Jumbo Tater Tots Recipe With Jalapeño & Jack Cheese, For National Tater Tots Day

[1] Today’s feature recipe is Jumbo Potato Tops (recipe and photo © Gelson’s Markets).

[2] If you don’t want to fry them, you can bake potato tots. Here’s a recipe (photo © Potatoes USA).

[3] A different take: sweet potato tots. Here’s the recipe (photo © North Carolina Sweet Potatoes).

We always welcome February 2nd, National Tater Tot Day. Far beyond the original Tater Tots (created by Ore-Ida to use up leftover slivers from slicing French fries), there are so many creative Tater Tot recipes. In addition to our featured recipe for jumbo tots, there are more Tater Tot (i.e. tot) recipes below.Legal disclosure: Tater Tots® is the trademark of Ore-Ida. Everything else is a generic potato tot.

> The history of Tater Tots.

> The history of potatoes.
 
 
RECIPE: JUMBO TATER TOTS WITH JALAPEÑO, JACK CHEESE & CHIVES

This recipe is courtesy of Gelson’s Markets, a quality supermarket chain in Southern California. While they are deep-fat-fried, there’s no grating involved. Instead, frozen hash brown potatoes are tossed with jalapeños and fresh chives, with a center of Jack cheese. Resistance is futile!

Ketchup is a standard condiment, but you can use others, such as marinara sauce, ranch dressing, or salsa.

How big are these tots? Beyond jumbo, these tots are gargantuan.

Many people eat tots as a side dish. We like them as a snack with beer. With the added jalapeños and jack cheese, these are perfect “beer tots.”
 
Ingredients For 16 Gargantuan Tots

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE the hash browns, eggs, flour, jalapeños, chives, salt, and black pepper in a large bowl. Mix well with your hands.

2. PACK a 2-ounce scoop tightly with the potato mixture, transfer the portion to your hand, and squeeze out any excess moisture. Put a thumbprint-size indentation into the center of the portion, place a cube of cheese inside, close the hole, and roll it into a barrel shape. Repeat this step until all of the potato mixture is used.

3. HEAT the cooking oil to 350°F in a medium Dutch oven over high heat. Working in batches and using a slotted spoon, gently place 6 tater tots in the oil, making sure not to splash any oil. Fry the tots for 5 to 7 minutes, or until they are golden brown and floating.

4. TRANSFER the cooked tots to a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat this step until all of the tater tots have been fried.

5. SERVE warm with ketchup or your favorite dipping sauce.
 
 
MORE TATER TOTS RECIPES