Tater Tot Nachos (loaded totchos) are crispy tater tots smothered in melted cheese and topped with your favorite nacho toppings.
Tot-chos are the perfect game day snack. And so good your guests will want seconds. Or thirds.
I almost can’t think of a better appetizer to serve than this one. This appetizer is a crowd favorite and tends to disappear quickly.
What You’ll Love about Totchos
- Tater tot nachos are a delicious appetizer for your party guests. These loaded tots can be easily prepped ahead, assembled quickly, and only take minutes to bake. I like to serve this snack fresh out of the oven on Sunday football, and Super bowl Sunday. My Mini Tortilla Pizzas are another crowd favorite.
- Chorizo and bacon go hand-in-hand but you can use a variety of toppings. Just be sure to chop toppings into tiny pieces. Also drain any meat you’d use and don’t go overboard on the cheese or you’ll have a greasy mess.
- If you want to make tater tot nachos for two totchos can be baked in a toaster oven. And for a larger group this recipe is easily multiplied.
Tater Tot Nachos Recipe
Tater tot nachos are made with four main ingredients: Tater tots, Colby jack cheese, bacon, and chorizo.
To elevate the flavor, I add a few extras.
Here is what you need.
Ingredients
- Tater Tots
- Chorizo
- Bacon
- Colby Jack Cheese
- White Onion
- Green Onion
- Grape Tomatoes
- Zaaschila Guacamole & Serrano Hot Sauce
- Sour Cream
- Parsley for Garnish
Tater Tots: Loaded tater tots are a delicious appetizer perfect for game day snacking and Super bowl Sunday. Make sure to cook tater tots before topping with meat, onions, and cheese so the tots are extra crispy.
Chorizo: Chorizo is so delicious when paired with bacon. However, you can try making loaded nachos with ground beef as well.
Bacon: Bacon, chorizo, and cheese layered on top crispy tater tots are an appetizer everyone will love!
Colby Jack Cheese: Make sure to get a block of Colby jack cheese and shred it yourself. You may also use other flavors of block cheese.
White Onion: Chop and dice white onion into tiny pieces. You may also try red onion for some color.
Green Onion: Any chance I get I think of a way I can add green onions to my meals.
Grape Tomatoes: I like to use grape tomatoes over cherry tomatoes since they are a tad bit smaller. However, you may use grape tomatoes or even Roma tomatoes in this recipe.
If you use Roma tomatoes drain Roma tomatoes in a colander.
Zaaschila Guacamole & Serrano Hot Sauce: My favorite squeezable hot sauce to use is Zaaschila guacamole & serrano hot sauce.
Another favorite of mine is Zaaschila habanero hot sauce.
Sour Cream: Get a squeezable sour cream so sour cream is easier to spread.
Parsley: Garnish loaded tater tots with fresh parsley or chopped cilantro.
Tips for Making the Best Loaded Tater Tots
For crispy tater tots preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
I like to let my oven heat up while I prep my toppings. Allowing the oven to heat ensures that tots will cook at an even temperature.
I double bake tater tots to ensure they have the same crunch as deep fried tater tots only without all that grease from frying.
To get extra crispy tots, bake tots for 30 minutes at 425 degrees. Then top tachos with meats, onions, and cheese. Bake loaded tots at 375 degrees until cheese is melted.
To ensure tots aren’t soggy Be sure to drain grease from chorizo really well. I like to take a wooden spoon and press the ground chorizo against the colander as I drain the grease.
I do this a few times until I can see that all the grease is drained.
Then I go a bit further and place chorizo on a plate lined with a paper towel and dap any grease still on meat.
I also make sure I dap any grease off of bacon and place cooked bacon on a plate lined with paper towels.
Following these steps ensures that your appetizer won’t be a soggy mess and tater tots will keep their crispness.
For perfectly melted cheese, Get a cheddar cheese block and shred it yourself.
Shredded cheese has a lot of added chemicals and starch which prevents the cheese from melting evenly.
And doing so, you’ll save money. Block cheese is cheaper and you get more.
Tachos Nachos Variations
Tachos nachos, can be topped with a variety of ingredients.
Here is some inspiration.
Meat. Instead of chorizo try using ground beef, shredded chicken, or beans. Sometimes I love to have the best of both worlds and I make chicken and chorizo tot-chos.
Cheese. I love to use Colby Jack cheese. However, you may use any type of cheese you prefer.
Other cheese varieties that melt well and compliment nachos are: white american cheddar, sharp cheddar cheese, mild cheddar, pepper jack cheese,
and if your feeling a supreme heat Carolina reaper cheese would make these nachos extremely spicy.
Likewise, the name “reaper” speaks for itself. If using I’d use half reaper and half cheddar cheese.
Toppings: The possibilities for loaded tots are endless. I love to top mine with chopped tomatoes, green onions, and white onions.
Some more delicious toppings are: cilantro, parsley, lettuce, green peppers, red peppers, jalapenos, green olives, black olives, cubed avocado, or guacamole, pico de gallo, and red onions.
Hot sauce: Smothered tater tots wouldn’t be complete without hot sauce.
How to Make Tater Tot Nachos
To make tater tot nachos (totchos) there are only five easy steps.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with pam cooking spray. Cook tater tots until crisp and golden brown.
- While tots are cooking shred block cheese, chop green onion, white onion, and cut grape tomatoes in half.
- Cook the chorizo and drain thoroughly. Cook bacon until crispy and set sliced bacon on a plate lined with paper towels and dap off any excess grease. Do the same with chorizo after draining in a colander thoroughly.
- Set oven temperature to 375 degrees and top tater tots with meat, onions, and cheese. Bake in the oven until cheese is melted.
- Top tochos with diced tomatoes, and drizzle with Zaaschila Guacamole and serrano hot sauce, and sour cream. Garnish with parsley or cilantro. Serve warm.
More Appetizers
Tater Tot Nachos ( Loaded Totchos)
Tater tot nachos (loaded totchos) are crispy tater tots topped with melted cheese, chorizo, bacon and all your favorite nacho toppings. This snack takes just minutes to make and tends to disappear fast!
Ingredients
- 32 oz tater tots
- 6 oz chorizo
- 8 slices bacon
- 8 oz Colby jack cheese
- 1/4 white onion, diced
- 1 bunch green onion, sliced
- 10 oz grape tomatoes
- 12 oz sour cream
- Zaaschila guacamole & serrano hot sauce, optional
- parsley or cilantro for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with Pam cooking spray. Cook tater tots for 30 minutes.
- While tater tots are cooking. Prepare ingredients. Shred Colby jack cheese, dice white onion, slice green onions, cut grape tomatoes in half.
- Cook chorizo and drain chorizo in a colander. I like take a wooden spoon and press out excess grease. I do this a few times to ensure all grease is drained from chorizo. Cook bacon until crispy. Drain bacon on a plate lined with paper towels. dap any excess grease with a paper towel.
- Remove tater tots from oven and top with meat, onions, and cheese. Set oven to 375 degrees and bake tater tots for 8 minutes.
- Remove tater tot nachos from oven. Top with diced tomatoes, drizzle tots with squeezable sour cream, and zaaschila guacamole & serrano hot sauce. Garnish loaded tater tots with chopped parsley or cilantro. Serve warm!
Notes
Make sure to drain grease from chorizo thoroughly.
Bake tater tots first at 425 degrees to ensure that tots are crispy.
Top with meat, onions, and cheese and bake at 375 degrees until cheese is melted. ( About 8 minutes)
Try adding your favorite ingredients to these tater tot nachos and let me know what you think!