Venison Tater Tot Hotdish is creamy and comforting

Contributed / Jeff Benda By Jeff Benda Today at 7:05 AM Listen Comments Share Share this article News Reporting News Reporting Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Trust Project What is this? Editor's Note: This is a limited series featuring wild game recipes from local wild game chef Jeff Benda, author of the Wild Game & Fish Cookbook. More content is available on his website, wildgameandfish.com, and Instagram. Some foods you can serve in North Dakota without explanation, and tater tot hotdish is one of them. Bring a pan to a church potluck, funeral luncheon, or family gathering, and nobody needs to ask what it is or why it’s there. ADVERTISEMENT Hotdish is built on the simple premise that meat, vegetables, something creamy and a generous layer of potatoes make a perfectly respectable meal. For hunters, it's also an excellent way to use ground venison. By this point in the year, many of us are taking inventory of the freezer and discovering a few packages of last season’s deer tucked beneath the roasts and steaks. Ground venison works especially well here because its lean, clean flavor gets plenty of help from the creamy mushroom sauce, sweet corn, spinach and Monterey Jack cheese. And then there are the tater tots. I arrange them in neat concentric circles, starting around the outside of the skillet and working toward the center. Is this strictly necessary? Absolutely not. Does a tiled roof of crisp potatoes make the finished hotdish more appealing? I think so. More importantly, keeping the tots in a single layer gives each one room to brown rather than steam. This is also the sort of dinner that invites kids into the kitchen. When my daughter was younger, arranging the tater tots was an easy job to hand over to her. The recipe requires only one 12-inch cast-iron skillet, about 10 minutes of prep and ingredients available at just about any grocery store in the Upper Midwest. The result is exactly what a good hotdish ought to be: creamy underneath, crisp on top, substantial enough for a cold evening and familiar without being dull. ADVERTISEMENT Set the skillet directly on the table and don't be surprised if people start negotiating over the especially crisp tater tots around the edges. Venison Tater Tot Hotdish Serves 8 Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 40 minutes Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 medium yellow onion, diced 1 pound ground venison 1 (15-ounce) can whole-kernel corn, drained 1 (10-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup 1 cup whole milk or half-and-half 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped 8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded 1 (16-ounce) bag frozen tater tots Instructions: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat the olive oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the ground venison and cook, breaking it into small pieces with a wooden spoon or spatula, until no longer pink, about 4 to 5 minutes. ADVERTISEMENT Reduce the heat to low. Stir in the corn, cream of mushroom soup, milk, salt and black pepper until thoroughly combined. Add the spinach and cook, stirring, until wilted and heated through, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat. Sprinkle the Monterey Jack evenly over the venison mixture. Arrange the frozen tater tots in a single layer over the cheese, starting around the outside of the skillet and working toward the center. Bake at 400 degrees until the filling is bubbling around the edges and the tater tots are crisp and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. For more approachable wild game and fish recipes, visit www.wildgameandfish.com. Pre-order Jeff Benda’s new Wild Game & Fish Cookbook today, featuring 80 recipes inspired by North Dakota’s remarkable hunting and fishing heritage and the wild food that brings families back to the table. More from Jeff Benda Venison Cheeseburger Sliders make a great meal or tailgating snack Nov 6 Golden Pheasant Curry is a delicious new way to serve game bird Oct 30 Fried Pheasant Fritters make a great meal or tasty snack Oct 23 Duck Chili is a fast, delicious meal for busy nights Oct 16 Easy Greek Lemon Pheasant Soup is an exotic upgrade of classic chicken soup Oct 10, 2025 Comments Share Share this article News Reporting News Reporting Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Trust Project What is this? Tags Tags RECIPES By Jeff Benda Jeff Benda is the founder of Wild Game & Fish Media where he works with businesses in the hunting, fishing, and shooting industries. With 25 years of past experience in the restaurant and catering industry, he is now a full-time wild game and fish recipe developer and food blogger living in Fargo, North Dakota. His goal is to celebrate local fish and wild game and provide achievable, bright recipes designed to build confidence for new cooks, and inspire everyone to elevate their cooking. You can learn more about Jeff on his website www.wildgameandfish.com or follow him on Instagram: @wildgameandfish Listen to this article Conversation ADVERTISEMENT What To Read Next Community Today in History, 2004: Long overdue cleanup of toxic spill begins in West Fargo 7h ago · By Kate Almquist Arts and Entertainment Review: 'Godzilla Minus Zero' is action-packed new chapter 1d ago · By Bob Garver, Special to The Forum Arts and Entertainment Pangea brings world culture to Moorhead's Hjemkomst Museum 1d ago · By John Lamb ADVERTISEMENT Get Local Must Reads Men's Sports Kolpack: He married into Bison football frenzy and loves it 13h ago · By Jeff Kolpack Minnesota Court documents: Human remains may be found in 1982 case of missing toddler near Bemidji 13h ago · By Matt Henson Minnesota Clay County reports 26 late ballots, will not be counted in District 4 Senate race 13h ago · By Michael McGurran Minnesota 'Like a Hallmark movie': Peteyville in Pelican Rapids set to wow holiday crowds 13h ago · By Kevin Wallevand