This Tex Mex Vegan Tater Tot Casserole will soon be your family’s new favorite vegan dinner recipes. Easy to make and completely gluten free.
It’s no secret that most of the planet likes tater tots. I mean it’s potatoes in fun shapes that are perfect for dipping. That’s why this tex mex vegan tater tot casserole is a hit for kids and adults alike.
We are basically make a taco “meat” filling and then adding tater tots and cheese on top and baking it to perfection.
It’s so easy to make and the hardest part about it will be waiting for it to finish cooking in the oven.
Once you are done you can top it with any of your favorite taco toppings and serve it up.
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What ingredients do I need to make tex mex vegan tater tot casserole?
The list may look long, but it should be things you mostly already have on hand. It will be easy to make once you get into a groove.
Full ingredient amounts listed in the printable recipe card below.
- Avocado Oil (or Olive Oil — can sub for vegetable stock if oil free)
- Soaked Walnuts
- Red Onion
- Garlic
- Bell Pepper
- Taco Seasoning (we use this homemade taco seasoning – ensure if you are buying store bought that it is in fact dairy free as some are not)
- Soy sauce (sub for liquid aminos, coconut aminos, or soy free, gluten free sauce)
- Lime juice
- Corn
- Diced Tomatoes and Chilis
- Black Beans
- Vegan Cheese
We are also making our vegan nacho cheese for this recipe. For that, you will need:
- Butter beans
- Nutritional yeast
- Diced Jalapeños
- Lemon juice
- Vegan butter
- Oat flour
- Dairy Free milk
- Salt
- Cayenne Pepper
- Chili Powder
- Garlic Powder
- Onion Powder
- Smoked Paprika
- Cumin
- Turmeric
Can I make tex mex vegan tater tot casserole Top 8 Allergen Free?
The base of this dish is walnuts and the cheese sauce has vegan butter which usually contains soy, plus soy sauce.
For the butter, just choose a soy free vegan butter like Earth Balance soy free vegan butter. It comes in a red tub.
For the walnuts, you could try subbing with lentils.
For the soy sauce, depending on the allergies you have, you can replace the soy sauce with gluten-free tamari, coconut aminos or a Top 8 no soy sauce (click links to see each).
How long is tex mex vegan tater tot casserole good for?
This casserole will last 5-7 days in the fridge in an air tight container.
Can tex mex vegan tater tot casserole be frozen?
You could let the “meat” mixture cool and then add the frozen tater tots on top, cover it tightly and freeze it. When you are ready to use it, add an additional 10-15 minutes to the cook time (or until the dish is warmed throughout entirely).
What other vegan dinner ideas could I make?
If you love this easy dairy free dinner recipe, you may be wondering what other dairy free dinner ideas we have. Here are some ideas we have (all are vegan):
- Vegan Instant Pot Tex Mex Rice
- Vegan Taco Casserole
- Vegan Italian Meatballs
- Vegan Alfredo
- Easy Dairy Free Spinach & Walnut Pesto
Pin this tex mex vegan tater tot casserole for later:
Tex Mex Vegan Tater Tot Casserole
Ingredients
Vegan Nacho Cheese
- 1 15oz can Butter Beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 4oz can diced jalapenos (see notes for spice level)
- 1 cup unsweetened dairy free milk
- ½ cup nutritional yeast
- ¼ cup vegan butter (use soy free if needed)
- 2 tablespoon oat flour (can be subbed for almond or chickpea flour)
- ½ teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon onion powder
For the Walnut Taco Meat
- 4 cups soaked walnuts
- 2 red onions
- 1 bell pepper (any color will work, we like to use red)
- 8 cloves garlic
- 1 10 oz can diced tomatoes and chilis, drained (Rotel is a popular name brand of this)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (use vegetable stock if oil free)
- 2 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce (sub for coconut amimos or other allergy friendly alternative, see post for details)
- 1 juice of a lime
- 1 15oz can corn, drained and rinsed
- 1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 32oz bag tater tots
- 1 cup vegan shredded cheese
Additional Taco Toppings, Optional
- jalapenos
- vegan sour cream
- diced tomatoes
- avocado or guacamole
Instructions
- Soak walnuts for a minimum of 30 minutes in boiling hot water or up to 4 days ahead in the fridge.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
For the nacho cheese
- Pour all ingredients into a high powered blender. *See notes if you do not have a blender.
- Blend for 5 minutes or until a thickened, creamy, well-combined sauce.
- Serve warm.
For the Walnut Meat
- Drain walnuts. Put them into a food processor and pulse until you have meat like crumbles. *Be careful not to over process or you will end up with walnut butter.
- Chop onions, garlic, and peppers very fine.
- Add oil to a large skillet (*we are using a 12" cast iron skillet to go directly into the oven), and saute your onions and peppers until translucent (about 2-3 minutes).
- Add in the garlic for 1 more minute.
- Sprinkle the taco seasoning across and stir to combine.
- Add in tomatoes and chili, crumbled walnuts, soy sauce and lime juice.
- Cook for 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes.
- Add in 1 ½ cups prepared nacho cheese, corn and black beans. Stir together. Cook for another 3 minutes.
- *If using an oven safe skillet, add your frozen tater tots to the top. *If you are not, transfer mixture to a 9×13 casserole dish and then add the tater tots to the top
- Top with vegan shredded cheese.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes or until tater tots have cooked through. Broil for a few seconds after if desired for a crispier tots, careful not to burn.
- Remove carefully and serve with remaining nacho cheese or any of your favorite taco toppings.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Let’s see your creations!
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Cameron Head
I love this recipe. Its easy and very tasty.
LarishaBernard
So glad that you enjoyed it!
Lisa P
Made this over the weekend in my cast iron skillet. My husband (and I) loved it! The cheese sauce was very tasty and my husband asked if there was more (gotta be honest, making cheese sauces usually scares me but this was really good!). A great recipe for fall, plan to make again!
Morgan
I think there might be a typo 2 red onions seems like way too much onion especially after watching the video and comparing the amount.
LarishaBernard
That’s really how much we used. The video has 1 red and 1 white since we didn’t have 2 at the time of making