January 8, 2025
Animal-Style Tater Tot Bites (In-N-Out Inspired)
Inspired by In-N-Out, these Animal Style Tater Tot Bites are everything you love about the fast-food chain’s animal style (not-so-secret) secret menu hack. Crispy tater tot cups are loaded with seasoned meat, caramelized onions, melty cheese, and zesty burger sauce! Top with spicy banana peppers for the full In-N-Out experience! Betcha can’t eat just one!
Table of Contents
what is animal style? why you’ll love this recipe jump to recipe video step-by-step instructions tips and faqsAnimal Style Tater Tot Bites
Craving the iconic flavors of In-N-Out’s secret menu? These Vegan Animal Style Tater Tot Bites deliver the same mouthwatering combination of crispy, savory, and zesty goodness! Perfect for parties, game-day snacking, or a creative dinner idea, these bite-sized wonders pack seasoned vegan ground beef, caramelized onions, gooey vegan cheese, and tangy burger sauce into crispy tater tot cups! Top them off with banana peppers for a spicy twist that’ll keep you reaching for more!
What is Animal Style?
“Animal Style” is a famous secret menu hack popularized by In-N-Out Burger, a beloved fast-food chain known for its classic American fare. The term refers to a specific way of preparing burgers and fries that adds extra layers of flavor and texture.
For burgers, “Animal Style” includes grilled onions, extra sauce, and mustard-grilled patties. For fries, “Animal Style” means topping crispy fries with melted cheese, grilled onions, and a generous drizzle of the signature sauce.
In this recipe, I’ve taken the iconic elements of “Animal Style”—caramelized onions, savory sauce, melty cheese, and zesty mustard seasoning—and transformed them into bite-sized vegan tater tot cups. It’s a fun, plant-based twist on a fast-food classic that’s sure to bring the same crave-worthy satisfaction!
Why You’ll Love These Tater Tot Bites
- Fast-Food Inspired: Recreate the magic of In-N-Out in your own kitchen, plant-based style!
- Perfect for Sharing: Bite-sized and packed with flavor, these are a crowd favorite.
- Customizable: Adjust the spice, sauce, or toppings to suit your taste.
- Fun and Interactive to Make: Pressing tater tots into cups and assembling the toppings is an engaging activity, making this recipe great for cooking with kids or friends.
- Quick and Easy to Assemble: Using frozen tater tots and simple ingredients makes this recipe approachable and efficient for busy weeknights or last-minute snacks.
How to Make Animal-Style Tater Tot Bites
1. Caramelize the Onions:
Melt vegan butter in a large pan over medium heat.Add diced onions, salt, and pepper. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.Remove the lid, stir in wine, and cook until onions are golden brown and caramelized (30–40 minutes). Stir occasionally and deglaze with water if needed.
2. Make the Burger Sauce:
In a bowl, whisk together vegan mayo, ketchup, sweet pickle relish, vinegar, salt, and pepper.Adjust seasonings to taste and set aside.
3. Assemble the Tater Tot Bites:
Preheat oven to 425°F. Grease a cupcake pan and place 5 tater tots in each cup. Bake for 10 minutes. Heat oil in a pan, cook vegan ground beef with mustard, smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper until browned and slightly crispy.
Remove the tater tots from the oven and press down the centers to form cups. Fill each with 1 heaping tablespoon of seasoned meat. Bake for 10 minutes, then top with vegan cheese shreds. Bake another 8–10 minutes, until cheese is melted and tots are crispy.
Cool for 5 minutes, then top with caramelized onions, burger sauce, and banana peppers. ENJOY!
Tips and FAQs
- Don’t Rush the Onions: Slow cooking gives them a rich, sweet flavor.
- Cheese Melting Hack: Let vegan cheese sit at room temperature before baking for better melting.
- Spray the glass or pestle: Lightly spray the bottom of a small glass or pestle with oil to prevent the tater tots from sticking when pressing them into cups.
- Don’t overfill the cups: Leave a little space at the top of each cup to prevent the cheese and toppings from spilling over during baking.
Can I make these animal-style tater tot cups ahead of time?
Yes! Prepare the caramelized onions and burger sauce up to 2 days in advance. Assemble and bake the tater tot cups right before serving for maximum crispiness.
How do I store leftovers?
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven to restore crispiness.
Can I make these in an air-fryer?
Yes, you can bake the tater tots in an air fryer, but you’ll need to transfer them to an oven-safe dish or cupcake pan to shape the cups and assemble the toppings.
These Animal-Style Tater Tot Bites Will Be Your New Favorite Snack!!!
Whether you’re hosting a party, planning a game-day menu, or simply craving something indulgent and delicious, these Vegan Animal Style Tater Tot Bites are the perfect choice. Packed with nostalgic flavors and crispy textures, they’re sure to impress vegans and non-vegans alike. Plus, they’re just plain fun to eat!
If you try this dish and enjoy it, I wanna know! Snap a photo, take a video, or make a story and post it to Instagram or TikTok, and tag me at @eat_figs_not_pigs and #EatFigsNotPigs. I love seeing your recreations of my recipes!
xx.
Animal Style Tater Tot Bites
Ingredients
Caramelized Onions:
- 4 tablespoons vegan butter
- 4 medium white onions, about 2 pounds, diced
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
- ¼ cup white cooking wine or vegetable broth
Burger Sauce:
- ¼ cup vegan mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
- 2 teaspoons white vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper
Tater Tot Bites:
- 60 frozen tater tots
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 10 ounces vegan ground beef
- 2 tablespoons yellow mustard
- ½ teaspoon each: smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper
- ¾ cup vegan cheddar cheese shreds, at room temperature
- Chopped banana peppers, for garnish, optional
Instructions
To Make the Caramelized Onions:
- Melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat.
- Once the butter is melted, add the onions and season with the salt and pepper.
- Cover and cook for 10 minutes.
- Remove the lid, pour in the wine and cook, stirring often.
- Increase the heat to medium high and continue to cook, stirring every so often, until the onions reduce in size and caramelize, 30 to 40 minutes. If you notice the onions starting to burn or stick to the pan, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water to deglaze it. Set aside.
To Make the Burger Sauce:
- Whisk all the ingredients in a small bowl.
- Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.
- Set aside
To Make the Tater Tot Bites:
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Grease a cupcake pan and place 5 tater tots in each cup. Bake for 10 minutes.
- While the tater tots are in the oven, prepare your burger filling.
- Heat the oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat.
- Once the oil is hot, add the vegan ground and season with the mustard, smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through and slightly crisped around the edges, 5 to 7 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and set aside.
- After 10 minutes in the oven, remove cupcake pan, but leave the oven on.
- Using a pestle or bottom of a small glass, press the tater tots down in the center, forming a tater tot “cup”.
- Fill each tater to cup with 1 heaping tablespoon of the seasoned ground meat.
- Bake for 10 minutes.
- Top each tater tot cup with 1 tablespoon of the cheese shreds, then place back into the oven and continue to bake until the cheese is melty, and the tater tots are golden and crispy, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Remove cupcake pan from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
- Carefully remove each “burger cup” and garnish with caramelized onions, burger sauce, and chopped banana peppers. ENJOY!
So delicious! Whole family loved them, including picky 1 year old! Paired with some roasted brussels to make it into dinner, but will definitely be making for Super Bowl!