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Cheesy Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole

This Cheesy Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole is crispy on top, tender in the center, and busting at the seems with big flavors. It’s an overnight breakfast casserole that can be prepared the night before. Breakfast-for-dinner, too!

Tater Tot Casserole in white Dish.
Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole is easy to assemble the night before.

Video: Watch Us Make This Recipe

Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole

Why This Recipe Stands Out

  • Tater Tots: Every kid and grownup alike loves tater tots, especially when layered on top of all your hot breakfast favorites.
  • Crispy: The tater tots will bake up beautifully golden and crispy on top.
  • Bacon: This is (kind of) optional, but crispy, smoky bacon crumbled on top of this breakfast casserole makes it a standout!
  • Overnight: Fully assemble this tater tot casserole the night before and bake it in the morning – super easy!
  • Family and Friends: You’ll essentially become the king or queen of breakfast, once they taste this tater tot casserole. Every time we bring this recipe to a brunch party, we get recipe requests – you will, too.
Tater Tot Casserole in baking dish.
All your breakfast favorites in one: bacon, sausage, cheese, eggs, and potatoes!

Simple Recipe ingredients

This Cheesy Tater Tot Breakfast Bake is teeming with all our AM faves: breakfast sausage, bacon, cheese, eggs, and potatoes.

  • Bacon: 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled; I really like thick cut, applewood style bacon here. Get it really nice and crispy, let the oil drain, and crumble away. You can do this ahead of time, as the bacon stays crisp on the counter while you prepare the rest of the breakfast casserole.
  • Sausage: ground breakfast sausage, no casings; my favorite kind are the Italian seasoned, but feel free to use your preferred ground sausage. You’ll brown it and break it up in the skillet before adding to the breakfast casserole.
  • Cheese: sharp cheddar cheese, shredded, divided; sharp cheddar is the best. It imparts such a big cheesy flavor and melds beautifully in this casserole recipe.
  • Milk: whole milk is preferred for a creamier texture, but you can use low-fat if you prefer.
  • Eggs: if you’re wondering why there aren’t more eggs in this breakfast casserole recipe, it’s because 3 large eggs is just the right amount to allow the tater tots to crisp up nicely during baking.
  • Tater Tots: your favorite brand will work fine, as long as it’s un-seasoned. Just be sure to keep it frozen until ready to assemble.
  • Seasonings: freshly ground pepper from fresh peppercorns, onion powder, salt, and freshly chopped parsley, if you’d like a bit of color.

Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions

  1. Brown Sausage: In a very large skillet, cook sausage on medium high heat, breaking up the meat and browning it. Drain and layer onto the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking pan. Evenly sprinkle 2 cups of the cheese over cooked sausage.
  2. Combine Filling: In a large bowl, hand-whisk together the milk, eggs, pepper, onion powder, and salt. Pour evenly over the cheese and sausage in baking dish. Layer top with frozen tater tots.
  1. Bake: When ready to bake, set oven to 350F with rack on lower middle position. Once oven reaches 350F, place uncovered casserole in oven for about 35 minutes.
  2. Topping: Top with additional 1/2 cup cheese, cooked/crumbled bacon, and bake another 5-10 minutes or until sides are bubbling and top is golden brown. Garnish with chopped parsley, let rest at room temp 10 minutes, and serve.
Tater Tot Casserole in White Dish.
This tater tot casserole is perfect for lunch or dinner.

What to Serve with Tater Tot Casserole

Fruits

Yogurt

Oatmeal

Commonly Asked Questions

What is tater tot breakfast casserole?

A tater tot breakfast casserole is a hearty and flavorful breakfast dish made with frozen tater tots, eggs, cheese, milk and seasonings.

Can I make this tater tot casserole the night before?

This dish can be fully assembled the night before. Cover airtight, chill in fridge overnight, and let it come to room temperature as the oven preheats.

Can I freeze tater tot casserole?

You can freeze the unbaked casserole after assembly by covering it airtight and freezing until ready to bake. Then, bake it from frozen (not defrosted) and add bake time until fully cooked through. The texture may come out differently from the original recipe. My suggestion would be to pre-assemble the casserole the night before (at most, up to 2 nights before) and keep covered/chilled in fridge. Then bake according to recipe instructions.

What to serve with tater tot breakfast casserole?

We love serving this hearty breakfast casserole with fresh fruits, more crispy bacon on the side, yogurt, and oatmeal.

Can I make this vegetarian?

You can make a vegetarian tater tot breakfast casserole by omitting the bacon and using plant-based sausage crumbles instead of regular sausage!

Is tater tot breakfast casserole gluten free?

This dish is naturally gluten-free, so more people can eat and enjoy! Just double check that the brand of tater tots you buy is certified gluten-free.

Did you make this?

Please give us a rating and comment below. We love hearing from you!

Tater Tot Casserole in White Dish.

Cheesy Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole

4.82 from 367 ratings
This Cheesy Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole is super easy, can be prepped the night before, and incredibly delicious! Kids and grownups alike will devour this. Sure to be a family favorite.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 15
Author: Amy Dong

Ingredients  

  • 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
  • 1 lb ground sausage, no casings
  • 2 ½ cups cheddar cheese, sharp, shredded, divided
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 2 extra large eggs, or 3 large eggs
  • ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ tsp onion powder
  • pinch of table salt, 1/8 tsp
  • 2 lbs tater tots, frozen
  • 3 TB freshly chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions

  • Brown Sausage: In a very large skillet, cook sausage on medium high heat, breaking up the meat and browning it. Once cooked through, drain and layer onto the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking pan. Evenly sprinkle 2 cups of the cheese over cooked sausage.
  • Combine Filling: In a large bowl, hand-whisk together the milk, eggs, pepper, onion powder, and salt. Once mixed, pour evenly over the cheese and sausage in baking dish. Layer top with frozen tater tots.
  • Bake: When ready to bake, set oven to 350F with rack on lower middle position. Once oven reaches 350F, place uncovered casserole in oven for about 35 minutes*
  • Top with additional 1/2 cup cheese, cooked/crumbled bacon, and bake another 5-10 minutes or until sides are bubbling and top is golden brown. Garnish with chopped parsley, let rest at room temp 10 minutes, and serve.

Notes

  • For substitutions, variations, and serving suggestions, please see original article. 
  • Tater tot casserole can be fully assembled the night before, wrapped airtight and chilled, and baked the following morning. 
  • If casserole is very cold from the fridge, you will need to increase bake time, closer to 1 hour. Note that bake time will vary due to individual ovens. 
  • We recommend serving this casserole fresh, but leftovers can be covered and chilled. Reheat in the oven for best results.   
  • If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and give it a rating. We ❤️ hearing from you! 
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Nutrition (per serving)

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 234kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 27mg | Sodium: 447mg | Potassium: 234mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 246IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 182mg | Iron: 0.4mg
Course: Breakfast, brunch
Cuisine: American
Diet: Gluten Free
Method: Oven

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Recipe Rating




260 comments

    • Megan Ellam

    Wow, this looks incredible! Thanks for the delicious inspiration!

    • Jenny
    • 5 stars

    That’s a very nice recipe. Cheesy tater tots for breakfast! It will be great for Christmas morning, my kids will love it!

    • Healing Tomato
    • 5 stars

    I love that you turned tater tots into a delicious and hearty breakfast recipe! This looks so easy to make and love all the simple ingredients in it.

    • Allyssa
    • 5 stars

    Thank you so much for sharing this amazing cheesy tater tot recipe! Will surely have this again! It’s really easy to make and it tasted so delicious! Highly recommended!

    • D
    • 5 stars

    Can you freeze this, or fridge two days later?
    Make it all the time. Love it, but want to make ahead for camping this weekend.

      • chewoutloud

      Yes, you can freeze or chill the finished dish!

    • Carrie

    This is so yummy! My family of 5 loves this. It’s so convenient to be able to assemble the night before. Thanks for the recipe!

      • chewoutloud

      You’re so welcome, Carrie!

    • AM
    • 5 stars

    This recipe was great! My family loved it. Thank you for sharing it.

    • AM

    This recipe was great. My family loved it. Thank you for sharing it.

    • Julie
    • 5 stars

    I made this recipe today and it turned out great! I didn’t have ground breakfast sausage on hand, so I used what I had for the bottom layer – 4 frozen Morningstar Farms Meatless Maple Sausage patties (heated and broken up) and I supplemented with a pack of turkey bacon, which I fried till crispy, crumbled, and added to the bottom layer (I reserved 4 slices of the crumbled turkey bacon for the topping at the end). I made the rest of the recipe exactly as written and it turned out so good. I didn’t have any issue at all with the milk and egg mixture making the casserole too runny. I did let the dish sit for about 15 minutes after removing from the oven. I hope others enjoy this as much as I did! Yum! 🙂

      • chewoutloud

      So great, thank you, Julie!

    • laura

    We found that to be the same the texture was off.

    • JK

    Think you can use shredded potatoes rather than tots?

      • chewoutloud

      You can definitely try that; modify bake time if needed. Enjoy!

    • Jodie Thomson
    • 5 stars

    This is one of the best breakfast dishes I’ve ever made. Absolutely delicious thanks for sharing

    • Liza
    • 5 stars

    I make this recipe ALL THE TIME! It’s a huge hit with my family:) I see that some people say that their casserole turned out runny. I found that to be true as well if I’m using lower fat milk, but I just cook it longer and it turns out great:) and of course let it sit for a few minutes. Just wanted to say thank you for this great and easy recipe!

      • chewoutloud

      Great tip for those using low/non-fat milk, Liza. So happy you guys love this dish so much – yay! 🙂 🙂

    • Liz
    • 5 stars

    Fabulous. Even my partner who doesn’t like sausage loved it. I’m throwing all my other egg bake recipes out! Thanks!

      • chewoutloud

      Thank you so much, Liz! Your comment makes me super happy!! Thanks for coming back to let us know 🙂

    • Kara Guppy

    I could eat this right now

    • Annemarie LeBlanc
    • 5 stars

    How I wish someone would make this for me for breakfast! However, since there is no one to do it but me, then I will make this for the family. My boys love potatoes and this is a great way to serve them their favorite!

    • Shannon Gurnee

    This looks like a delicious recipe! I would love to try this sometime. Thanks for sharing.

    • Natasha Romero Salas

    I am the biggest breakfast person! I need to make these tater tots. It sounds so delicious,

      • chewoutloud

      Yay, can’t wait for you to taste this, Natasha! 🙂

    • Cathy Mini

    This is such a perfect delicious treat this coming holiday.

      • chewoutloud

      Thanks, Cathy! Now my friends make it on the regular. Enjoy!

    • Lisa

    Oh these cheesy tater tots looks delicious for breakfast. It’s perfect for Saturday brunch.

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