Tater Tots with Bacon and Cheese

These Tater Tots with Bacon and Cheese appetizers contain three of our favorite food groups! You’ll love this combination of crunchy bacon, crispy tater tots and melting cheddar cheese.

Pure bliss on a stick, these easy bite-sized hors d’oeuvres join some of our other favorite bacon appetizers, including Bacon Wrapped Little Smokies and Bacon Deviled Eggs. (If you love tots, you might also enjoy this Easy Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole with Bacon and Sausage.)

These small bites are like little sandwiches with the crispy tot sandwiched between two crispy pieces of bacon with melty cheddar cheese inside.

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Perhaps you’ve had bacon-wrapped tater tots before, a fine combination. The only downfall is that sometimes the bacon isn’t cooked evenly, and sometimes the tots aren’t crispy because they’re cooked in a cylinder of bacon. This appetizer eliminates that hazard.

The golden brown tater tot stays crispy, and you don’t have to fuss with turning and trying to evenly cook a cylinder of bacon in the oven.

Contents

Click on any of these headings to jump ahead:

1. Why Bacon Tater Tots are Worth Making
2. Ingredients Needed
3. Cooking Process
4. Useful Tools for this Recipe
5. Step by Step Directions
6. Leftovers and Reheating Instructions
7. FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions
8. Tater Tots with Bacon and Cheese Recipe
9. Save for Later

Why Bacon Tater Tots Are Worth Making

• You really can’t go wrong with potatoes, cheese and bacon.
• Unlike bacon-wrapped tots, you can see all the mouth-watering layers of goodness.
• The bacon is perfectly cooked – crispy, with just a little chewy bite.
• The tots are golden brown and crunchy.
• The cheddar cheese is melty.

Ingredients Needed

• 30 frozen tater tots from a 32 ounce bag – No need to thaw them first.
• 1 pound thick sliced bacon, about 12 strips – I prefer the thick-sliced bacon for this recipe, as it holds it shape a little better for more attractive and substantial hors d’oeuvres.
• 4 deli slices sharp cheddar cheese – Sharp cheddar contrasts nicely with the mild flavor of the tater tots, but you can use a different type of cheese if you wish.
• salt for sprinkling

Cooking Process

1. Cook the tater tots and bacon pieces in the oven on separate baking sheets.
2. Cut the cheese (literally, not figuratively) in squares.
3. Assemble the appetizers on sturdy skewers.
4. Serve, while humbly basking in the praise.

Useful Tools for this Recipe

Sturdy wood appetizer picks will help hold all the luscious layers together.

You’ll need three large baking sheets, two for the bacon and one for the tots.

The baking sheets are all lined with foil, and a top layer of parchment paper keeps the bacon from sticking.

Step by Step Directions

Begin by cutting thick-sliced bacon in squares and arranging the squares on two sheet pans lined with foil and topped with a piece of parchment paper.

The foil makes clean-up a breeze, and the parchment paper keeps the bacon from sticking.

Arrange the frozen tots on a foil-lined baking sheet.

Put the baking sheets in a preheated 450 degree F oven. The tots will need about 28 to 32 minutes to cook, and should be turned over once halfway during baking.

The bacon will cook in roughly the same time, but the exact cooking time depends on the thickness of the bacon and how your oven cooks. Keep an eye on the bacon and pull the pan from the oven when it’s browned and crispy.

Drain the bacon squares on paper towels and cool for 5 minutes.

Cut each piece of cheese in 9 square-ish pieces. (These pieces look huge! But this is a close-up photo of a standard deli slice of sharp cheddar cheese.)

Build each little sandwich by sandwiching a tater tot and cheese slice between two bacon squares.

Arrange the tater tot bacon bites on the parchment and foil-lined baking sheet. Return to the oven for 2 minutes, just until the cheese starts to melt.

Arrange on a platter, serve and enjoy!

Leftovers and Reheating Instructions

Let’s be honest. It’s highly unlikely that you’ll have leftover bacon tots. But if you do, you can store the leftover appetizers in a sealed container or on a foil-wrapped plate for up to 2 days in the refrigerator.

Reheat them on a baking sheet in a preheated 375 degree F oven for about 5-6 minutes, until hot.

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Tater Tots with Bacon and Cheese

Eliza Cross

These bite-sized appetizers feature crispy tater tots sandwiched between two crispy pieces of bacon with melty cheddar cheese inside.

4.56 from 29 votes

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 32 minutes mins

Additional Time 5 minutes mins

Total Time 42 minutes mins

Course Bacon Appetizers

Cuisine American

Servings 30 pieces

Calories 141 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 30 frozen tater tots from a 32 ounce bag
• 1 pound thick sliced bacon about 12 strips
• 4 deli slices sharp cheddar cheese
• salt for sprinkling
• 30 wooden picks or skewers

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line one baking sheet with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Line two more baking sheets with foil and top each with a piece of parchment paper.
• Cut each strip of bacon in 5 equal pieces. You should have about 60 pieces total. Arrange the bacon pieces on the parchment/foil-lined baking sheets, about 1 inch apart.
• Spread the frozen tater tots on the foil-lined baking sheet.
• Put the baking sheets in the oven and bake.
• Turn the bacon pieces once after 10 minutes and blot excess grease with paper towels. Return to the oven and continue cooking until brown and crispy, but not hard, about 10 more minutes. Your cooking time may vary depending on the thickness of the bacon.
• The tots will need 28-32 minutes to bake. Turn once after 14 minutes for even browning.
• While the bacon and tots are cooking, cut each of the cheese slices in thirds. Cut each third in 3 pieces, for a total of 9 small squares each. Reserve.
• Remove bacon from pan and transfer pieces to paper towels to drain. Cool the tater tots on the baking sheet and sprinkle with salt. Cool for 5 minutes. Do not turn off the oven.
• Assemble the appetizers by sandwiching a tater tot and cheese slice between two bacon slices.
• Arrange on the foil-lined baking sheet and return to oven for 2 minutes to melt the cheese. Serve hot. Makes 30 pieces.

Notes

You can make the bacon squares up to 24 hours ahead of time. After draining on paper towels, cover tightly and refrigerate. Reheat on a parchment-lined baking sheet at 400 degrees for 5 minutes and proceed with Step 9 of the recipe.

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Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 141kcalCarbohydrates: 9gProtein: 7gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 18mgSodium: 433mgFiber: 1g

Nutritional Information Disclosure

Keyword bacon appetizers, bacon recipe

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For more party snacks, check out our huge roundup of 52 Best Bacon Appetizers!

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