Name: Tater Tots In Air Fryer
Prep time: 2 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 17 min
Ingredients: 1 lb tater tots; cooking spray; salt

Tater tots in the air fryer are crispy, crunchy and delicious! This tasty potato puffs can be cooked from frozen in 15 minutes. They make a great side dish, appetizer or a yummy snack!

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air fryer tater tots with ketch up on the side

Frozen Tater Tots In The Air Fryer

If you haven’t tried tater tots, you’ll be in for a pleasant surprise because they taste so good. They are crispy, crunchy on the outside, and soft on the inside.

We love anything potatoes here, specially my kids! Tator tots are great as a snack or an appetizer. They’re served as a side dish too. But it doesn’t last that long in our house to make it to the dinner table!

The frozen tater tots are typically fried to get a crunchy texture. I used to bake it in the oven but it’s not the same and seemed like a lot of work for a quick snack or an appetizer.

Since the Air fryer works by circulating hot air around to cook the food, the tater tots turn out super crispy and cook faster. With this easy recipe there’s no need to thaw the tater tots and it gets cooked straight from frozen. As a busy mom, I really love cooking food in the Air fryer as it frees up the oven for more time-consuming or laborious cooking.

I love cooking Air Fryer Frozen Pizza, Air Fryer Frozen Burgers for quick meals, or Air Fryer French Fries, Air Fryer Frozen Sweet Potato Fries as side dishes.

For our favorite Air fryer recipes, check out the Air Fryer Recipes Collection.

What Are Tater Tots?

Tator tots are potato bites made from grated, parboiled potatoes and shaped cylindrically. They come frozen and typically deep-fried or oven-baked. Tator tots are served as a side dish or an appetizer with a dipping sauce.

The name Tater tots is registered to Ore-Ida company. Taters tots are also known as – Potato Puffs, Tater Rounds, Tater Puffs, and Tasti Taters.

Why We Love This Recipe:

Healthy with no deep frying and less oil
Crispy and crunchy
Requires less cooking time than baking in the oven
Great as an appetizer or side dish

Ingredients

Frozen Tater Tots – You can use the original Ore-Ida brand or any brands like Krogers, Trader Joe, McCain, Whole Foods, etc. I use McCain brand Tasti Taters here in Canada. This recipe is for a 16oz bag.

Cooking spray – This is optional but using a little bit of oil on the tater tots will prevent them from sticking together. I use an olive oil cooking spray but feel free to use vegetable oil or avocado oil.

Salt – You can keep it simple and sprinkle only salt or get fancy by adding the following seasonings.

Garlic powder
Onion powder
Smoked paprika
Parmesan cheese

How To Cook Frozen Tater Tots In Air Fryer

*A full printable version of this recipe with ingredient measurements is available at the bottom of this post in the recipe card.

Preheat Air fryer according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Or at 400˚F for 3 minutes.

Remove the tater tots from the bag and spread them on a baking sheet. This is totally optional but I do this because it makes it easier to coat the taters with oil and season them properly. NO THAWING is needed.

Spray the frozen tater tots with olive oil cooking spray or your preferred oil.

DON’T use aerosol cooking spray directly in the Air fryer basket as it will chip the coating. Even if you’re spraying it on food, there’s a chance the basket might get sprayed. It’s safer to do this before placing the tots in the Air fryer.

Season the tater tots. Although they come pre-seasoned I find it really bland. Sprinkle some salt or add your favorite seasonings. Toss to coat.

Place tater tots in the Air fryer basket in a single layer.

Air fry tater tots at 400˚F for approximately 10 minutes. Shake the basket. This ensures that all the tots crisp up evenly. Cook for another 5 minutes or until how crispy you want it to be. For crispiest tater tots let it cook until golden brown.

air fried tater tots in the air fryer basket.

Remove the tater tots from the Air fryer and serve warm with ketchup or your favorite dipping sauce.

Recipe Tips To Make Air Fryer Potato Tots

Preheat Air fryer. This ensures you get crispy air fryer tater tots. I find frozen food cooks better in a preheated air fryer.

Oil and season the tater tots before placing them in the Air fryer.

Place them in a single layer for best results. Cook in batches if needed.

Seasoning Ideas For Tater Tots

You can add different seasonings to this air fryer recipe to make it exciting.

Here are some seasoning ideas for you to try. Make sure you spray some oil and salt the taters before tossing them in the seasonings to make them stick. You can mix the spices together or use them individually.

Garlic powder – 1/2 teaspoon
Onion powder – 1/2 teaspoon each
Ground black pepper – 1/2 teaspoon
Smoked paprika – 1 teaspoon
Parmesan cheese – 1 tablespoon

Are Tater Tots Healthier in the air fryer?

Yes, air fryer tots are healthy compared to frying. Air frying has fewer calories since no extra oil is being used. Make sure you buy a brand that has fewer additives.

How long to cook frozen tater tots in Air fryer?

Cook frozen tater tots at 400˚F for 10 minutes, shake the basket and cook for another 5 more minutes until golden brown for crispy tater tots.

How to Serve Tater Tots

Tater tots are normally eaten with ketchup as an appetizer or snack. You don’t have to stop there. They are great with a wide variety of dipping sauces. Serve them with:

BBQ sauce
Ranch dressing
Spicy mayo sauce
Sweet chilli sauce
Cheese sauce

Kids and adults alike will love them served as a side dish with steak, fish, chicken, or shrimp. Tater tors will be delicious with any main dish.

How To Store

Store any leftover tater tots, in an airtight container and keep them in the fridge for 3 days.

Reheating Tater Tots In Air Fryer

Tater tots will taste fresh and crispy if you reheat them in the air fryer. No more soggy and limp microwave tater tots!

Preheat air fryer to 400F. Place the tater tots in the Air fryer and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until they are warm and crispy.

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