Tater tots weren’t created because there was a great need for cylindrical potatoes. Ore-Ida invented tots in 1953 when the company was trying to find a use for leftover potato slivers. Be that as it may, we have a soft spot in our heart for tots. In fact, we love tots so much that we’ll eat them even when they’re not made from potatoes! The Trader Joe’s Cauliflower Tot Casserole may not be a classic tot dish, but it’s still pretty delicious.
Trader Joe’s provides both microwave and oven instructions for this comforting dish. We suspect that oven cooking is the superior option, but we were feeling hungry and impatient when we made this, so we chose to cook it in the microwave. As you can see in the image below, it doesn’t yield picture-perfect results, but we promise you it tastes better than it looks.
These tots aren’t a perfect match for tots made from actual potatoes, but they’re pretty darn close. Trader Joe’s has nailed the traditional tot shape, and they’ve also delivered a wonderfully crispy exterior. They don’t taste quite like potatoes, but when they’re slathered in a creamy, gooey layer of cheese, it’s hard to tell the difference.
What really gives these tots away is their texture. They’ve got a slight mushiness to them; our tots were falling apart as we dug in. By the time we’d cleared half our dish, this looked more like mashed cauliflower than cauliflower tots. In the end, this didn’t really bother us; the mess of cauliflower, sour cream, cheddar cheese, and bechamel cheese tastes so good it was hard to muster any complaints.
Typically, cauliflower is used as a substitute for potatoes in low-carb dishes. However, this dish is actually loaded with carbs; there are 24 carbs per serving and 72 carbs in total. If you read through the ingredient list, you’ll see that this actually contains potato starch! If you’re a cauliflower fan, this shouldn’t bother you, but if you’re on the keto diet, you’ll want to avoid this casserole.
Trader Joe’s Cauliflower Tot Casserole may not be a low-carb treat, but it’s delicious nonetheless. If you love tots as much as we do — or if you enjoy cauliflower — this is definitely worth picking up. It might not be the prettiest or healthier dish we’ve tried, but we still enjoyed every last bite.
To learn more about the nutrition content, ingredients, or cooking instructions for this Trader Joe’s frozen casserole, check out our package scans below.
