Let’s make crispy, golden, and perfect air fryer frozen tater tots in just 15-minutes! This is an Alexia potato puffs air fryer recipe, they come preseasoned and they’re the best.
Air Fryer Alexia Potato Puffs
We may not eat frozen tater tots every day, but I’ll fully admit that I do love the occasional tot to go with dinner or with a variety of frozen appetizers. Recently we have found that air frying frozen tater tots not only makes these frozen potatoes come out super crispy on the outside and soft on the inside but they are done in about half the time of baking them!
Our favorite use for Alexia potato puffs is to serve them with other air fryer dishes including
air fryer boneless pork chops, air fryer precooked smoked sausage or Anytizer chicken wings.
Of course, you can always pair your air fryer tater tots with additional frozen foods items including chicken tenders, mozzarella sticks, and corn dogs, too, for an appetizer spread that is perfect for game day or an afternoon of feeding teens and college students.
Air Fryer Frozen Tater Tots Ingredient Notes
A bag of your favorite brand of frozen tater tots is all you will need to make this perfect air fryer recipe. We used Alexia potato puffs brand but any will work!
- tater tots – Alexia potato puffs or your favorite frozen tater tot brand
- optional – cooking spray
** Please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the exact quantities **
Equipment
- An Air Fryer- We have a Cosori XL basket style air fryer, a Ninja Foodi pressure cooker & air fryer combo, an Instant Pot Omni Plus oven style air fryer, an Instant Pot air fryer lid, and a small 3.2L Farberware basket style air fryer. The Cosori unit was used in this recipe.
- Non-stick spatula
- Rubbed tipped tongs
How to air fry frozen tater tots
Air frying frozen tater tots is super simple! You could even use this recipe to help get your kids involved in the cooking process. We are going to simply preheat our air fryer unit, place the frozen tots in a single layer, and cook until they are golden and delicious.
Preheat the air fryer to 400F for 5 minutes.
Use cooking spray to spray basket or tray to help prevent the food from sticking.
Place the tater tots in a single layer. Do not overcrowd.
Cook the tots for 8 minutes and then shake or flip the frozen tater tots.
Cook for 7+/- additional minutes, for a total cook time of 15 minutes, until the tater tots are cooked through and crispy golden on the outside.
***Note: If you are cooking your frozen tater tots in an air fryer in a basket-style unit, we do recommend that you shake the basket every 5 minutes.
Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauce and enjoy!
Substitutions
- Dips – Serve your air fryer frozen tater tots with a variety of dipping sauces including ketchup, ranch, mustard, BBQ sauce, and mayo. Make a spicy mayo by combining mayonnaise with your favorite hot sauce.
Variations
- Cheesy Tots – Add a sprinkle of cheddar cheese during the last few minutes of cooking to make cheesy tots.
- Cheesy Bacon Tots – Add a sprinkle of cheddar cheese and some bacon bits during the last few minutes of cooking to make cheesy bacon tots.
- This same Alexia tater tots recipe works for
Alexia Tater Tots Air Fryer Recipe Tips
- We do recommend that you preheat your air fryer unit to ensure even cooking.
- For best results, cook your tater tots from frozen.
- If you are cooking a lot of air fryer tater tots it will be best to cook in batches rather than overcrowding the air fryer unit.
- Any air fryer model will work for this recipe. If you have an oven-style air fryer unit, lay the tots in a single layer and flip halfway during the 15 minute cooking time. If you have a basket style, shake the basket every 5 minutes.
- Non-stick cook spray is optional, however, it does help prevent the frozen tater tots from sticking to the basket or tray.
- Do NOT use cooking spray if you have a non-stick basket. Omit the spray or add a spritz of cooking oil instead.
- Serve with your favorite dipping sauce including ketchup or Ranch dressing.
Common Questions
Frozen tater tots in an air fryer is one of the most perfect side dishes available! Serve it with burgers or wings for a quick and easy dinner, opt for pork chops and brats if time allows, or keep things simple by making an appetizer spread complete with tots, corn dogs, and chicken tenders.
Store any leftover frozen tater tots in the air fryer that you have for 3-4 days in the fridge in a covered container. You can also freeze the leftovers for up to 3 months.
If you want to reheat your leftover air fryer tater tots in the air fryer simply preheat the unit to 400F and cook them in a single layer for 2-3 minutes until they are warmed through.
More Frozen Foods Recipes
Be sure to try our other frozen foods recipes!
- Frozen Mini Corn Dogs in Air Fryer
- Air Fryer Shrimp Tempura
- Boneless Wings Air Fryer
- Air Fryer Breaded Chicken Patties
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📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Alexia Potato Puffs (Tater Tots)
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½-1 lb frozen tater tots
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400F for 5 minutes.
- Use cooking spray to spray basket or tray to help prevent the food from sticking.
- Cook the tots for 8 minutes and then shake or flip the frozen tater tots.
- Cook for 7+/- additional minutes, for a total cook time of 15 minutes, until the tater tots are cooked through and crispy golden on the outside.
- Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauce and enjoy!
Notes
- We do recommend that you preheat your air fryer unit to ensure even cooking.
- For best results, cook your tater tots from frozen.
- If you are cooking a lot of air fryer tater tots it will be best to cook in batches rather than overcrowding the air fryer unit.
- Any air fryer model will work for this recipe. If you have an oven-style air fryer unit, lay the tots in a single layer and flip halfway during the 15 minute cooking time. If you have a basket style, shake the basket every 5 minutes.
- Non-stick cook spray is optional, however, it does help prevent the frozen tater tots from sticking to the basket or try.
- Do NOT use cooking spray if you have a non-stick basket. Omit the spray or add a spritz of cooking oil instead.
- Serve with your favorite dipping sauce including ketchup or Ranch dressing.
© 2023 Whole Lotta Air Frying
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