{"id":629,"date":"2026-01-12T18:43:54","date_gmt":"2026-01-12T18:43:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/?p=629"},"modified":"2026-01-12T18:43:54","modified_gmt":"2026-01-12T18:43:54","slug":"chili-cheese-tater-tot-casserole","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/12\/chili-cheese-tater-tot-casserole\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00a0Chili Cheese Tater Tot Casserole"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>\u00a0Chili Cheese Tater Tot Casserole<\/h2>\n<p>A cozy, crowd-pleasing casserole made with crispy tater tots, hearty chili, and gooey melted cheese. Perfect for busy weeknights, game days, or anytime you want easy comfort food!<\/p>\n<h3>Ingredients<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>1 bag (32 oz) frozen tater tots<\/li>\n<li>2 cans (15 oz each) chili (with or without beans, your choice)<\/li>\n<li>2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (sharp or mild)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Optional Add-Ins (Highly Recommended):<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00bd cup diced onion<\/li>\n<li>\u00bd cup diced bell pepper<\/li>\n<li>\u00bd teaspoon garlic powder<\/li>\n<li>\u00bd teaspoon smoked paprika or chili powder<\/li>\n<li>Sour cream, green onions, or jalape\u00f1os for topping<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Instructions<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Preheat the oven<\/strong><br \/>\nPreheat your oven to <strong>400\u00b0F (200\u00b0C)<\/strong>. Lightly grease a 9\u00d713-inch baking dish.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Prepare the chili layer<\/strong><br \/>\nPour both cans of chili into the baking dish and spread evenly.<br \/>\nIf using onions, peppers, or spices, mix them into the chili now.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Add cheese<\/strong><br \/>\nSprinkle <strong>1\u00bd cups<\/strong> of the shredded cheddar cheese evenly over the chili.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Top with tater tots<\/strong><br \/>\nArrange the frozen tater tots in a single layer on top of the cheese.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bake<\/strong><br \/>\nBake uncovered for <strong>30\u201335 minutes<\/strong>, or until the tater tots are golden and crispy.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Final cheese melt<\/strong><br \/>\nRemove from the oven, sprinkle the remaining <strong>\u00bd cup cheese<\/strong> on top, and return to the oven for <strong>5\u201310 minutes<\/strong> until melted and bubbly.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Rest &amp; serve<\/strong><br \/>\nLet the casserole rest for <strong>5 minutes<\/strong> before serving.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3>Serving Suggestions<\/h3>\n<p>Serve hot with:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A dollop of sour cream<\/li>\n<li>Chopped green onions<\/li>\n<li>Pickled jalape\u00f1os<\/li>\n<li>A simple green salad on the side<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Tips &amp; Variations<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Use <strong>beef, turkey, or vegetarian chili<\/strong>\u2014all work great.<\/li>\n<li>For extra crunch, broil for <strong>2\u20133 minutes<\/strong> at the end (watch closely!).<\/li>\n<li>Swap cheddar for <strong>Colby-Jack, Monterey Jack, or a Mexican blend<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Want it spicy? Add hot chili or a pinch of cayenne.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Quick Info<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Prep Time:<\/strong> 5 minutes<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cook Time:<\/strong> 40\u201345 minutes<\/li>\n<li><strong>Total Time:<\/strong> ~50 minutes<\/li>\n<li><strong>Servings:<\/strong> 6\u20138<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0Chili Cheese Tater Tot Casserole A cozy, crowd-pleasing casserole made with crispy tater tots, hearty chili, and gooey melted cheese.&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":630,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-recipe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/629","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=629"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/629\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":631,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/629\/revisions\/631"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=629"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=629"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=629"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}