Tater Tot and Hashbrown Casserole
Delicious Breakfast or Dinner Dish. For a special treat, replace the maple sausage with chorizo and add diced red bell peppers! I prefer to use Ore-Ida crispy crowns for the tater tots. For dinner, substitute the ground sausage with ground beef.
Delicious Breakfast or Dinner Dish. For a special treat, replace the maple sausage with chorizo and add diced red bell peppers! I prefer to use Ore-Ida crispy crowns for the tater tots. For dinner, substitute the ground sausage with ground beef.
- Carbohydrate 25.3763864066071 g
- Cholesterol 84.9028750292914 mg
- Fat 43.3681676654949 g
- Fiber 1.16469999697804 g
- Protein 18.1122132881962 g
- Saturated Fat 17.6138829746339 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (267g)
- Sodium 1732.00248767324 mg
- Sugar 24.211686409629 g
- Trans Fat 15.0384009379784 g
- Calories 559 calories
Step-by-step
- Brown sausage in skillet with onions.
- Drain grease and season with garlic and pepper.
- In a separate bowl mix all the soups together.
- Spray 13x9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- Then layer ingredients in the dish.
- Start by lining the tater tots or crispy crowns on the bottom of the dish, then layer ground beef, soup and cheese , topping last with hashbrowns.
- Spray sheet of aluminum foil with non-stick cooking spray.
- Cover dish with foil (sprayed side down) and bake at 385* for 48 minutes, then remove and uncover dish.
- Return to oven, cooking 12 more minutes.
- Remove from oven and top the hashbrowns with a thin layer of cheese.
- Now place in broiler underneath oven on high for 1 min 25 sec or until cheese is melted and starting to brown.
- Remove and let stand for 5 minutes before cutting and serving.
Unlike a traditional potato gratin built on thin sliced rounds, a layered casserole utilizing frozen extruded potato shapes introduces pockets of steam and fat that change thermal conductivity in the oven. That trapped moisture creates a dense structural core while the top layer of shredded potatoes browns unprotected during the final twelve minutes at 385 degrees Fahrenheit. Achieving structural integrity in dense potato-and-cream casseroles relies on the mandatory five-minute resting window before slicing, allowing the starches to cool enough to set the internal matrix. Without that brief pause, portions will slump and release excess moisture onto the plate. Reheating single portions in a toaster oven at 350 degrees rather than a microwave restores crispness to the upper hashbrown crust by driving off residual water. Swapping the maple sausage for chorizo alters the fat profile significantly; chorizo renders more free liquid during the initial browning phase, requiring thorough draining in a colander before mixing to prevent the soup binders from breaking down during the bake.
