Tater tot casserole is a Midwest staple, and every family in my area has their own take on it. Here's MY version: a can-free, gluten free, and dairy free tater tot casserole made with a full-flavored beef and mushroom gravy and lots of veggies.
This tater tot casserole recipe may not be the exact version you grew up with, but it makes a flavorful, delish dairy free and gluten free casserole that makes a perfect comfort food dinner.
Quick Look: Can-Free Tater Tot Casserole
⏲️Ready In: 1 Hour
🍽Servings: 6
🥗Nutrition: 529 Calories
🥘Main Ingredients: Mushrooms, Ground Beef, Tater Tots, Coconut Milk/Milk, Beef Broth, Frozen Peas, Frozen Green Beans, Frozen Corn
📋Dietary Notes: Gluten free, Grain free, Dairy free, Nut free
⭐Why You'll Love It: A homemade version of the Midwest classic, with a homemade mushroom gravy and frozen vegetables.
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Cozy comfort food casseroles feed the family but don't always have the best ingredients. I try to keep casseroles high protein and nutritious - just check out Leftover Pulled Pork Casserole with Poblanos or Skillet Pizza Chicken Casserole for examples!
This gluten free tater tot casserole uses a homemade beef and mushroom gravy for a flavorful take on this classic Midwestern hotdish!
Jump to:
- Quick Look: Can-Free Tater Tot Casserole
- Key Ingredients
- Can you really make tater tot casserole without cream of mushroom soup?
- How to make Can-Free Tater Tot Casserole
- Top Tips from Chelsea
- Can-Free Tater Tot Casserole FAQs
- What to serve as a side dish
- More delicious gluten free casserole recipes
- 📖 Recipe
Key Ingredients
Ground Beef: Grab extra lean ground beef for this recipe to help boost the protein content. We sometimes double the beef! Alternatively, you can use a mix of ground beef and ground turkey.
Cremini Mushrooms: My favorite mushrooms for gravies, like in Gluten Free Breaded Chicken Cutlets with Mushroom Sauce. Also known as baby bella mushrooms.
Coconut Milk/Milk: To keep this casserole dairy free, use coconut milk - trust me, you won't notice a coconut flavor unless you're very, very sensitive to it! Otherwise, you can use milk.
Gluten Free Flour/Cassava Flour: As originally written, I used cassava flour to thicken the gravy and it worked wonderfully. If you don't have cassava flour, substitute gluten free flour.
Tater Tots: Make sure you check the ingredients list for the tater tots you purchase. Some brands have added ingredients and aren't necessarily gluten free. I like Cascadian Farms Spud Puppies.
Frozen Peas/Green Beans/Corn: I like including peas, green beans, and corn in my tater tot casserole. That said, some of my friends have strong opinions about the vegetables included! Mix and match if you'd like. Also, canned vegetables work fine too if you've got them!
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Can you really make tater tot casserole without cream of mushroom soup?
Absolutely!
This take on the classic has you making your own gluten free creamy mushroom gravy instead of using cream of mushroom from a can. The result is a "grown up" version of what I remember as kid with a fuller rustic, beefy flavor.
To make this recipe dairy free, I used coconut milk to make the gravy creamy. Don't worry, you can't taste the coconut; but if dairy isn't an issue for you, feel free to use regular milk.
How to make Can-Free Tater Tot Casserole
Step 1: Heat olive oil in a skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and brown ground beef. Remove to a bowl.
Step 2: Add 1 tablespoon of butter to the skillet along with onions, mushrooms, garlic, thyme, and sage. Sauté until softened.
Step 3: Add the remaining butter and cassava flour, stirring to coat the veggies until no dry flour remains. Add the red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, and coconut aminos/tamari, stirring to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet.
Step 4: Slowly pour in the broth and coconut milk/milk while stirring. It should thicken as you stir it in. Add the ground beef and juices back to the skillet.
Step 5: Add frozen or canned vegetables to the gravy (don't overfill the skillet like I did in the photos!) and stir to incorporate.
Step 6: Spread the tater tot casserole filling out in a 9x13 casserole dish.
Step 7: Top casserole with tater tots. Bake at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes, until tots are cooked and filling is bubbly.
Top Tips from Chelsea
Boost the protein by doubling the ground beef or using a mix of 1 pound ground beef and 1 pound ground turkey.
Have canned vegetables? Use them! While this is a "can-free" tater tot casserole, the main thing readers are looking to replace is the canned cream of mushroom soup. Don't be afraid to use drained cans of green beans, peas, or corn here.
Add cheese if you'd like! Either sprinkle cheese over the filling before putting the tater tots on and cook as directed, or sprinkle cheese on top of the tater tots and pop back into the oven for another 5 minutes.
Can-Free Tater Tot Casserole FAQs
Yes! You can prep the whole gluten free casserole, tater tots and all, and leave it in the fridge overnight before you bake it. However, make sure to take the dish out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature while the oven is preheating.
Likewise, you can prep the innards of the casserole, without the tater tots, and store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
When you're ready to make the casserole, just spread the meat mixture into the dish, arrange the tater tots on top as you normally would, and bake as directed.
After cooked, gluten free tater tot casserole keeps well for leftovers. Just store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Best if eaten reheated.
No. You can top the casserole with frozen tater tots and they'll cook in the oven!
Yes! Either sprinkle cheese over the filling before putting the tater tots on and cook as directed, or sprinkle cheese on top of the tater tots and pop back into the oven for another 5 minutes.
Absolutely. While this is a "can-free" tater tot casserole, the main thing readers are looking to replace is the canned cream of mushroom soup. Don't be afraid to use drained cans of green beans, peas, or corn here.
What to serve as a side dish
Great news - for a casserole like this, you probably don't need to serve a side dish! I intentionally packed this recipe with veggies to help bulk it up AND provide a more well-rounded meal, so you don't really need to do more cooking.
If you're overwhelmed with the heaviness of Midwest cooking (trust me, it gets to me sometimes too), you can serve this with a simple, light salad of fresh greens and a simple oil and vinegar dressing, like Bacon, Spinach, and Red Onion Salad or Chopped Spinach Salad with Sunbutter Vinaigrette.
More delicious gluten free casserole recipes
Did you try this can-free tater tot casserole recipe? I'd love to hear what you think! Please leave a comment and rating or tag me on Instagram - I appreciate your feedback.
Print📖 Recipe
Can-Free Tater Tot Casserole
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Midwestern
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Every Midwest family has their own take, but my version is a can-free tater tot casserole that's dairy free and gluten free, with lots of flavor thanks to a homemade beef and mushroom gravy!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pound ground beef
- 4 tablespoons ghee or butter
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 2 cups crimini mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon coconut aminos or tamari
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme OR 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon fresh sage OR 1 teaspoon dried sage
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ⅓ cup cassava flour or gluten free flour blend
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 cup full-fat coconut milk
- 2 ½ cups beef broth
- 1 10oz bag frozen peas
- 1 10oz bag frozen green beans
- 1 10oz bag frozen corn (optional)
- 2 16oz bags frozen tater tots
Instructions
- Brown beef. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or saucepot over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and brown, breaking into small pieces with a spatula. Transfer the cooked beef to a plate and set aside.
- Sauté vegetables. In the same dutch oven, add 1 tablespoon of ghee. Add the onions, mushrooms, thyme, sage, and garlic. Cook for 6 to 10 minutes, until the onions are transparent and the mushrooms have softened. Add the salt and pepper and stir.
- Make gravy. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons ghee. Once the ghee has melted, add the cassava flour and stir until the vegetables are coated and no dry flour remains. While stirring, add the red wine vinegar, coconut aminos, and mustard, scraping up any bits on the bottom of the pan. Slowly pour in the beef broth and coconut milk. Once the mixture has thickened into a gravy, add the reserved ground beef. Add the frozen peas, green beans, and corn (if using), stirring to incorporate.
- Prepare casserole. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking pan and spread evenly with a spatula. Top with an even layer of frozen tater tots.
- Cook casserole. Bake at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Pay close attention to the ingredients list on the tater tots. Some brands have added ingredients that may not work for a gluten free or paleo diet.
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Boost the protein by doubling the ground beef or using a mix of 1 pound ground beef and 1 pound ground turkey.
-
Have canned vegetables? Use them! While this is a "can-free" tater tot casserole, the main thing readers are looking to replace is the canned cream of mushroom soup. Don't be afraid to use drained cans of green beans, peas, or corn here.
-
Add cheese if you'd like! Either sprinkle cheese over the filling before putting the tater tots on and cook as directed, or sprinkle cheese on top of the tater tots and pop back into the oven for another 5 minutes.
Molly says
This was very good! I think I would prefer to cut the red wine vinegar in half, it was a little over powering for myself but I also did not add the mushrooms so I’m not sure if this would of made a difference. Will definitely make again!
Chelsea Joy says
Thanks for the feedback, Molly! I'm glad you enjoyed it! Yes, feel free to cut back on the red wine vinegar; I love that acid but it's not for everyone. 🙂
Charlene L Simpson says
The recipe is described as dairy free, but one of the first ingredients is ghee or butter. Is there a dairy free brand you recommend?
Chelsea Joy says
Hi Charlene - you are totally right! I first published this recipe back in the day when I was under the impression all ghee was dairy free, but now I know that's not quite right.
Since here it's basically used as a cooking fat, you should be able to sub in olive oil or avocado oil just fine. Otherwise, you can use a vegan butter/margarine like Country Crock or Miyoko's!
Thanks for your comment and patience with me - it's on my ever-growing to-do list to update some of these older recipes!