressing
Instructions
- Get a mixing bowl and, in it, combine your barbecue sauce and Ranch dressing.
- Add more barbecue sauce based on your preferred level of sweetness.
Frequently asked questions
This usually happens when your cooking oil is not hot enough. Remember that your frozen tater tots should always meet hot oil. Fry just the right amount of tater tots that will not drop the oil’s temperature drastically.
Let them fry in your hot oil to make their form stable as their edges become firm and crispy. You can also freeze them before you cook them.
Tater tots will always be comfort food to many people. If you plan to make these delicious potato kisses in your kitchen, make sure you follow the given steps. You can always get ready-made taters from your local grocery store, but nothing can compete with homemade tater tots.
Related recipes
Full Recipe
Homemade Tater Tots Recipe
Ingredients:
- 2 potatoes (Russets)
- ½ cup butter (melted)
- ½ tablespoon thyme or rosemary (chopped)
- 3 tablespoon flour (all-purpose flour)
- salt and pepper (to taste)
Watch the Video:
Instructions:
- Start by preheating your oven to 400°F
- Then clean the potatoes, wipe them dry and sprinkle with some salt. Wrap them in foil.
- Bake the potatoes for one hour. Once the time is up, you can check the potatoes if they are fork-tender and remove them from the oven. Let them cool down completely before peeling the skin.
- Use a box grater (if available) and grate the potatoes, place the shreds into a large bowl. Set aside.
- Meantime, heat the saute pan on medium-low heat, then add ½ cup of butter, let it melt then add 1 tablespoon each of chopped rosemary, thyme, and parsley.
- Let the butter and the herbs infused for about 1 minute but don’t let them turned brown.
- Pour the butter medley into the grated potato, add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour and mix the ingredients until well combined.
Shape the Tater Tots
- If you have a ring cutter, use it to shape the grated potato mixture or you can mold them using the nigiri sushi technique.
- After the tots are molded into your desired shape, dust them with the leftover all-purpose flour. Ensure that each side is dusted thoroughly. Set aside.
- Now, fill your saucepan with oil halfway and heat it at 375°. Drop the tater tots (don’t overcrowd) and fry for about 4-5 minutes or until they turned to a nice golden brown.
- Once cooked, remove from the oil and let them drain on paper towels.
- Plate the tots and sprinkle some salt and pair them with your favorite dipping sauce.
Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Please note that all nutrition information are just estimates. Values will vary among brands, so we encourage you to calculate these on your own for most accurate results.
