These Zucchini Tater Tots are made with just 4 simple ingredients! They’re baked to crispy perfection and packed with zucchini. Great for a side dish or snack!
I think we all can agree that tater tots are the best use of potatoes in the world! They are crispy, salty and if you make homemade tater tots, like these Zucchini Tater Tots, you can put a bunch of awesome flavors into them. My first experience with homemade tater tots was with these smoked gouda and green apple tater tots I made last year. They were some of the best tater tots I’ve ever eaten and much easier to make than I had expected.
I’ve seen tater tots made many times on the Food Network and a lot of times they add extra things like eggs and breadcrumbs, but I’ve found that those additions aren’t really necessary.
Zucchini Tater Tot Recipe Ingredients
- Potatoes – I like to use russet potatoes when making homemade tater tots. Any potato would work but I like to use russet because they are more starchy than some other potatoes, which allows them to hold together better and they have the most neutral flavor of all the potatoes.
- Zucchini – They sell zucchini in most stores year round but if you grown your own zucchini during the summer, this would be a great recipe for those big ones!
- Salt – I use salt to taste in this recipe. You can add as much or as little as you like.
- Olive Oil – I just use a little bit of olive oil to brush on the tops of the tater tots before baking. You could also use a cooking spray.
How To Make Homemade Tater Tots
There are a few steps to this tater tot recipe but they’re all easy!
- Start by par-boiling your potatoes. I keep the skin on and boil them until they’re just fork tender but still have a little bit of give in the middle. This will allow you to be able to grate the potato without it completely turning to mush.
- Once you’ve boiled your potatoes let them sit until they’re cool enough to handle. Use your hands to carefully remove the skin of the potato. It should come off easily once they’ve been boiled.
- Grate the potatoes on the large side of a box grater and add the grated potato to a large bowl.
- Next, grate the zucchini on the large side of a box grater. Place all grated zucchini into a clean dish towel and place over a bowl. Squeeze the zucchini until you’ve gotten as much water as you can out and add the zucchini to the bowl with the potatoes.
- Use your hands to mix everything together and try to make sure it’s evenly mixed. Add salt, to taste and mix again. Use your hands to form the potato mixture into little cylinders and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. If you want, you can spray the parchment paper with a little cooking spray.
- Place the tray in the freezer for at least 10 minutes and then brush the top of each tot with a small amount of olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake tots until golden brown, flipping once, about 30 minutes. Enjoy!
Zucchini Tater Tot Recipe Frequently Asked Questions
- Is this recipe vegan? Yes!
- Is this recipe gluten free? Yes!
- Can I use sweet potato instead of regular potato? Yes, I actually have a Sweet Potato Tot Recipe on the blog!
- My tater tots didn’t form at all until cylinders, what did I do wrong? I’m not sure as I wasn’t in the kitchen with you, but there’s a possibility that you didn’t cook the potatoes long enough, or that you used a type of potato other than russet. It’s also possible you didn’t squeeze all the water out of the zucchini.
- Can I add extra seasonings to the zucchini tater tots besides salt? Of course, add any kind of seasonings you like!
- Can I prep these ahead of time and bake later? Yes, you can freeze them until ready to bake or chill them in the refrigerator.
- Can I freeze them for a long period of time? Yes, I would recommend freezing them on a sheet pan until completely frozen and then you can add them to a freezer bag together and freeze up to 3 months.
Have a question that I didn’t answer? Ask me in the comment section below and I will get back to you ASAP!
Looking For More Delicious Zucchini Recipes?
The Best Roasted Zucchini Recipe
Lower Carb Zucchini Noodle Spaghetti Bake
30 Minute Orange Ginger Zucchini Noodles
SEE EXACTLY HOW I MAKE THESE ZUCCHINI TATER TOTS BELOW!
4 Ingredient Zucchini Tater Tots
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 40 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These Zucchini Tater Tots only have 4 ingredients! They’re easy to make and great for a healthy side dish or snack.
Ingredients
- 3 large russet potatoes, peeled
- 2 zucchinis, about 2–3 cups shredded
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, plus more for sprinkling on top
- Olive oil
Instructions
- Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and cook potatoes for 20-30 minutes, until fork tender but still have some give in the middle. Drain water and let potatoes cool until they are comfortable to handle. You want them to still be warm.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Grate potatoes on the large side of a box grater and put into a large bowl. Grate each zucchini and squeeze out the liquid using a clean dishtowel. Place grated zucchini into the bowl with the potatoes and add 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Use your hands to mix everything together.
- Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. Use your hands to form small cylinders with the mixture. Use about 1 tablespoon per tater tot. Place the cookie sheet in the freezer for about 10 minutes to allow them to firm up.
- Brush the top of each tater tot with a small amount of olive oil and sprinkle each one with salt. Bake tater tots until browned a crispy, about 30 minutes flipping halfway though. Serve with ketchup if desired.
Notes
Recipe makes approximately 40 tater tots.
- Prep Time: 45 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Category: Side, Gluten Free, Vegan
- Method: Oven, Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Could these be cooked in an air-fryer?
They definitely could!
If you make these again, would you possibly be able to update the recipe with what weight in grams of potatoes and zucchini to use? I think that may help some of the people who are experiencing failures and it would make me feel more confident trying the recipe. There is a huge difference in moisture if people are packing their zucchini shreds or loosely measuring the 2-3 cups, so maybe that’s where the trouble comes in? I love the idea of this, but I don’t want to set aside a couple hours unless I feel I have a good chance of success. Thanks for being adventurous and sharing your recipes with others!
I only have 2 potatoes and 1 zucchini. Do you think that would work?
Yes!
I had all the issues Gina had, but they still taste flavorful! I cooked my potatoes too long, so they mashed instead of grated. I added onion and garlic powder and some herbs de provence. They taste yummy, but the texture is more like mashed potatoes. I will try again and keep a closer eye on my potatoes.
I’m sorry to hear you had some issues, but glad you still enjoyed the taste!
These were a fail. I did everything right, but the tots came out very mushy and didn’t cook well. I couldn’t turn up the oven (even though I wanted to so I could better cook the tots, but the parchment paper can only handle up to 425 degree heat) and I couldn’t broil these. When I tired to flip these, they stuck to the paper and fell apart. I cooked them closer to 45 minutes and burnt them a little to get them to stick together better, but they still fell apart when I tried to pry them from the paper. Maybe an egg would help these stick together? Or bread crumbs? I don’t know…I wanted to like these….
Hi Gina, I’m sorry these didn’t work for you, I’ve made them many times and have always had them hold together. Where the potatoes still a little firm in the middle so they weren’t mushy when you grated them?
I made them. They were great. No leftovers. Mine were probably a little too large and therefore took a little longer to cook. Letting them sit a few minutes after coming out of oven makes them easier to remove from baking sheet. Ill be making these again!
I’m so glad you liked them!! 🙂
Hi, would they work with frozen squeezed spinach too??? I make these zuccini ones often from your recipe but have spinach in the freezer which needs using….
Hi Marg! I think they would work with spinach! I would just dice it into small pieces to make it easier to mix in 🙂