Bacon Cheeseburger Tater Tot Hotdish

This comfort dish slides in with a fun twist on an old favorite. It features a deliciously cheesy homemade gravy that's big-time beefy and perfectly pickle-y!

📝 Ingredients

• 8 ounces thick-cut bacon,
• 2 pounds 80/20 ground beef
• 2 teaspoons Lawry's seasoning salt, (plus more for sprinkling over the tater tots)
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (plus more for sprinkling over the tater tots)
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, (divided)
• 1 large red onion, (diced, and divided)
• 4 large cloves garlic, (minced)
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 cup diced hamburger dill pickle slices
• 1/4 cup full-fat sour cream
• 10 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, (freshly shredded, and divided)
• 16-18 ounces frozen tater tots
• cooked and chopped bacon, red onion slices, hamburger dill slices, halved cherry tomatoes, chopped parsley, ketchup, mustard

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. 2Add bacon slices to a 12" cast iron skillet and turn heat to medium/medium-low heat. Fry gently, turning as needed, until all the fat has rendered and the bacon is chewy-crisp. Remove bacon to a plate lined with a paper towel. Once cooled, chop it up.
3. 3Using same skillet, add beef and break it up into small pieces with a spatula. Cook, stirring occasionally. When it's about ¾-browned, drain away any excess grease. Sprinkle with Lawry's and black pepper, stir, and cook until fully browned. Remove beef to a plate with a slotted spoon.
4. 4Add 2 tablespoons of the butter to any beef fat left in the skillet. Once butter is melted, stir in onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes or until lightly softened. Stir in garlic and cook one minute more.
5. 5Slide onion mixture to one side of the skillet. Tilt the skillet to draw any juices out into the empty side of the skillet. Add remaining 4 tablespoons of butter to empty side of skillet. When butter has melted, sprinkle flour over the butter, whisking all the while (a flat whisk works awesome here). The mixture will be thick and paste-like. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until the mixture is browned and fragrant.
6. 6Add Worcestershire to the flour mixture in the skillet. Whisk and cook for 1 minute. Then slowly add the milk while you whisk and scrape the bottom of the skillet. Once this mixture is smoothed out, bring the onion mixture into the milk mixture. Add reserved beef and chopped bacon, plus diced pickles, and stir to evenly combine.
7. 7Remove skillet from heat. Stir in sour cream and 8 ounces of the cheese. Taste test, adding more Lawry's and black pepper if needed.
8. 8Level mixture out in the skillet. Add frozen tater tots in an even layer, leaving a 1" bare perimeter of cheeseburger gravy if desired. Sprinkle with a bit more Lawry's and black pepper.
9. 9Place skillet in oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until bubbling and thoroughly heated. Then turn on broiler to brown the tater tots until nicely golden and crisped, about 4-5 minutes.
10. 10Remove skillet from oven and and sprinkle remaining 2 ounces of cheese over the tater tots. Broil for another 1-2 minutes or until cheese is melted and just starting to blister.
11. 11Remove from oven and garnish with additional Bacon Cheeseburger garnishments as desired. Serve with ketchup and mustard on the side. Enjoy hot.