Totchos are tater tot nachos made with a crispy potato base piled with classic Mexican ingredients. This nachos recipe is customizable with endless topping options. Serve totchos for game day, parties, or any weeknight dinner, and watch them fly off the platter!
Nachos made with tater tots? Oh yeahhhh! This week, it’s hats off to those frozen potatoes and the trashy reputation they rode in on. I mean, we love to hate them, because we love them so. And with Super Bowl approaching, you want this epic cheat-day appetizer in your arsenal. Trust me, I’ve made them for neighborhood parties and ordered them at the local taproom. Guess what? They always flyyyy off the plate! Clearly, I’ve kept totchos to myself for way too long. So, grab this recipe, customize the heck out of it, and have your own totchos-flying-off-the-plate party.
How to make Totchos
Just like nachos, Totchos are easy to make and fun to eat. Start with a base layer of crispy cooked tater tots and pile on your favorite Mexican toppings. Here’s how we make this nachos recipe:
- Bake tater tots following package instructions (usually 450° for 20-25 min).
- Remove tots from the oven. Keep the oven on.
- Transfer tots to an oven-safe serving platter OR use the same baking sheet.
- Scatter non-produce ingredients over tater tots. We used shredded cheddar, black beans, and bacon for this recipe.
- Return tots to the oven for 3-5 minutes to melt the cheese.
- Scatter tomatoes, avocado, lime crema drizzle, cilantro, jalapeño, green onion over the tots.
- Serve warm…and watch them disappear!
* See FULL recipe below
Recipe Tips
Topping prep
The key to making totchos quick and easy is to prep ingredients a day (or two) ahead of the event. Refrigerate each ingredient individually in small airtight storage containers. I stack mine on a baking sheet or in a plastic bin for convenient transfer and to not forget any ingredients when I’m making nachos. Here’s my prep list:
1-2 days ahead:
- shred the cheddar (or use pre-shredded)
- rinse & drain black beans
- make bacon bits (or buy packaged)
- make lime crema (mix sour cream and lime juice)
- slice tomatoes, green onions, and jalapeño
Same day (for optimal freshness):
- dice avocado
- chop cilantro
- bake tater tots
Keep the tater tots warm during the nacho-making process
When the tater tots come out of the oven, it’s GO time for the totchos. Keep things moving along and don’t let the tots cool down.
The reason…even though they’re going right back to the oven to melt the cheese, you might overcook the cheese OR the tater tots trying to warm the tots back up. I’ve done it, and yes, you can overdo tater tots. Hard to believe, I know.
Make extra nacho recipe toppings and turn them into other meals
When you prep the toppings, make extra toppings and turn them into other meals. We make about three times the amount of toppings called for in this nachos recipe. Then, we meal prep those toppings into our favorite chopped Mexican salads…or into a few epic breakfasts. Trust me, this breakfast is better than anything we’ll order at a restaurant.
Ingredients for Totchos
Just like my Steak Nachos Supreme, you can decorate your nachos with any ingredients your little heart desires. This list includes my favorite mix of ingredients for fresh, classic, Mexican flavor. The sky is the limit with endless topping options!
- tater tots – I like to buy frozen tater tots in 5lb bags when I’m making these for a party. It’s amazing how fast 2 pounds of them disappear for one round of totchos!
- shredded cheddar cheese – Shred your own cheddar or buy it packaged. Feel free to substitute different cheeses for the cheddar.
- black beans – I like to use reduced-sodium canned black beans for totchos whenever possible. Thoroughly drain and rinse them. Sometimes I’ll warm them in the microwave before piling them on the nachos.
- bacon – We use the oven-baked method for preparing bacon bits during the colder months. We do this day or two in advance of making tater tot nachos (or any nachos). Bacon stores nicely in the refrigerator and makes totcho day super convenient…uhm, and delicious!
- cherry tomatoes – these add such a fresh touch to totchos! Especially when they’re combined with the other classic Mexican toppings like cilantro, jalapeño, and lime.
- avocado – nothing better than a beautiful, ripe avocado garnish on nachos. It adds color, flavor, and nutrients galore to nachos.
- sour cream – We love full-fat sour cream for this recipe. We also love to blend it with lime juice to make it easier to drizzle over the totchos. It’s also called lime crema.
- lime – As mentioned above, we combine this with the sour cream to make a the lime crema drizzle. Fresh lime juice (as opposed to packaged) is highly recommended, but use what you have on hand.
- Cilantro – Fresh cilantro…always!
- jalapeno – Slice these very thin and scatter them as a topping so your guests can enjoy spicy moments in their totchos, or pick them off if they don’t like them.
- green onions – I tend to only use the greenest part of green onions (not the white part) for tater tot nachos. They’re milder than the white part and act more like a garnish.
Other Totcho Topping Options
- Taco Seasoned Turkey and Rice
- Cilantro Lime Rice
- 5 Minute Blender Salsa
- Peach Salsa
- Black Bean and Corn Salsa
- 5 Minute Refried Beans
- taco-seasoned beef
- red or green bell pepper
- grilled corn
- pickled jalapeno peppers
- red onion
Recommended Tools
- chef knife and cutting board (for produce)
- small mixing bowl (for lime crema)
- baking sheet (to bake tots)
- box grater (to shred cheddar)
- oven mitts
- serving utensil
- airtight storage containers
Grab these easy Mexican recipes
- Chicken Tacos
- 5-Minute Homemade Salsa Recipe
- Steak Nachos Supreme
- Loaded Black Bean Dip
- Peach Salsa
- Black Bean and Corn Salsa
Totchos (Tater Tot Nachos)
Ingredients
- 8 cups Tater Tots 2 lb. frozen tots
- 1 15oz can Reduced Sodium Black Beans rinsed and drained
- 1 cup Cheddar Cheese shredded
- 1/4 cup Bacon about 3 slices crumbled
- 1/4 cup Sour Cream
- 1/2 Lime juiced
- 10 Cherry Tomatoes quartered
- 1/2 Avocado diced
- 1/4 cup Cilantro
- 1 fresh Jalapeno sliced
- 1 Green onion sliced
RECIPE VIDEO
Instructions
Bake the tater tots
- Bake frozen TATER TOTS following package instructions (typically 450° for 20-25 min).
- Remove tots; transfer to an oven-safe serving platter (or keep them on the baking sheet).
Assemble the Totchos
- Scatter BLACK BEANS, CHEDDAR CHEESE, and BACON over tater tot and return them to the oven to melt the cheese (about 3 minutes).
- Meanwhile, whisk together SOUR CREAM and LIME JUICE in a small mixing bowl. This makes a “lime crema” for drizzling over the totchos.
- When cheese has melted on the tots, remove them from the oven.
- Scatter TOMATOES, AVOCADO, LIME CREMA, CILANTRO, JALAPENO, and GREEN ONION over the tots.
- Serve warm…and watch them disappear!
RECIPE NOTES
Nutrition
- Roasted Red Pepper Hummus - 07/08/2020
- Loaded Baked Potato Salad [Instant Pot or Stove] - 06/30/2020
- Instant Pot Corn on the Cob - 06/28/2020
Ahhmazing!!
Why thank you Peg 🥰 We LOVE this one too!
I loved it! So easy to make and packed full of flavors!
Thanks Toni! So glad to hear it 🙂
I love tots, and these totchos look amazing! the toppings make them for sure
Thanks, Rebecca…it’s ALL about those toppings 🙂
A rose by any other name would smell as sweet! Love this twist on nachos especially for Game Day!
Thanks, Lisa! Yes, guaranteed empty platter, for sure 🙂
Now these I have got to try – these totchos look absolutely incredible. Would definitely go down a treat in my house.
Haha nice! So glad you can enjoy these, Bintu 🙂 Thanks!
These tater tot nachos will make the perfect cheat meal or a quick dinner when I don’t have anything planned.
Yes! Been there on more than one occasion 😉 So glad you can enjoy these…thanks!
Tater Tot’s and Nachos! Fabulous. Great timing for the Super Bowl. My guests are going to love this.
Thanks, Jayne…yep, just made these for the playoffs over the weekend 🙂 Gonna make them again for the super bowl…enjoy!!
Awesome recipe! With the exclusion of the jalapeños…I’m a wimp!
Thanks for sharing!
Haha thanks! And no prob on the jalapenos, Julie…they come right off and the totchos are not spicy otherwise 🙂
What a savory recipe! Adding this to my dinner line up for the week; looks too good to pass up!
Perfect, Sara! So glad you can enjoy these 🙂
Where have these been all of my life! 🙂 So easy and so tasty! Love the jalapenos!
Haha yes, thank you…and I feel the same way about those jalapenos too! 🙂