These Keto Loaded Nacho Tots were inspired by a friend of mine who claimed that the Loaded Nacho Tots at Denny’s were to die for. Me, not being inclined to eat at Denny’s or make such radical claims about the quality of their food, I decided to take his word for it and make a Keto version for myself. The flavor blew me away, as it was somewhere between a Chili Cheese Twice-Baked Potato and a Loaded Nacho Bar, just simply filling and delicious.
Due to the fact that everything in this recipe is made from scratch it does take a little more time, but there are a few parts of it that can definitely be used to make other delicious recipes in the future too. The Tots themselves would make an awesome side dish, and would probably be even better in the air fryer (though we opted to back ours this time around). The Nacho Cheese Sauce could also be poured over a juicy Ribeye steak to make a Keto Steak Cortez. Speaking of which, that’s a Keto Dinner that we should make a recipe for in the near future.
KETO LOADED NACHO TOTS RECIPE
EASE OF PREPARATION: Moderate
PREP TIME: 20 Minutes
COOKING TIME: 25 Minutes
TOTAL TIME: 45 Minutes
INGREDIENTS:
TOTS
- 1 Medium Cauliflower
- 4 Strips Uncured Bacon
- 1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese (Shredded)
- 1 Tablespoon Grass-Fed Butter
- 1 Large Free-Range Egg
- 1/4 Teaspoon Onion Powder
- Black Pepper (To Taste)
- Pink Himalayan Salt (To Taste)
TOPPING
- 1 Tablespoon Avocado Oil
- 1 Pound Grass-Fed Ground Beef
- 1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
- 1 /2 Tablespoon Cumin
- 1 Teaspoon Paprika
- 1 Teaspoon Dried Oregano
- 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Granulated Garlic
- 1/2 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper
NACHO CHEESE SAUCE
- 1/2 Tablespoon Avocado Oil
- 1 Jalapeno (diced)
- 1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
- 1/4 Cup Rotel (Drained)
- 8 Ounces Cheddar Cheese (Sliced)
INSTRUCTIONS:
TOTS:
- Preheat the Oven to 425*F.
- Cut 1 Medium Head of Cauliflower into Quarters, and Grate it into fine pieces with a Cheese Grater. Optionally you can pulse it in a Food Processor too if you have one to save time.
- Using the Cheese Grater Shred 1 Cup of Cheddar Cheese, 3/4 Cup of Monterey Jack, and 1/2 Cup of Parmesan.
- Cook 4 Strips of Uncured Bacon over Medium-High Heat until desired crispiness. Then Cut the Bacon into small chunks (The smaller the better for this recipe).
- In a Large Mixing Bowl Combine 2 Cups of Grated Cauliflower, 1 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese, 3/4 Cup Shredded Monterey Jack, and 1/2 Cup of Shredded Parmesan.
- Add 1 Tablespoon Grass-Fed Butter (Softened), 1 Large Free-Range Egg, 4 Strips of Chopped Uncured Bacon, 1/4 Teaspoon of Onion Powder, and season with some Black Pepper and Pink Himalayan Salt to taste.
- Carefully stir all ingredients together until completely blended and place the Bowl in the Refrigerator for 10 Minutes to firm up.
- Cover a Large Baking Sheet with Parchment Paper, and scoop out the mixture, forming the Tots shape by hand and equally spacing them out on the baking sheet. This should yield 15 Tots (For 3 Servings). Feel free to make them smaller if you want, and adjust the cooking time accordingly if needed.
- Bake in the Oven at 425*F for about 22 Minutes, or until Golden Brown.
TOPPING:
- Heat up a Large Frying Pan over Medium Heat and add 1 Tablespoon Avocado Oil, and 1 Pound of Grass-Fed Ground Beef.
- Season the Beef with 1 Tablespoon Chili Powder, 1/2 Tablespoon Cumin, 1 Teaspoon Paprika, 1 Teaspoon Dried Oregano, 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder, 1 Teaspoon Granulated Garlic, 1/2 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper, and 1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper.
- Mix well and Cook Beef until desired doneness. Because the Grass-Fed Beef is usually very lean this should not require draining excessive grease from the meat, but if you choose to use fattier blends of Ground Beef you may want to drain away from of the drippings if you don’t want them on your Keto Loaded Nacho Tots.
- Set Aside to top the Tots after they are done
NACHO CHEESE SAUCE:
- In a Medium Frying Pan over Medium Heat warm up 1/2 Tablespoon of Avocado Oil.
- Add 1 Diced Jalapeno and Saute a minute or two until fragrant.
- Add in 1/2 Cup of Heavy Whipping Cream, and 1/4 Cup of Rotel and stir together.
- Add in 1/2 Pound of sliced Sharp Cheddar Cheese and stir until completely melted and evenly mixed with the other ingredients.
- Once the Tots are fully baked, remove them from the oven and plate them. Top first with the Ground Beef mixture, and then pour the Nacho Cheese Sauce over the top.
Once Your Tots and other ingredients are done, top with the Ground Beef, and the Shredded Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses. Then pour the Nacho Cheese Sauce on top.
NOTES: You can also top the Keto Loaded Nacho Tots with Sliced Jalapenos, Sour Cream, Cilantro, Green Onion, or whatever else you prefer to have on your nachos that is Keto-friendly too.
Additionally, you will not be using all of the Ground Beef when you make this recipe, so there will be some leftovers. The Beef just doesn’t seem to come in packages smaller than 1 Pound so we made it that way.
Do you have a cookbook with all of your wonderful recipes we can purchase?
I just tried to make tots and I was going to make the rest later today. I noticed that in the directions area of the Tots. there is cheddar and jack cheese. that isn’t noted. Also the serving sized are different as well. As a treat we have cauliflower “wraps” with our eggs. I enjoy the recipes you post, Thank you for your efforts. KimB
The recipe is inaccurate from the ingredients list versus the instructions and the prep time is sorely underestimated.
Can you suggest a good substitute for almond flour for people who are allergic to nuts and nut products?
You can use coconut flour
Had this for dinner this evening. Very tasty but I put the cheese in with parmesan for the tots as instructions weren’t clear. I am just wondering where you got 5 net carbs from? I logged it into my fitness pal and I got 12g net carbs. All those spices contain some carbs.
And are the extra cheese and sour cream used as toppings included in the carb count?
My tots look like cookies. What did I do wrong?
Did you chill them in the refrigerator?
I thought so but I can’t remember. Regardless I think I was trying to make a “tot” shape rather than a ball like in the video. At the end of the day it tasted pretty amazing.
I have these so called tots in the oven right now. They are not looking like tots to me. They have all melted down in to one large sheets of cheese and caulifloer. They need some kind of flour to hold them together. Should be interesting eating them.
I added 1 beaten egg to cheeses and cauliflower mix stayed together
well!!!!!!
I am confused the ingredients for the tater tots calls for Parmesan cheese but the instructions says to add cheddar as well.
If you already have riced cauliflower, how much equals 1 medium head? Thank you!
Usually the riced cauliflower has an equivalency measurement printed on the bag.
Coconut is a nut!!!!!
You might try pork rinds ground up as an alt binder. I haven’t tried it in this instance but I have used it in others.
Absolutely delicious! My daughter doesn’t do keto and she loved these. My tots flattened some and I did chill in the fridge. This is a great keto alternative for nachos.
My tots also flattened. Do they need some almond flour to hold them together? I also doubled the recipe , so had 30 tots next to each other on the cooking sheet. Don’t know if that made a difference. They tasted great though! Thank you!
Has there been clarification on the additional cheeses listed in the instructions for the tots vs the 1/2 cup listed in the ingredients?
This recipe is very confusing and I’ve been cooking for 55 years. I always go to the ingredient list to make sure I have everything. Things in recipe not even listed on it.
I’m trying to make this but am stumped over the extra cheese listed in the instructions that was not listed in the ingredient list. I going to assume since no response has been made by others on this, that since that amount of cheese was not shown in the video, that must be an error in the instructions🤷🏼♀️