One of the most frequent questions that I usually get on my website is ‘Can I reheat tater tots?’ or ‘How to reheat tater tots?’ Yes, you can, in fact, reheat tater tots.
That’s why I decided to dedicate a whole article to discuss all the different ways you can warm up your leftover tater tots including the best one, which is the oven methods, and the worst one, the microwave method, with detailed steps you can follow so that you can enjoy this delicious snack one more time!
Methods of reheating tater tots:
- Using the stovetop.
- Using the Air fryer.
- Using the oven.
- Using the deep fryer.
Reheating Tater Tots On The Stovetop
This is one of the quickest and most efficient ways to reheat any leftover or stale tater tots. All you need is a frying pan and some oil.
Here’s how to reheat tater tots on the stove:
- On a medium heat flame, place your non-stick pan. Drizzle some oil on the pan so the tater tots can crisp up and heat. Be careful not to add too much oil.
- Wait for the pan to heat before adding the tater tots. Check the temperature of the pan so that it is not too hot that it might cause the added tater tots to burn.
- Place the tater tots in the pan. Don’t overcrowd them. Watch them carefully while they are warming up so that they don’t accidentally burn.
- Flip each one every few seconds to make sure they are equally reheated.
- Once they crisp up and are reheated enough, take them off the heat onto a plate lined with paper towel. This should soak up all the excess oil.
- Enjoy while it is still piping hot!
Despite how easy reheating the tater tots on the stove top, yet it requires careful monitoring and flipping so that it doesn’t burn and dry up. It is also important to add just enough oil to avoid the sticking of the tater tots to the pan, and not too much to make the tater tots oily.
Don’t overcrowd the tater tots as they won’t properly heat up and equally.
Reheating Tater Tots In The Air Fryer:
If you have ever read any of my articles, then you would know how much I adore using the Air fryer in absolutely anything. I mean, who wouldn’t?
It provides you with a healthy option to pretty much warm up any food whatsoever.
And the tater tots are no different. You will not need a drop of oil. The outcome is as crispy and delicious as the freshly made one, especially if it was originally made using the air fryer. Moist and tender from the inside, crispy and crunchy on the outside!
Here is how to reheat tater tots in the air fryer:
- Align the tater tots on the Air fryer rack without overlapping them after preheating the Air fryer to 380°F.
- Let the tater tots warm up in the air fryer for 5 minutes.
- Check the tater tots whether they are warm enough or not. If they require more time, then leave them for an extra 2 minutes to heat.
- Enjoy them while they are still warm.
Can You Reheat Tater Tots In The Microwave?
I know whenever it comes to reheating any leftover food, your mind will go immediately to using the microwave. And you know most of the time, it does the trick quickly, with no effort. However, it is not preferred in that case at all.
Generally speaking, fried food, especially tater tots, doesn’t go well in the microwave. Kinda like the French fries, they will turn soggy and mushy, losing all the amazing crisp we all love to enjoy in the tater tots.
That’s mainly because the microwave doesn’t release the same dry heat as the oven or the air fryer needed to dry the leftover tater tots.
So, whatever extra minutes you are saving from using the microwave are better spent using the oven, or better, the air fryer to make the stale tater tots taste exactly like the freshly made ones!
Can You Reheat Tater Tots In A Deep Fryer?
Believe it or not, reheating tater tots in a deep fryer will actually result in a near perfect crispy tater tots, only if you followed certain tips.
First, you will need to allow the oil to reach the right temperature before placing the tater tots in it.
Don’t overheat them in the oil. 2 minutes should be sufficient to crisp them up.
Line the plate with a paper towel before taking the tater tots off the deep fryer so that all the excess oil is soaked up. You can also place the already fried tater tots in a low heat oven so that they could stay warm and crispy while you are deep frying the rest.
The Best Way To Reheat Tater Tots:
If you ask me what is the best way to reheat tater tots, then I will definitely recommend using the oven without a doubt. It will provide you with an equally heated and crispy tater tots that you will get to warm up in one large batch.
The stovetop and the air fryer are quicker alternatives to the oven that provide a crispy and an acceptable outcome.
Reheating Tater Tots In The Oven:
Having numerous people over for dinner or a get-together and want to reheat your tater tots?
Oven is definitely your go-to when it comes to reheating a large batch on one go. In addition to the fact that it results in a crispy and crunchy tater tots on the outside while still retaining a moist and soft inside.
Here is how to reheat tater tots in the oven for the best results:
- Prepare a baking pan by spreading melted butter on its surface so that the tater tots don’t stick.
- Align all the tater tots in the pan. Make sure not to overcrowd them and stick them beside each other so that every single one equally warms and crisp up.
- While you are placing the tater tots in the pan, let the oven preheat to 350°F.
- Tightly cover the baking tray containing the tater tots with aluminum foil before placing it in the preheated oven.
- Transfer the baking tray with the tater tots to the oven after making sure it is fully heated. Allow them to heat for 20 to 25 minutes with constant monitoring every few minutes so that they don’t dry or burn.
- Remove them from the oven once they are crispy and hot. Enjoy!
It is recommended to cover the baking tray with aluminum foil so that the tater tots don’t dry from the extreme oven meat and all the moist are contained.
Frequently asked questions:
Can I Freeze Tater Tots That Have Been Cooked?
Yes, of course you can. All you need to do is wait for the cooked tater tots to cool to room temperature before you place them inside an air tight freezer bag. Make sure to release all the excess air as much as possible from the freezer bag.
Another smart way where you can avoid the tater tots from sticking together when frozen is to first freeze the whole baking tray containing the aligned tater tots, then move the tater tots to a freezer bag and into the freezer.
This will help you whenever you want to only defrost some of the tater tots, not all of them in one go.
How Long Can You Keep Tater Tots in the Fridge?
Ideally, tater tots can withstand four days in the fridge. However, you will certainly need to check their smell and texture for anything odd before consuming it.
Bear in your mind that tater tots’ texture will change by day. That’s why they are better reheated the very next day after their refrigeration.
Can You Reheat Tater Tots That Have Been Reheated Already?
Just like most of the types of food, it is not recommended for the tater tots to be reheated more than once, as that encourages bacteria to grow and makes you liable for food poisoning.
Better be safe and throw any leftover reheated tater tots!
Hi, I’m Julie, the passionate foodie and founder of Juliesfamilykitchen.com. I created this blog out of a drive to prove someone wrong, and then I realized how much I truly enjoy cooking and trying new recipes. In my free time, when I’m not running around after my kids or spending quality time with my partner, you can usually find me in the kitchen experimenting with new dishes.