Homemade Idaho® Potato Cheesy Potato Tots

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds Idaho® potatoes, peeled
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• 1½ cups cheese, shredded
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup all purpose flour (for dredging)
• Vegetable oil, for frying

Instructions:

1. Place the potatoes in a pot and cover fill with cold water until it covers the potatoes by 1 inch. Bring the water to a boil and cook for 7-8 minutes. The potatoes will just be partially cooked at this point. Drain the water and cool completely.
2. Using a box grater, shred the potatoes.
3. In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, flour, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, cheese, salt and pepper. Stir to combine.
4. Form the potatoes into tots using a about a tablespoon of the mixture for each one. The mixture will be fairly sticky at this point. Form each tot and place it on a parchment lined baking sheet.
5. Place the sheet in the freezer for approximately 30 minutes.
6. Remove from the freezer and form the tots into a harder ball. Roll each tot in the all purpose flour and place it back on the parchment.
7. In a large skillet, heat approximately 1 inch of vegetable oil to about 375° F
8. Add the tots to the skillet, about 5-7 at a time and cook until evenly browned and crispy, about 4 minutes.
9. Serve immediately.

Notes:

Time Saving Tip: The tots can be frozen for later use! Make a double batch and freeze them after Step 6. Then just throw them in the fryer whenever you want some fresh tots.