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These air fryer tater tots are the easiest, crispiest side dish ever. No added oil and only 15-minutes to achieve delicious tots from frozen in the air fryer. Plus, three different seasonings if you want to spruce up the traditional tater tot recipe!
Bored of the typical tater tots recipe? I’m not, but after trying out a bajillion different ways to eat tater tots I don’t think I’m ever going back! Three seasonings offered: Mexican Chili Lime, Greek Seasoning, and Spicy Smoky Buffalo … which will be your favorite?
Eating clean for the past five years, my favorite recipes were those that use simple, fresh ingredients. I’m a huge proponent of making easy side dishes that don’t skimp out on taste. For side dish recipes like this one, I prefer only a few ingredients that pack a huge flavor. For other simple, delicious side dishes try Mexican Street Corn (Elotes) or Fresh Avocado Salad.
Jump to:
- Highlights of this Recipe
- Ingredients & Substitutions
- Tips for Choosing the Best / Healthiest Tater Tots
- Diet Substitutions
- Step-By-Step Instructions
- Three Seasonings for Tater Tots
- Air Fryer Tips & Tricks
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Other Side Dishes You May Also Like
- What Do You Serve with Air Fryer Tater Tots
- 📖 Recipe
Highlights of this Recipe
This recipe is:
- Easy
- Healthier
- Quick
- Fun
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Frozen Tater Tots. Your preference of frozen tater tots. Choose your favorite between regular potato and sweet potato tater tots.
- Seasoning. (optional)
Tips for Choosing the Best / Healthiest Tater Tots
Not going to lie, tater tots are probably my favorite carb?? I always avoided tater tots when I could because I thought of them as unhealthy.
My suggestions to make this side dish healthier:
- Unseasoned. Buy tater tots unseasoned and add your own seasoning!
- No Oil. Using the air fryer with no added oil already reduces the added fat in this recipe.
- Nutrition Facts. Read the nutrition facts when purchasing a bag of frozen tater tots. Just because something says organic or is made of sweet potato does NOT mean it’s healthier than another option.
- Portion-control. It’s easy to make the entire bag of frozen tater tots and then feel stuffed and sick to your stomach. It helps to measure out your food depending on how many people are eating it.
My favorite brands for tater tots are Alexia and Cascadian Farms!
Diet Substitutions
Vegan. This air fryer recipe already is!
Gluten Free. Most frozen tater tot packages already are, but just ensure so on the packaging!
Paleo / Whole30. Use frozen cauliflower vegetable tater tots as a substitute! Or make your own!
Step-By-Step Instructions
STEP ONE: Preheat the air fryer.
STEP TWO: Air fry the frozen tater tots.
STEP THREE: Shake after 5-minutes, 10-minutes, and then remove.
STEP FOUR: Eat as is, or add seasoning.
Three Seasonings for Tater Tots
- Mexican Chili Lime Seasoning
With chili lime seasoning and even cotija cheese if you’d like, Mexican chili lime tater tots is delicious! If you’re a fan of Tajín or Trader Joe’s Chili Lime seasoning this is where it’s at!
- Greek Seasoning
With dried herbs, garlic and onion, what’s not to like about this fresh take on the typical tater tots. Perfect for those who love Italian seasoning. Try using fresh herbs if you’d like!
- Spicy Smoky Buffalo Seasoning
With cayenne pepper, paprika and chili powder, this spicy and smoky buffalo seasoning is great for those who like a little heat!
Air Fryer Tips & Tricks
- Make sure to preheat the air fryer to allow for the crispiest air fryer tots! My Ninja Air Fryer suggests 3 minutes of preheating so that is what I typically do.
- Spread out frozen tater tots in an even layer.
- Don’t overcrowd the air fryer. Do it in batches rather than overcrowd your air fryer.
- It’s best to shake the air fryer basket halfway through the frying time. This helps make sure all sides are evenly crisped. You can shake the basket or use tongs to toss the tater tots.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! You can cook and also reheat tater tots in the air fryer!
1. Preheat your air fryer for 3 minutes at 350ºF.
2. Air fry the tater tots for 3-5 minutes, and then serve warm!
You can try my three seasonings: Mexican Chili Lime, Greek, or Smoky Spicy Buffalo. Or you can add cajun seasoning, chili powder, Italian seasoning, or even plain garlic salt!
Tater tots themselves can be high calorie, high fat, high carbs. Look at the nutrition facts when purchasing a bag. This air fryer recipe uses no oil, which helps make these tater tots more healthy than deep frying or using oil.
Air Fried tater tots don’t really need a sauce - they’re great as is! If you do want a dipping sauce, try ketchup, mustard, avocado lime sauce, or even BBQ sauce!
Other Side Dishes You May Also Like
What Do You Serve with Air Fryer Tater Tots
📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Tater Tots (3 Ways!)
Equipment
- Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 16 OZ Frozen Tater Tots
Mexican Chili Lime Seasoning
- 1 TBSP Tajin or Chili Lime Seasoning
- 0.5 OZ Cotija Cheese optional
Greek Seasoning
- 2 TSP Dried parsley
- 2 TSP dried Oregano
- ½ TSP Garlic Powder
- ½ TSP onion powder
- ½ TSP Garlic salt
Spicy Smoky Buffalo Seasoning
- ½ TSP Cayenne Powder
- ¼ TSP chili powder
- 1 TSP Paprika
- ½ TSP Kosher Salt
- ½ TSP garlic powder
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400ºF for 3 minutes.
- Place the frozen tater tots in the air fryer basket in an even layer. If your air fryer is smaller you may have to complete in batches.
- Air fry the tater tots for 12-minutes at 400ºF. After 5-minutes, remove the air fryer basket and shake well to toss all of the tater tots. Repeat after an additional 5-minutes (at the 10-minute mark).
- If after 10-minutes your tater tots have become dark brown, watch closely for the remaining time.
- Remove after the full 12-minutes.
With Seasoning
- If using a seasoning: combine the seasoning ingredients.
- Add the air fried tater tots and seasoning to a large bowl and toss gently to cover all tater tots evenly.
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