Let’s make totchos! Our easy tater tot nachos (aka totchos!) pack everything you love about nachos but use tater tots instead of tortilla chips.
Tater Tot Nachos aka Totchos
If you’ve never heard of totchos they pack the amazing flavor and ingredients of nachos but use tater tots instead of tortilla chips. You’re going to love them!
We’ll walk you through how to make them in either the air fryer or the oven. Either way, they’re a deliciously perfect appetizer or dish to pass for your next get together.
why you’ll love ’em!
- This cheesy totchos are easy to throw together in under 30 minutes.
- You can serve as an appetizer for a party or as a fun meal for your family.
- It is easy to make these totchos your own by adding different taco fixings.
Featured Ingredients
For the ground beef mixture, you’ll need: ground beef, tomato sauce, chipotles in adobo, taco seasoning, yellow onion and red bell pepper.
Tater tots: you’ll need a bag of frozen tater tots for these totchos. Make them in the air fryer or bake them for a perfectly crispy tot.
Queso dip: we used Queso Mama white queso, but feel free to use any store-bought variety you’d like — or make your own homemade queso!
Totchos toppings: add shredded lettuce, chopped cilantro, and pico de gallo right before serving your totchos recipe.
Additional Toppings for Totchos
Don’t skip the toppings on these totchos! Here are some ideas:
- Sour cream or Greek yogurt
- White queso
- Diced tomatoes
- Fresh cilantro
- Sliced jalapeños
- Queso fresco
- Green onion
- Salsa
- Guacamole or sliced avocado
How to Make Totchos
Air fry tater tots
Preheat the air fryer to 400℉. Once preheated add the tater tots and cook for 5 minutes. Shake the basket and air fry for another 5 minutes.
Prepare ground beef
Place the tomato sauce, chipotles in adobo, and taco seasoning in a bowl, and mix together.
Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat. Add the avocado oil, ground beef, onions, and peppers and cook until the beef is fully cooked through. Stir in the taco sauce mixture and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes.
Heat queso
Heat a small saucepan with queso over low heat.
Air fryer tots, beef & queso
Remove the tater tots from the air fryer and line the basket with tin foil. Layer the tater tots first, then the meat mix, then the queso, and air fry for 2 minutes.
Add toppings, serve & enjoy!
Slide the tin foil out of the basket onto a cutting board or large plate. Top the totchos with shredded lettuce, cilantro, and pico de gallo. Serve & enjoy!
Top Tips for Amazing Totchos
Easy substitutes for ground beef: shredded or ground chicken can be subbed for ground beef. Looking to keep these totchos vegetarian? Substitute a 15 oz. can of black or pinto beans, drained and rinsed.
To make this in the oven: bake tater tots according to package directions. Top with ground beef and queso and bake for another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and follow steps 6 and 7 in the instructions.
Easy substitution for queso dip: feel free to use 1 cup of shredded cheese in place of the queso dip.
Make it spicier: add more chipotles in adobo or sliced jalapeños to spice it up.
FAQs
What are totchos made of?
Totchos are a style of nachos that uses tater tots instead of tortilla chips. Totchos are typically topped with traditional nacho toppings.
What is the meaning of totchos?
Totchos are nachos that use tater tots instead of tortilla chips.
Storage
Totchos are best served immediately! If you have extra, we recommend storing the tater tots and ground beef separately from the remainder of the toppings.
To reheat: reheat tater tots and ground beef mixture in the air fryer for 2-4 minutes at 400℉ or until completely warm. Top with remainder of the totchos toppings, and enjoy.
Easy Totchos Recipe
Ingredients
- ¼ cup tomato sauce
- 2 chipotles in adobo minced
- 2 teaspoons taco seasoning
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- ¼ medium yellow onion diced
- ½ red bell pepper diced
- 8 oz. 85/15 ground beef
- 16 oz. tater tots ~4 cups/half 32oz. bag
- 6 oz. white queso ~1 cup
- 2 cups shredded lettuce
- ½ cup cilantro minced
- 1 cup pico de gallo or favorite salsa
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400℉. Once preheated add the tater tots and cook for 5 minutes. Shake the basket and air fry for another 5 minutes. Set aside.
- Place the tomato sauce, chipotles in adobo, and taco seasoning in a bowl. Mix together and set aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat. Add the avocado oil, ground beef, onions, and peppers and cook for 4-5 minutes or until the beef is fully cooked through. Stir in the taco sauce mixture and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes. Set aside.
- Heat a small saucepan with queso over low heat.
- Remove the tater tots from the air fryer and line the basket with tin foil. Layer the tater tots first, then the meat mix, then the queso. Air fry for 2 minutes.
- Slide the tin foil out of the basket onto a cutting board or large plate. Top with shredded lettuce, cilantro, and pico de gallo.
- Serve immediately.
Tips & Notes
- To make this in the oven: bake tater tots according to package directions. Top with ground beef and queso and bake for another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and follow steps 6 and 7.
- Shredded or ground chicken can be subbed for ground beef. 15 oz. can of black or pinto beans can be used as well.
- Sub 1 cup of shredded cheese in place of queso dip.
- Add more chipotles in adobo to spice it up.
