Dec 30 2020

Cheesy Tater Tot Pulled Pork Casserole with Herb Pretzel Crumble

Name: Cheesy Tater Tot Pulled Pork Casserole with Herb Pretzel Crumble
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 45 min
Cuisine: casserole
Ingredients: 16 ounces of Tater Tots, thawed; 2 cups shredded cheddar, divided; 2 cups, pulled pork, warmed; 1/2 cup bbq sauce, warmed and divided; 2 cups mac ‘n cheese, warmed; 1 cup cubed velveeta (processed cheese); 2 cups crushed pretzels; 3 tablespoon butter, unsalted; 1 teaspoon dried parsley; 2 green onions, chopped

Find the recipe card at the end of the post. Make sure to read the content as it contains chef tips, substitution options, and answers to FAQs to help you succeed the first time around!

Posts may contain affiliate links that help enable me to continue to provide you with free recipes. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Please see my Privacy Policy for details.

This casserole combines a love of crispy tater tots, bbq pulled pork, and creamy mac ‘n cheese topped with a cheesy herb pretzel crumble.

It’s the end of 2020 and that means out with the old and in with the new. For me, that includes out with the leftovers and in with new delicious recipes.

This recipe is actually one that is made up of all leftovers or half bags of stuff. You see, I do a deep clean out of my freezer (and fridge) every quarter. For as much as I cook and bake, leftovers are something we are never without. And even though I give away so much food, I still find I have a lot on hand.

Leftover Revamp

The thing about leftovers, I almost never eat them like that, a leftover. Growing up as poor as we did, the variety wasn’t an option so Mom had to become a kitchen magician and transform leftovers into new and exciting dishes.

So for this recipe, I channeled my Mom.

Recipe Ingredients

As I said above, all of these items are either from the freezer as leftovers, in the fridge from an earlier meal that week, OR opened bags of stuff.

BBQ Pulled Pork – I used this recipe for the pork and bbq sauce
Tater Tots – I had about a half of a bag in the freezer
Creamy Mac ‘n Cheese – I had about 3 cups of this recipe left in the fridge
Cheese – Shredded Cheddar and Cubed Velveeta
Crushed Pretzels – It was the end of a bag of pretzels that weren’t that fresh anymore
Herbed Butter – just butter with some parsley

Let’s Make Deliciousness!

While the oven is preheating, lightly spray a 9″ pie pan. You can also use a 9×9″ baking dish too.
Place the thawed tater tots in the pan.

Using the back of a lightly sprayed measuring cup (can use flat bottom glass), press the tots into an even layer on the bottom and up the sides of the pie plate.
Pop the pan into the oven and bake for 20 minutes.

Let’s Assemble The Tater Tot Casserole

The trick here is you want to par-bake the tater tot crust as this will help them get crispy and stay crispy as the casserole bakes.

To the par-baked tater tot crust, add 1 1/2 cups of the shredded cheddar.
Next, spread out the warmed pulled pork over top.

Drizzle over the bbq sauce and then add the warmed mac ‘n cheese.
Spread out the mac ‘n cheese to the edges.

Sprinkle on cubed Velveeta and 2 tablespoon of shredded cheddar.

To a bowl add the butter and parsley, melt, and mix.
Pour the mixture over top of the pretzel crumbs and mix until evenly coated.

Top it off!

Evenly sprinkle the herb pretzel crumble over top, gently pressing into the mac ‘n cheese.

Add the remaining shredded cheddar over the top of the pretzel crumble and bake.

Since the pork and mac ‘n cheese is already warmed through, you really only need to bake it until the cheese is fully melted and the tots are crisped to perfection. ~15-20 minutes.

Resist the urge

Once the dish is done, remove it from the oven and let it rest for about 10 minutes or until it goes from volcano-molten lava cheesy hot to okay, this is perfect temp!

Let’s Eat!

To serve you can use a pie server to cut it into rustic slices OR just use a large spoon and scoop everyone up some!

Since I’m a sauce lover, I made sure to serve some extra, warmed bbq sauce on the side. I just drizzled over some sauce and added some green onions.

The onions not only add color but add great flavor!

Weekend Feast!

This dish is definitely great comfort food. It’s hearty, filling, and perfect for weekend eats. Because tots, pulled pork, and mac ‘n cheese are any time of the year dish, this dish works for cookouts, holiday feasts, weekend feasts, or a killer game day dish.

Seriously, this is total MVP food!

How to Store & Reheat

Leftovers can be stored in the fridge, covered for a few days. Obviously, the age of your pulled pork will dictate this. Frozen leftover pulled pork will last about 5 days in the fridge.

To reheat, heat the oven up to 350F. Cover the dish with foil and place in the oven for about 10-15 minutes or until warmed through. You can also microwave this but keep in mind the tots will not be crispy.

Recipe Additions

So. while you’re doing your fridge (or pantry) raid for the ingredients you may spy some other stuff and wonder what else you could put in this. Fear not, I got’chu on some things I know that work super well with this dish!

Crispy Bacon – seriously, it’s bacon. OF COURSE, it goes into this dish!
Onions – I’m that weirdo that has a container of caramelized onions/shallots in her fridge at all times. I LOVE the flavors they impart in dishes.
Other Veggies – sauteed spinach, roasted broccoli (chop it small)
Chorizo – some sauteed, crumbled chorizo is killer in this

Recipe Substitutions

Tots – you could use crispy potato crowns, hash brown patties, or veggie tots!
Pulled Pork – Chicken Barbacoa, Beef Barbacoa, pulled chicken
Mac ‘n Cheese – you can totally use cauliflower “mac” and cheese
Cheese – any melty cheese
Pretzels – crushed potato chips, corn chips, Doritos… you get the idea! Go with what’s in your pantry!