Loaded Tater Tot Dip

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Loaded Tater Tot Dip — My favorite baked potato toppings, all loaded into this cheesy dip! This easy party dip is made with frozen tater tots, sour cream, meatballs, and cheese!!

Loaded Potato Dip — My favorite baked potato toppings, all loaded into this cheesy dip! This easy party dip is made with tater tots, sour cream, meatballs, and cheese!!

Easy, Cheesy Tater Tot Dip Recipe

The best part of a baked potato isn’t really the potato. It’s the sour cream and cheese that tops it.

This loaded tater tot dip is a bowl of everything fabulous that goes on top of baked potatoes, minus the baked potatoes.

It’s creamy, it’s cheesy, it’s happy food. White carbs, cream, and cheese tend to have that effect and my family was oohing and ahhing about it. They’re huge potato fans of any kind, from tater tots to hash browns, and they loved the warm, soft tater tots.

Perfect for parties, especially football parties, or as an easy appetizer to set out for gatherings. Or if you’re a dipaholic like me, you can just call it dinner!

Loaded Potato Dip — My favorite baked potato toppings, all loaded into this cheesy dip! This easy party dip is made with tater tots, sour cream, meatballs, and cheese!!

Ingredients in Loaded Potato Dip

To make this tater tot dip, you’ll need: 

  • Frozen tater tots 
  • Meatballs (veggie or regular)
  • Sour cream
  • Shredded cheese 
  • All-purpose seasoning blend
  • Salt and pepper 

Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.

Loaded Potato Dip — My favorite baked potato toppings, all loaded into this cheesy dip! This easy party dip is made with tater tots, sour cream, meatballs, and cheese!!

How to Make Loaded Tater Tot Dip

To make the dip, I used tater tots instead of potatoes. I have fond memories of the stubby little tots from elementary school lunches. I ate them slathered in ketchup and decades have gone by and I’ve had very few tater tots since sixth grade. I decided to make up for lost time!

  1. Allow 3 cups of frozen tater tots to come to room temperature. I measure about 15 tater tots to 1 cup, so you’ll need about 45, give or take.
  2. Slice them in half, or place them all on a large cutting board and give the pile a rough chop.
  3. Place the chopped tots in a large mixing bowl, and add crumbled pre-cooked Italian sausage or meatballs. 
  4. Add the sour cream. Stir in 1 cup of shredded cheese.
  5. Season the mixture with your favorite seasoning blend such as Lowry’s, Trader Joe’s 21 Salute or a Mrs. Dash and stir.
  6. Transfer the mixture into a sprayed 9-inch pie dish, oven-safe baking dish, or an 8- or 9-inch square pan. Top with the remaining shredded cheese and bake your until golden brown and bubbly.
Loaded Potato Dip — My favorite baked potato toppings, all loaded into this cheesy dip! This easy party dip is made with tater tots, sour cream, meatballs, and cheese!!

What to Serve with Tater Tot Dip

Serve this comfort food extraordinaire with crackers, pita chips or pita bread, tortilla chips, dip tater tots into the tater tot dip, or just eat it with a spoon.

Puncturing the thick wall of browned cheese with a sharp cracker corner reveals a soft, creamy, rich potato-filled interior. It was so satisfying to finally bust through the cheese wall.

Loaded Potato Dip — My favorite baked potato toppings, all loaded into this cheesy dip! This easy party dip is made with tater tots, sour cream, meatballs, and cheese!!

Make-Ahead Instructions

The tater tot dip assembly literally takes five minutes, but if you’re making it for a party and have lots to do on the day-of, you can assemble it, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it for up to 24 hours before baking it off.

Recipe Variations

For a spin on this tater tot dip recipe, feel free to stir in a bit of diced green onion or scallions, a pinch of garlic or onion powder; add a handful of corn or black beans, a dollop of salsa, or other things you enjoy on baked potatoes.

There’s no wrong way to load up this dip! If you really load it up, you may need to extend the baking time a bit.

Loaded Potato Dip — My favorite baked potato toppings, all loaded into this cheesy dip! This easy party dip is made with tater tots, sour cream, meatballs, and cheese!!

Recipe FAQs

Can I Double This Recipe? 

Need to feed a crowd? You can double the ingredients list and bake this dip in a 9×13-inch baking pan. 

Do I have to add sausage to the dip?

Nope! You can also use pre-cooked shredded chicken, chicken nuggets, tofu, tempeh, bacon, or bacon bits.

Can the sour cream be substituted?

Greek yogurt may also work, but I don’t top my baked potatoes with yogurt. I top them with sour cream, which is what I used.

Can frozen hash browns be used instead of tater tots?

I bet frozen, thawed hash browns would work instead of frozen tater tots. Make sure to buy hash browns made from shredded potatoes, not the type made of potato chunks.

Loaded Potato Dip — My favorite baked potato toppings, all loaded into this cheesy dip! This easy party dip is made with tater tots, sour cream, meatballs, and cheese!!

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4.36 from 14 votes

Loaded Tater Tot Dip

By Averie Sunshine
My favorite baked potato toppings, all loaded into this cheesy dip! This easy party dip is made with tater tots, sour cream, meatballs, and cheese!!
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 12
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Ingredients 

  • 3 cups tater tots, about 45 whole tater tots, thawed and halved or roughly chopped
  • 1 cup meatballs, pre-cooked and crumbled (can use homemade or frozen)
  • 16- ounces sour cream, regular or light both work
  • 2 cups shredded cheese blend, divided (any kind; Colby Jack, Monterrey Jack, cheddar, etc. all work)
  • 2 teaspoons all-purpose seasoning blend, or to taste (Lowry’s, Trader Joe’s 21 Salute, Mrs. Dash, etc.)
  • salt and pepper, optional and to taste

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 375F and spray a 9-inch pie dish or similar oven-safe baking dish with cooking spray; set aside.
  • Slice thawed tater tots in half or place a large pile on cutting board and roughly chop them; retain some size and texture and don’t chop them too small.
  • Transfer tater tots to a large mixing bowl. Add the meat or protein option, sour cream, add 1 cup cheese, seasoning blend, salt, pepper, and stir to combine.
  • Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish, smoothing the top lightly with a spatula. Top with remaining 1 cup cheese.
  • Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until top is bubbly and golden browned. Serve immediately with crackers, bread, pita chips or pita bread, tortilla chips, dip tater tots into it, or just eat it with a spoon.

Notes

Storage: Store leftover dip in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. I recommend eating leftovers taco casserole-style by setting a piece on top of a mound of crackers or chips and microwaving for about 1 minute.
Recipe variation: Dip can also be made fresh and served like a casserole, but I prefer it as a dip.
Recipe is naturally gluten-free and can be kept vegan by using vegan meat, sour cream, and cheese.

Nutrition

Serving: 1, Calories: 230kcal, Carbohydrates: 11g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 17g, Saturated Fat: 8g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g, Cholesterol: 44mg, Sodium: 558mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 2g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

More Easy Party Dips:

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The BEST Spinach Artichoke Dip — This baked spinach artichoke dip is rich, creamy, and it’s a crowd FAVORITE sure to disappear at parties!! It’s so cheesy thanks to both mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses!

Spicy Chorizo Queso — No processed cheese in this EASY queso dip that’s ready in 20 minutes!! Wonderfully spicy thanks to the chorizo! 

Bacon Jalapeño Popper Dip — Same great flavor as bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers, minus the work!! Creamy, CHEESY, loaded with bacon, and topped with CRISPY jalapeños! Fast, EASY, perfect for parties!!

Creamy Baked Double Cheese and Sweet Onion Dip — A cheesy, comforting, and easy dip that everyone loves! Made with cream cheese and sweet Vidalia onions!

Beef Queso Dip — Caramelized onions, ground beef, taco seasoning, and CHEESE in this EASY queso dip everyone loves!! Great for game days, PARTIES, holidays, and events!!

Easy Pizza Dip — Cheese lovers and pizza fans will love this fast and easy dip recipe!! It’s the perfect party food that’s a guaranteed hit! 

4.36 from 14 votes (10 ratings without comment)

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Please note: I have only made the recipe as written, and cannot give advice or predict what will happen if you change something. If you have a question regarding changing, altering, or making substitutions to the recipe, please check out the FAQ page for more info.

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Comments

  1. Ah! Would you cry if I told you that my ultra favorite way to enjoy a baked potato is completely NAKED?

    I mean the potato, not me! Heh. Just plain, all lonesome on a plate, maybe with a bit of salt. Hubba, hubba!

    1. Honestly I do go thru phases where I want plain everything…potatoes, steamed broccoli, plain green beans, no butter, salt, nothing. Just totally as-is. Then there are other times I can use 1/4 cup of butter to 1/2 cup broccoli :)

  2. Crazy creative! Seriously, I’ve never seen tots prepared like this, and they sound so much better than the alternative (plain)! Okay, I’ve gotta try this, and soon.

  3. Oh, tater tots, it’s been too long since we last met.
    Thanks for giving me a valid excuse for picking up a bag! I’m all about the white carb love this time of year. :D

  4. Oh yum- winter comfort food at its best. I love reworkings of familiar recipes/dishes. Thanks for getting inspiring and sharing.

  5. Will you come make this for me??? I totally agree that the best part of a baked potato is the toppings!!!

  6. I am sure such dip would be any party favorite! I am not a big fan of the processed food, so no, I don’t like tater tots. :)

  7. I am swooning over this amazing dish. I love hot dips and you’ve loaded this one with two of my all time favourite foods – tater tots and gooey, melted, golden cheese! This would be perfect for a get-together (or dinner for one, but maybe that’s just me).

  8. I am drooling all over my keyboard. Tater Tot Dip?! Could this be real life?! I am blown away! So creative and it is absolutely mouthwatering! What a perfect app for game day!

    1. It’s so easy, too, Nikki! You are the queen of great dips & glad you like this one. Your soup..that creaminess is just delish looking today!