Crockpot John Wayne Casserole
A crockpot is capable of cooking some fantastic things without being very difficult. One way it helps is by letting us dump ingredients in and turn them on to make a meal. The crockpot John Wayne casserole is an excellent example of this cooking method.
A crockpot John Wayne casserole can take the original John Wayne casserole recipe and make it a fun recipe with simple ingredients. A slow cooker John Wayne casserole is the perfect way to make a bag of tater tots into a full dinner for the whole family.
The tater tots are just the beginning of the whole casserole. This recipe combines ground beef, a cheddar cheese mixture, a sour cream mixture, and so much more to make one delicious meal. The original recipe was not something many people would make today.
The recipe was donated to a cookbook for the American Cancer Society in 1979. The recipe called for The recipe started with a biscuit dough crust on the bottom of a baking dish.
The top was layered with cooked ground beef, tomato slices, sliced bell pepper, green chilies, fried onions, and jalapenos. Everything was layered, thrown into a preheated oven, and cooked until the cheese melted.
It was a hamburger or a biscuit casserole, a great option for a simple dinner. However, crackpots make this recipe a lot easier without having to bake a biscuit crust and with options to customize at every step.
The cooking time is going to be a bit longer; the original recipe took about an hour to make. This crockpot John Wayne casserole adds cooking time to the equation, but you also don’t have to stay home while your crockpot cooks, so it is a trade-off that is worth it for busy people or just anyone who doesn’t enjoy being stuck in the kitchen for over an hour cooking.
Crockpot Dinner Recipe Ingredients
- Frozen Tater Tots: This recipe starts with tater tots. Gone is the biscuit mix or Pillsbury Grands Biscuits. The tater tots will be in place of the biscuit base, making it more enjoyable for kids and easier to make.
- Ground Beef: We can’t have a casserole like a crockpot John Wayne casserole recipe without some sort of meat mixture. We use ground beef in this recipe. However, you can use ground turkey or chicken if you’d like. You can even use ground Italian sausage or combine any of the meats for a ground beef mixture. Ditch the taco seasoning if you plan on using Italian sausage.
- Produce: The produce is probably the most customizable aspect of the dish. We use a small yellow onion, tomatoes, diced shishito, and green bell peppers. However, you can add in whichever produce you think will work with this recipe. Try making it as instructed below the first time and then expand on it from there. You can also add in jalapenos for more of a kick.
- Taco Seasoning Mix: Everything comes together with a seasoning mixture. The taco seasoning adds more flavor to the ground beef and goes very well with the rest of the ingredients. However, an Italian seasoning mixture will turn the dish into something for Italian nights, American seasonings for summer nights, and so on.
- Sour Cream: Sour cream is a top and final layer. This means it is optional, though it does tie everything together for a far more exciting Taco Tuesday dinner everyone will love.
- Sharp Cheddar Cheese: We use sharp cheddar in this recipe. However, you can use whichever cheese mixture you like most. There will be lots of cheese, so feel free to combine sharp cheddar with any cheese, such as pepper jack cheese or mozzarella.
- Seasonings: The taco seasoning will do most of the heavy lifting in this recipe. We will only be adding a few seasonings like salt, pepper, and onion powder. These seasonings are not commonly found in taco seasoning but are crucial to the dish.
Why You’ll Love This Crockpot Casserole Recipe
Any hamburger casserole recipe is usually a welcomed addition to anyone’s recipe book. Ground beef, ground meat in general, is very easy to work with and is affordable. A pound of hamburger meat won’t break the bank.
This cowboy casserole recipe is a prime example of that. Each bite is bursting with flavor, from the lean ground beef to the diced produce on top. There is something about the taco meat that even the pickiest eaters can enjoy.
It is an easy slow cooker ground beef recipe that will fill each serving spoon scoop with flavor you can enjoy. Not to mention, a lot of the dicing will be done by someone else; we used cans of green chilies and other diced ingredients instead of doing the prep work on our own.
Everything starts with a layer of frozen tater tots on the bottom of the crock pot.
How to Make Crockpot John Wayne Casserole
Spray your crockpot with non-stick spray. Add tater tots to the bottom of the crockpot and evenly spread them out.
Brown the hamburger meat, onions, bell peppers, & shishito peppers in a cast-iron skillet or pan. When the meat is brown, drain the fat.
Add diced tomatoes to the meat mixture and combine.
Pour the meat mixture over the tater tots creating a layer.
In a small bowl, mix the sour cream, salt, pepper, & onion powder. Add approximately 4 oz of cheese (save the remainder of the cheese for the top layer at the end).
Spread the sour cream mixture over the meat mixture.
Cover and cook on low for approximately 4 to 4/12 hours. Keep the lid closed during cooking time.
After cooking is done, add the remaining cheese over the top for a final layer.
Cover for another 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
When ready to serve, you can top it with salsa, green onions, or a topping of your choice.
Crockpot John Wayne Casserole
Ingredients
- 32 Oz Bag Tater Tots, Frozen Not Thawed
- 1 Lb Ground Beef
- 1 Small Yellow Onion, Diced
- 1 16 Oz Can Diced Tomatoes
- 1 Green Bell Pepper, Diced
- 3 Shishito Peppers, Jalapenos are an option too for more spice
- 1 Pack 1.3 Oz Trader Joe’s Taco Seasoning Mix
- 16 Oz Sour Cream
- 8 Oz Sharp Cheddar Cheese
- 1/8 Tsp Salt
- 1/4 Tsp Pepper
- 1/2 Tsp Onion Powder
Instructions
- Spray your crockpot with non-stick spray. Add tater tots to the bottom of the crockpot and evenly spread them out.
- Brown the hamburger meat, onions, bell peppers, and shishito peppers in a cast iron skillet or pan. When the meat is brown, drain the fat.
- Add diced tomatoes to the meat mixture and combine.
- Pour the meat mixture over the tater tots creating a layer.
- In a small bowl, mix the sour cream, salt, pepper, and onion powder. Add approximately 4 oz of cheese (save the remainder of the cheese for the top layer at the end).
- Spread the sour cream mixture over the meat mixture.
- Cover and cook on low for approximately 4 to 4/12 hours. Keep the lid closed during the cooking time.
- After cooking is done, add the remaining cheese over the top for a final layer.
- Cover for another 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
- When ready to serve, you can top with salsa, green onions, or a topping of your choice.
Video
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