When you go out to a diner or a greasy spoon, what’s your favorite thing on the menu? When you’re in the mood for that kind of American food, it’s pretty hard to go wrong and we all have our favorite main dishes. Still, there’s just something particularly special about some crispy little tater tots on the side. Although these things have been around since 1953, they have not lost any popularity whatsoever!
Today, you can buy tater tots at the grocery store if you want to enjoy this guilty pleasure at home as well. Still, while tater tots with ketchup on their own are pretty good, there’s always ways to make simple foods even more delicious. That’s what we’re going to do with this recipe, and if you haven’t guessed yet, yes, it involves using a slow cooker. Although it only uses a few simple and cheap ingredients, the way it cooks together creates a fun party snack or a side dish that you’ll come back to again and again. So let’s get started.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 1 32-ounce bag of frozen tater tots
- 2 cups of shredded Colby Jack cheese
- 1 15-ounce can of cream of chicken soup
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon of pepper
Here’s what you do:
1. First, get your slow cooker ready by spraying the inside down a healthy amount of non-stick cooking spray. Although this recipe is delicious, it can definitely leave a mess to clean up if you don’t do your prep work first. On the other hand, you could also line the pot with some aluminum foil to avoid the clean-up altogether.
2. After that’s done, dump your bag of frozen tater tots inside and empty out your can of chicken soup on top of them. Spread the soup all around so it covers everything evenly and add in your salt and pepper on top. Now, cover your slow cooker and let it all cook on high for one hour.
3. Come back after the time’s up and check to make sure the tots are fully cooked. If everything looks good, stir it all up and add in your cheese in a nice, even layer. With that in place, close the slow cooker again and turn the heat down to low, letting it cook for 10 more minutes.
4. Finally, open the crock pot up and check on it. Once the cheese is melty and delicious you’re ready to serve!
As you can see, this recipe couldn’t be simpler to follow or easier to make—and it also cooks relatively quickly. The principle behind this recipe can also be extended to all other kinds of dishes as well. If there’s one thing we’ve learned from making all kinds of slow cooker recipes, it’s that cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soups pack a ton of flavor and can take many different dishes to another level.
Though this simple recipe is pretty perfect the way it is, there’s always room for you to add in your own flourishes as well. Cheese and potatoes always go well with bacon so if you’re feeling ambitious, fry some up, crumble it and mix it in around the same step when you add your cheese. For that matter, potatoes and virtually any cheese you can think of will also pair well together—try using a smokier cheese or even a Swiss cheese mix if you’d like! No matter what you do, this recipe is sure to be a hit.
Have you given this recipe a try? Let us know what you think in the comments.
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