We Made the Duggar Tater Tot Casserole and Gordon Ramsay Would Be Appalled

Anyone who followed the Duggar family for the more than 10 years they dominated the reality TV landscape on TLC on shows like 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On, know about the iconic tater tot casserole. Well, maybe iconic isn't the right word. Infamous might be more appropriate, given most fans' affinity for turning up their noses at the idea of the casserole chock full of cream of (insert vegetable or meat here) soups and frozen tater tots.

But, lucky for you, we made the Duggar tater tot casserole to figure out what the fuss is all about, on both ends of the spectrum. The casserole itself is a staple for the Duggars, whose family once consisted of 19 kids in the house before the older kids started getting married and moving out. However, the older Duggar daughters share social media posts from time to time about making smaller versions of the casserole for their much smaller families. It's a whole thing.

The idea behind most of the Duggar family's long-standing recipes is affordability. When you're feeding a family of more than 20 people, reality TV money or not, you need to find a good deal. And the Duggars are known for their "buy used, save the difference" mantra as much as they're known for their lack of birth control.

When we purchased the ingredients for a smaller version of the Duggar tater tot casserole at Aldi, a popular grocery store chain that the Duggars also frequent in Arkansas, the total came to $10.33. Double that for the super-sized version of the recipe below and it's not bad to feed a family of 21 (and counting).

According to the official Duggar family website, the ingredients for the tater tot casserole are:

• 2 lb. ground turkey, cooked, seasoned, and drained
• Three bags of tater tots (2 lb. each)
• 2 cans cream of mushroom soup
• 2 cans evaporated milk
• 2 cans cream of chicken soup

The ingredients for the casserole are simple, as are the instructions for actually making the dish. Which, by the way, makes two full 9x13 dishes. First, brown the meat and place half in the bottom of one casserole dish and the other half in the other dish. Cover both with the frozen tater tots. In a separate bowl mix the evaporated milk and the soups together.

Then, pour that mixture over the tots and meat in each dish. From there, bake at 350 degrees for one hour. We split the recipe in half because we aren't part of a family of more than a dozen hungry people. And if you want to know what the tater tot casserole tastes like, we have the tea.

Or, rather, the tots. Anyway, the Duggars sure do talk a big game when it comes to the famed recipe.

But to be honest, it's nothing exceptional. We had to add extra seasoning on top, which is not part of the original recipe.

The flavor is mild and since the recipe doesn't call for much seasoning, that's not a surprise. Sprinkling cheese over the casserole or even adding some hot sauce makes the dish a lot more palatable. But hey, when you're trying to feed 19 kids and only one of your teenage daughters is available to take on the brunt of the cooking, it's an easy dinner to whip up.