Recipe: Tater Tot Hot Dish

Out of the blue a few weeks ago, my daughter asked me to make something I haven't made since some time in our Florida days: tater tot hot dish.

Unless you are, I believe, from the upper Midwest, you may not know what that means. I didn't, either, but ran across the term hot dish some time before my daughter was born, and looked it up, as I usually do when encountering unfamiliar terms.

Learning that it was a kind of casserole, I found a recipe similar to the one below. I'd describe this as more of a comfort food than anything else. It's not fancy, but I like it.

I stopped making it a few years ago on the mistaken premise that nobody else in my family cared for it. The request -- and learning that this was actually a favorite -- were pleasant surprises.

This one is easy to make, but you do have to start early-ish owing to an hour-long baking time. I have let the ease of preparation cause me to forget that, leading to some overly late dinners.

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Tater Tot Hot Dish

Preparation Time is 75 minutes (15 minutes prep time, 1 hour baking).

Ingredients

• green beans, frozen, French-cut, 1 lb bag
• tater tots, 32 oz. bag
• ground beef, lean, about 1 1/4 lb.
• olive oil, 2 tbsp
• onion
• salt, to taste
• black pepper, to taste
• cream of mushroom soup, condensed, 10.75 oz. can
• cream of celery soup, condensed, 10.75 oz. can
• French-fried onion rings, canned, 3 oz.

Directions

1. As needed (and preferably well in advance), thaw green beans, tater tots, and ground beef.
2. In parallel with the next step, heat olive oil over medium heat in large pan.
3. Chop onion and add to pan.
4. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
5. After about five minutes of cooking the onions, salt and pepper ground beef on each side, mix with onions, and cook until beef is browned.
6. While cooking beef and onions, open canned ingredients.
7. If necessary, drain meat, then place in large mixing bowl.
8. Add soup, green beans, and tater tots to bowl and mix thoroughly.
9. Distribute mixture evenly in large casserole dish.
10. Top with French-fried onions.
11. Bake for 1 hour.

Notes

Original recipe does not include green beans.

-- CAV