AIR FRYER tater tots – Cook them Perfectly Every Time!

Tater tots are just so delicious, and in this post, I will outline how to cook frozen tater tots to perfection in an air fryer.

If you like watching your favorite TV series and eating tater tots, you will love cooking them in the air fryer. Not only do you get rid of deep frying and all that unwanted calories, but now you can eat it guilt-free.

**This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission at no extra cost if you purchase through a link. Please see my full disclosure for further information.

The texture of the tater tots is similar to how it feels when you deep fry it, so in my opinion; there is no difference in the taste.

This is a win-win situation as you eat healthily and as much as you want.

So if you have an air fryer and have not cooked tater tots in them yet, then I highly recommend you go out and get a bag of tater tots.

Ingredients & Variations

– 1 bag of frozen tater tots

– Seasoning of your choice

1 tbsp Onion powder
1/4tbsp Salt
1/2 tbsp Paprika
1/2 tbsp Chilli Powder(optional)
1 tbsp Garlic powder

Equipment

Air Fyrer- I use the Philips air fryer as it cooks everything perfectly. The temperature mentioned here is perfect for a Philips air fryer.

How to cook tater tots in the air fryer

Cooking tater tots in the air fryer is very easy. So here, I have taken frozen tater tots, and once I take them out of the freezer, I do not thaw them.

1. Place all the tater tots in a single layer on the air fryer basket. Do not overcrowd the basket, as it can cause uneven cooking. Just place all the tater tots in a single layer and opt for two or three cooking rounds if you have a lot of tater tots to cook.

2. Set the air fryer temperature to 350°F and the timer to 4 minutes.

3. After 4 minutes, the tater tots are ready, and if you want to make it more crispy, I recommend an additional 1 minute of cooking.

4. The tater tots are ready; enjoy!

How long to air fry tater tots?

You do not need to air fry tater tots for long; a good 4-5 minutes is enough. However, if you want tater tots more crispy, you can cook them for an additional time.

I think cooking them at 350 °F is perfect; however, if you want, you can cook them at 400°F too. But do not cook them for a longer time as they will get dry.

If you are cooking tater tots at 400°F, I suggest you cook them only for 3-4 minutes and keep checking in between to see the status of the tater tot.

Overall, the temperature and time vary from one air fryer to another, so in my opinion, 350°F is a perfect temperature. This temperature doesn’t dry tater tots on the inside.

Tips for Crispy Tater Tots

1. Usually, I rarely add oil while cooking frozen tater tots in the air fryer, but if you think you want an extra crispy texture, you can add oil.
I think it tastes better without oil, so give both methods a try and choose for yourself.

2. Do not overcrowd the air fryer basket- One common mistake I see people making is they dump all the tater tots in the air fryer basket and try to cook it all together.

That can work if you take them out and shake them once in a while, but it will cause uneven cooking and take longer.

Just cook them in a single layer and do it in batches if you have to cook a lot of tater tots.

3. Do not thaw the tater tots once they are out of the freezer. It is best to cook them directly in the air fryer. It saves time and the moisture trapped in them due to freezing helps make the tater tots crispy.

Seasonings for tater tots

Ingredients

1 tbsp Onion powder
1/4tbsp Salt
1/2 tbsp Paprika
1/2 tbsp Chilli Powder(optional)
1 tbsp Garlic powder

If you think tater tots on their own is bland, then mix all these seasoning ingredients mentioned above and toss your tater tots in them. This makes them taste even better.

I use this seasoning even with popcorn, so you can make this seasoning in bulk and use it for different recipes.

What to serve with tater tots

You can serve tater tots with cheese sauce and ketchup, but if you want to go ahead and make something new, you can try these recipes.

Tater tot Burrito

You can always place a few tater tots inside your burrito and give it that nice crunch, along with other fillings that you have in there. Tater tot is a great addition to your burrito, so give it a try.

Tater tot on a Pizza

Tater tot on pizza might sound a little weird, but they taste good, I like to cut the tater tots in half and place them on pizza as a topping. They taste great with thin-crust pizza and cheese.

Tater tot salad

Yep, tater tot in salad tastes great. It adds a much-needed crunch, and if you cook it in the air fryer, it is not as unhealthy as it would be if it were fried. But tater tots in salad taste so good.

I might say you can serve them with sandwiches and burgers as well, and they taste outstanding.

Tater tot Nachos

Adding tater tots to nachos is another great recipe; if you haven’t eaten tater tots with nachos, you are missing out.

Just add this to your nachos and make them taste great.

What brand to buy?

There are many brands out there, but these are probably the best ones you can get online they taste great, and some have some seasoning variations, so do check them out!

1. 365 By Whole Foods Market
2. Ore-Ida Golden Tater Tots
3. Amazon Brand – Happy Belly Frozen Tater Bites
4. Grown in Idaho Crispy Potato Puffs