Vegan tater tot casserole is made with mixed veggies and vegan chicken chunks with a delicious cashew gravy poured over and topped with a crispy tater tot crust!
Ready to whip up a scrumptious everyday winner? Let's get started!
This easy, comforting casserole is a favorite of ours, and it looks absolutely beautiful when made in a round cast iron skillet. This is a great recipe that non-vegans enjoy too, because it's so hearty and satisfying.
What you'll need to whip up this Vegan Tater Tot Casserole:
- tater tots (you knew that!!!)
- frozen mixed veggies
- raw cashews
- onion and garlic
- Braggs liquid aminos or soy sauce
- vegan chicken substitute (optional, but I love the Gardein chicken strips in this!)
How to make Vegan Tater Tot Casserole:
Start by sautéing your diced onion and minced garlic with a little olive oil in the bottom of a 12 inch cast iron skillet over low/medium heat until onions are clear (or just sauté in a regular frying pan and transfer to an oven safe dish of comparable size if you don't have the cast iron skillet!) (Photo #1).
Add raw cashews, cornstarch or flour, Braggs, onion and garlic powder, and water to your blender and blend until completely smooth (Photo #2).
Distribute 3 cups of frozen mixed veggies over the sautéed onions and garlic, followed by chopped pieces of vegan chicken substitute (I love the Gardein strips, but this is totally optional).
Pour blended gravy over veggie mixture and top with a tater tot arrangement of your choice! Bake at 425 for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly (Photo #4)!
How to store vegan tater tot casserole:
Transfer leftovers to a covered dish and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Rewarm in the oven for a crispy top, or in the microwave for a softer texture!
Don't want to buy store-bought veggie meat alternatives?
These Tender Vegan Steaks work great chopped up in this dish! Store extras in the freezer and use for a plethora of different dishes! An all-around favorite homemade veggie meat substitute.
Other hearty vegan entrees:
- Vegan Stuffed Acorn Squash - this one makes a great holiday dinner!
- Vegan Cheesy Rice and Cauliflower Casserole
- Vegan Wild Rice Casserole
- Creamy Vegan Stroganoff
- Vegan Chimichangas
- Vegan Manicotti
- Vegan Fried Rice with Scrambled Tofu
And how about some dessert to finish off the meal?
If you’ve tried this Vegan Tater Tot Casserole recipe or any other recipe on my blog then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I LOVE hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more delicious food!!!
Vegan Tater Tot Casserole
Ingredients
Saute:
- ½ cup onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 pinch salt
Blend:
- 2 cups water
- ¾ cup raw cashews
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch or flour
- 2 Tbsp Bragg's liquid Aminos, or soy sauce
- 2 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 pinch rubbed sage
Distribute:
- 3 cups frozen mixed veggies
- 1 ½ cup chopped vegan chicken substitute
Top:
- 3 cups tater tots, heaping - may need more depending on pan size
Special equipment
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
- Start by sautéing your diced onion and minced garlic with olive oil and a pinch of salt in the bottom of a 12 inch cast iron skillet over low/medium heat until onions are clear (or just sauté in a regular frying pan and transfer to an oven safe dish of comparable size if you don't have the cast iron skillet!).
- Add cashews, cornstarch or flour, Braggs, onion and garlic powder, rubbed sage, and water to your blender and blend until completely smooth.
- Distribute 3 cups of frozen mixed veggies over the sautéed onions and garlic, followed by chopped pieces of vegan chicken substitute (I love the Gardein strips, but this is totally optional).
- Pour blended gravy over veggies mixture and top with a tater tot arrangement of your choice! Sprinkle the top with garlic salt for added yumminess!
- Bake at 425 for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly!
Do you have a cashew substitute? My daughters have food allergies and this recipe works minus the cashews. Thank you for your help!
Hi Ashlee, the cashews are blended with water to make a thicker plant-based milk alternative, so you can probably use 2 cups of unsweetened plant based milk and maybe add a tiny bit more cornstarch to thicken it, or maybe even a quarter cup quick cooking oats or something. Warning: I haven't tried this!! Let me know what you end up using and how it turns out!
This was perfect! I’ve been trying to get my mom on board with a vegan lifestyle and she definitely liked this one. I’ll totally be trying more of your recipes!
So glad to hear that!! This is definitely a good one to get people on board with vegan food, since it's comforting and familiar to people and not so uh, vegany. lol
Made this for dinner tonight and, to quote my husband it was “crazy good”! I followed the recipe exactly except I added a layer of Daiya cheddar style shreds before the tater tots. Even my 13 year old daughter’s non-vegan friend said it was a “10 out of 10”. Thanks for a great recipe!
Thanks for the fab review! Means SO much! And love the addition of daiya shreds! YumMMM!
Hi. Should the tater tots be cooked before being placed on the casserole/entering the oven?
No need to pre-cook the tater tots! Enjoy!
This is amazing! I don't feel like I'm eating healthy. ??
LOL, I know what you mean! Glad you like it!
Thank you for such a quick reply. That makes a lot of sense. I’ll try it that way and let you know. BTW, I made your cheddar cheese recipe yesterday (sort of a test run), I thought is was delicious. I popped it in the microwave on a cracker to see if it melted - IT DID - YEAH. Thank you again.
Do you think this casserole could be frozen before baking. Looking for recipes I can make ahead and freeze. I’m not vegan, but getting ready for family visiting that are vegan. This looks so delicious.
I haven't tried it, but I think it would work fine. I would probably just freeze the gravy/veggies layer first and then either add the tater tots on top just before baking or after the first layer has frozen... Let us know how it goes!
This was so delicious! My family devoured it and my son announced it was one of his top 5 favorite meals I've ever made him. I used soy curls since fake meats tend to upset my stomach and it turned out great. Thanks for the delicious recipe!
Aww! Thanks so much for the comment! Warms my heart to hear that! And soy curls sounds like a great veg meat sub idea!
Delicious comfort food on a rainy night! It was super quick and easy to make. My family loved it! Thank you.
So glad you loved it! And thanks for commenting! Comments like this just make my day!
This was sooo good! Even my non-vegan friends loved it!
Thanks much for the comment! Glad everyone loved it!