Table of Contents
- Are Tater Tots Healthy?
- What are tater tots?
- 6 Tater tots nutrition facts
- Types of tater tots
- Fitting tater tots into a healthy diet
- How to cook tater tots to make them healthy?
- Are fried tater tots and French fries are same?
- Baked tater tots vs. French fries
- Fried Tater Tots vs. Baked Tater Tots
- Conclusion
Are Tater Tots Healthy?
Who doesn’t love a good tater tot? Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside- what’s not to love? Tater tots are often seen as unhealthy junk food, but are they really that bad for you? In this blog post, we’ll take a look at the nutritional value of tater tots and see if they’re as bad for you as you think or not.
So, are Tater Tots healthy? A medium-sized serving of Tater Tots may have up to 500 calories. Also, Tater Tots are low in fiber. Thus, when consumed in large quantities, Tater tots are not healthy.
Let’s find out the best way to consume tater tots in a healthy way.
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What are tater tots?
Tater tots, also known as Tots, Totchos (tater tot nachos), and Kartoffelpuffers (potato balloons), are a popular starchy side dish that is typically made from potato shreds or mashed potatoes that have been combined with flour and other ingredients such as cornmeal, cheddar cheese, onions, eggs, etc.
6 Tater tots nutrition facts
Tater tots are high in carbohydrates but are lower on the glycemic index. This means that it won’t cause too large of a spike in your blood sugar level when you eat them. They also contain some fiber, iron, and calcium.
1. Calories in tater tots
A small serving of tater tots contains approximately 150-170 calories. This isn’t very much, but you wouldn’t want to eat too many servings of tater tots in one sitting- that would put you at about 450-500 calories.
- This is not bad for a side dish, though! Eating 500 calories worth of anything will make you gain weight. But if you’re watching your caloric intake, don’t go overboard with tater tots, or any other food item.
2. Fiber
Tater tots are not a good source of fiber. The daily recommended intake of fiber is 25 grams for women, and 38 grams for men. This means that tater tots will only contribute very little towards your daily intake of fiber.
3. Iron
The serving size of tater tots contains about 1 mg of iron. While this doesn’t seem like a lot, it is still an important nutrient that aids in the creation of red blood cells.
4. Calcium
The serving size of tater tots contains about 3-5% of your daily recommended calcium intake. Calcium increases bone mass and prevents fractures as well as hypertension. It is also important in preventing tooth decay.
5. Vitamins C
If you’re trying to up your intake of Vitamin C, tater tots are a better choice than fries because tater tots are made with sweet potatoes, which are high in Vitamin C.
6. Other Vitamins and Minerals
Most of the vitamins and minerals in tater tots are very low, but they do contain a little bit of most of them, which can contribute to a well-balanced diet for some people.
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Types of tater tots
Tater tots come in many different varieties. These include:
1. Frozen tater tots
Fast food restaurants often sell tater tots with lots of different dipping sauces. These are usually frozen before you eat them, but they may have been precooked in some way so that they can be reheated by the restaurant’s staff.
2. Baked tater tots
Some people prefer to make their own tater tots at home and bake them rather than fry them. These must be prepared with care because they can turn out very greasy and soggy if you don’t do it right.
3. Fried tater tots
These are probably the most common type of tater tot that you’ll find in restaurants. They are usually made at home with fresh potatoes, but you can also purchase them frozen in many grocery stores.
Fitting tater tots into a healthy diet
Tater tots are a fairly healthy snack when eaten in small portions. They would go well with a serving of fruit or vegetables, like carrots or celery. They are also good with low-fat sour cream and lean meats.
Tater tots are sometimes served with unhealthy foods that have too many calories, sodium, or fat for just a side dish. So you should pay attention to what you’re eating them with to make the best nutritional choice.
How to cook tater tots to make them healthy?
Cooking your own tater tots is healthier than buying them from a store or restaurant because you can control what goes into them. You can add ingredients you want to the mixture before cooking it, such as spices or breadcrumbs.
If you’re trying to make your tater tots healthier, keep in mind the following points:
- Baked is the way to go.
- Better if cooked from fresh potatoes rather than frozen ones which may contain extra ingredients that aren’t as healthy for you as just a regular potato.
- Frying them in good oils such as coconut oil is also better for you.
- The best choice is to get them from your own home rather than get them from restaurants, where they may contain extra ingredients that are not good for the body, such as trans fat or even MSG which can be disguised under other names.
- If you’re trying to watch your sugar intake, choose sweet potatoes (which aren’t that much different from regular potatoes nutritionally and provide many health benefits) over white potatoes.
Are fried tater tots and French fries are same?
No. These are two very different kinds of potatoes that come from two different kinds of plants. Tater tots are made with taters, which are usually sweet potatoes, and french fries are made with white potatoes. They’re not even in the same family.
Baked tater tots vs. French fries
When it comes to tater tots vs. French fries, tater tots are less unhealthy than fries on many levels. First of all, tater tots aren’t deep-fried like French fries. They’re baked instead, which means that they contain fewer calories and fat (and fewer carbohydrates).
If you’re trying to watch your sodium intake, tater tots are also a good choice because they contain less sodium than fries. Tater tots also have more protein per serving than French fries.
However, French fries do contain more protein than tater tots, so if your goal is to bulk up and gain muscle, you might want to eat French fries instead.
Fried Tater Tots vs. Baked Tater Tots
Baked tater tots contain less fat than fried ones because you don’t need to add any grease when cooking them in the oven. Baked tater tots crust that forms when you bake them also contains fewer calories than the batter that fried tater tots are dipped in before they’re cooked. Tater tots may contain less sodium and more protein when they’re baked instead of fried too.
Conclusion
Tater tots are a relatively healthy snack as long as you don’t eat too many of them and use baked tater tots rather than fried ones. Tater tots contain more vitamins and minerals when they’re made from sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes, which makes them even healthier for you. As long as you cook your tater tots in good oils and don’t deep-fry them, they’re pretty healthy.
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