Loaded Tater Tots on Shareable Skewers

These Loaded Tater Tots on Shareable Skewers serve up the flavor of a loaded baked potato, food-on-a-stick style! Start with the convenience of frozen tater tots, dressed up with all your favorite toppings and served with a savory sour cream dipping sauce. Hold onto this easy recipe for football Sunday, movie night, or casual gatherings with family and friends. 

I’m hard pressed to pick a favorite way to eat potatoes. Bake them, fry them, mash them…it’s no wonder they are such a comfort food favorite!

But I am a sucker for tater tots. They’re so perfectly crispy and crunchy on the outside, steamy and starchy on the inside. One of my favorite things is hitting up Sonic Happy Hour for my signature order: Diet Cherry Limeade (extra fruit and lite ice) and an order of tots.

And as much as I love that, I don’t really need (or want) to leave the house every time I crave some hot crispy tots. Enter: the convenient magic of frozen tater tots. I thought they tasted great in the oven, but after breaking down and finally getting an air fryer, I love them even more. We love them for an easy side dish and they make a great snack. Especially on the weekends when I have a little more time to get creative with them. 

At one point I worked on a series of elevated appetizers for a client, and I got so excited when they threw out the idea for some kind of loaded tater tots. I played around with a few different concepts before landing on this one. Inspired by fair food, loaded baked potatoes, and totchos (nachos made with tater tots), what’s not to love?

Now I’ve made some updates, including how to make them in an air fryer. I think you’re going to love these Loaded Tater Tots on Shareable Skewers!

Ingredients for Loaded Tater Tots

Snag any and all of these ingredients in your local grocery store. Or, if you need added convenience, place an order for grocery delivery through this ready-to-shop list from Instacart (it’s an affiliate link, which means I’ll earn a small commission if you do). 

• Frozen tater tots
• Bacon
• Shredded cheese. I like to use a combination of cheddar cheese and mozzarella cheese, but anything that melts is going to work. Just avoid anything like blue cheese unless using it as a topping, otherwise there won’t be any gooey cheese to help the other ingredients stick to the tater tots.
• Green onions or chives
• Sour cream
• Mayonnaise. Go for the real stuff or (even better) kewpie mayo, which is a Japanese-style mayo made with egg yolks and MSG
• Ranch seasoning or similar spice and herb blend, and some All-Purpose MSG Seasoning or salt and pepper

That’s all you need for this tater tot appetizer! But see below for a few suggestions if you want to go all out with your loaded tots.

Swaps and Substitutions

There are so many ways to customize these loaded tater tots! Here are a few delicious ideas to start with:

• Mince up a jalapeño pepper for some spice, or add some slices of pickled jalapeños on the side or on top
• Dice up some red onion or cilantro, both great additions for some fresh flavor in each bite
• Replace the bacon with chorizo or ground beef, with or without taco seasoning
• Save time by using packaged bacon bits instead of cooking bacon and chopping it up. Use real bacon bits for best flavor.

This tater tot appetizer will work for different dietary preferences and food allergies, too. Just be sure to make the appropriate adjustments. 

You can prepare some without bacon for your vegetarian friends, or swap for a non-dairy shredded cheese or cheese sauce if needed. And while the ingredients are all gluten-free, you should verify the ranch seasoning does not contain ingredients with gluten if you need to avoid it. 

How to Make Loaded Tater Tots on Shareable Skewers

If cooking in the oven, make sure you have a large baking sheet. You can line with parchment paper for super easy clean up. 

When you’re ready to get started, following these instructions to make this loaded tater tot recipe.

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Mix the sour cream, mayo, and ranch seasoning in a small bowl. Adjust flavor if needed with All-Purpose MSG Seasoning or salt and pepper. Set in the fridge until ready to serve. 
2. Spread the frozen tater tots in a single layer, leaving some room between each one so they get crispy instead of soggy. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or according to package instructions. Flip halfway through so they have a chance to brown more evenly. 
3. In the meantime, cook the bacon on the stovetop until crispy. Once cooked, place on a paper towel-lined plate to absorb excess grease. Once cooled, roughly chop into small pieces to use as a topping.
4. Once the tater tots are cooked, let them cool for a couple of minutes so you can handle them. Poke one of the small skewers through the center of the tots, allowing four tots per skewer. Spin them so they face the same direction and lie flat. Return them to the baking sheet, placing them close enough that they line up and nearly touch.
5. Add a layer of shredded cheese over the top. You can add the chopped bacon now if you prefer it to get extra crispy, or add later. Place the baking sheet back in the oven and broil on HIGH for 2-3 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
6. Take the baking sheet out of the oven and transfer the loaded tater tot skewers to your serving platter. Top with the green onions or chives, add the sour cream dip, and serve while they’re still hot!

Air Fryer Directions

To make these loaded tater tots in a basket-style air fryer, make a few changes to the prep process:

1. Preheat the basket at 400 degrees F for 2-3 minutes. This helps get the tots super crispy because they’ll be going into an already piping hot basket.
2. Add the frozen tater tots and cook for 5 minutes at 400 degrees F. Pause to shake the basket, then cook for another 5 minutes. 
3. Once they look evenly crispy and browned, let them cool for a few minutes as you prep the toppings. 
4. Build the skewers then place them back in the basket. Add the shredded cheese and bacon, then cook for one minute. Pull them out and quickly plate them, sprinkling with the other toppings so they will stick to the melted cheese. 

Note that you will likely have to work in batches since air fryers are significantly smaller than conventional ovens. This might not be the move for double the recipe or serving a crowd, but it was great for a small batch or half recipe. 

And yes, wooden skewers can go into an air fryer. Normally, you would soak them in water first as you would for grilling. But since they will be in there for such a short time, no need for that extra step. Look for short, 5-6″ skewers instead of full-size long skewers. 

Serving Suggestions

I think the skewers are great for watch parties, tailgating, or other events where you may be standing or holding a plate. When you need to eat with just one hand, food on a stick never fails! But I admit, it can be tedious and more time-consuming to make loaded tater tots on skewers. Instead, try these options:

• Spread the frozen tots on a baking sheet and bake. Then add the toppings to the crispy tots, loaded totchos style, and serve. With this option, you can also add black beans, pico de gallo, or diced avocado. 
• Place a few crispy tater tots in a lined muffin tin, then top and broil for a few minutes to melt the cheese. You get a fun, low-effort presentation and individual tater tot cups for everyone to enjoy.

And don’t be shy about doubling up on dips. You can set out small ramekins with BBQ sauce, buffalo sauce, or ranch dressing to give your guests plenty of options.

Some other loaded tater tot recipes turn it into a main meal. But this is meant to be a casual side dish or appetizer recipe. You can scale down the yield and bump up the serving size if you want. But it doesn’t quite meet the criteria for a full meal in my book.

Save this Loaded Tater Tots recipe for watch parties or tailgates, cozy movie nights on the couch, or game night with friends. You’ll all be reaching for the last one!

If you try this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment or rating to let me know what you think.

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