Tater tots are grated

potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Uni ...

es formed into small cylinders and deep-fried, often served as a side dish. The name "tater tot" is a

registered trademark The registered trademark symbol, , is a typographic symbol that provides notice that the preceding word or symbol is a trademark or service mark that has been registered with a national trademark office. A trademark is a symbol, word, or wor ...

of the American frozen food company Ore-Ida, but is often used as a generic term. "Tater" is short for ''potato''.

History

Tater tots were invented in 1953 when American frozen food company Ore-Ida founders F. Nephi Grigg, Golden Grigg, and Ross Erin Butler Sr. were trying to figure out what to do with leftover slivers of cut-up potatoes. They chopped up the slivers, added flour and seasoning, then pushed the mash through holes and sliced off pieces of the extruded mixture. The product was first offered commercially in stores in 1956. The name "Tater Tot" is a

of Ore-Ida—which has been a subsidiary of

Heinz The H. J. Heinz Company is an American food processing company headquartered at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the co ...

since 1965—but has become so widely associated with the dish that it is often used as a generic term. "Tater" is short for ''potato''. The name "Tater Tot" was created in the 1950s, and soon trademarked by a member of the Ore-Ida company's research committee who used a thesaurus to come up with an alliterative name. Originally, the product was very inexpensive; according to

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

lectures at

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of th ...

, people did not buy it at first because there was no perceived value. When the price was raised, people began buying it. Today, Americans consume approximately of Tater Tots, or 3,710,000,000 Tots per year. Recently, some vegetable companies (e.g. Green Giant brand) have introduced "veggie tots" which seek to substitute more nutritionally dense vegetables for the potato (e.g.

broccoli Broccoli (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''italica'') is an edible green plant in the cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus ''Brassica'') whose large flowering head, stalk and small associated leaves are eaten as a vegetable. Broccoli is cla ...

and

cauliflower Cauliflower is one of several vegetables in the species ''Brassica oleracea'' in the genus '' Brassica'', which is in the Brassicaceae (or mustard) family. It is an annual plant that reproduces by seed. Typically, only the head is eaten – t ...

Usage

Asia

Tater tots, locally known as ''mat-gamja'' ( ko, 맛감자), are a common '' bunsik'' item in Korea. It is often served in a

paper cup A paper cup is a disposable cup made out of paper and often lined or coated with plastic or wax to prevent liquid from leaking out or soaking through the paper. It may be made of recycled paper and is widely used around the world. History P ...

, with drizzled sweet

gochujang ''Gochujang'' (, from Korean: , ) or red chili paste * is a savory, sweet, and spicy fermented condiment popular in Korean cooking. It is made from gochu-garu (chili powder), glutinous rice, '' meju'' (fermented soybean) powder, ''yeotgir ...

-based sauce.

Europe

In the United Kingdom, Ross Frozen Foods once produced "Oven Crunchies" which are no longer available, although generic versions remain widely available.

North America

In Canada,

McCain Foods Limited McCain may refer to: * McCain (surname), a surname (includes a list of persons and characters) Companies * McCain Foods Limited, a producer of frozen foods * McCain, Inc., privately held American manufacturing company headquartered in Vista, ...

calls its line "Tasti Taters". In the United States, tater tots are common at school-lunch counters and cafeterias.Fast Food and Junk Food: An Encyclopedia of What We Love to Eat: An ... - Andrew F. Smith
p. 695. They are also sold in the

frozen food Freezing food preserves it from the time it is prepared to the time it is eaten. Since early times, farmers, fishermen, and trappers have preserved grains and produce in unheated buildings during the winter season. Freezing food slows decompositi ...

sections of

grocery store A grocery store ( AE), grocery shop ( BE) or simply grocery is a store that primarily retails a general range of food products, which may be fresh or packaged. In everyday U.S. usage, however, "grocery store" is a synonym for supermarket, a ...

s. Some

fast-food restaurant A fast-food restaurant, also known as a quick-service restaurant (QSR) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast-food cuisine and has minimal table service. The food served in fast-food restaurants is typical ...

s also offer them. Supermarket chain

Safeway Safeway is an American supermarket chain founded by Marion Barton Skaggs in April 1915 in American Falls, Idaho. The chain provides grocery items, food and general merchandise and features a variety of specialty departments, such as bakery, del ...

sells a generic brand of tater tots known as "Tater Treats". Cascadian Farm calls its line " Spud Puppies".

Sonic drive-in Sonic Corporation, founded as Sonic Drive-In and more commonly known as Sonic (stylized as SONIC), or "The Drive-In," is an American drive-in fast food restaurant Chain store, chain owned by Inspire Brands, the parent company of Arby's and Buf ...

also features tater tots on their regular menu: available toppings include cheese and chili. Sonic also sells "Cheesy Tots", coin-shaped tots that contain melted cheese and potatoes. Several restaurants in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Thou ...

offer a nacho version of tots known as "totchos", covered in nacho cheese sauce and toppings. Totchos were invented by publican Jim Parker in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous ...

. Some Mexican-style fast-food restaurants offer seasoned tater tots:

Taco Time Taco Time (stylized as TacoTime) is an American fast-food restaurant chain specializing in Mexican-American food. The chain has over 226 locations in the United States and 74 locations in Western Canada. It was founded in Eugene, Oregon, in 1960 ...

and Señor Frog's call them "Mexi-Fries", while

Taco Bell Taco Bell is an American-based chain of fast food restaurants founded in 1962 by Glen Bell (1923–2010) in Downey, California. Taco Bell is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. The restaurants serve a variety of Mexican-inspired foods, includi ...

used to sell them as "Mexi-Nuggets" and "Border Fries". Taco Mayo in the Southwest offers round disc-shaped tater tots called "Potato Locos". Taco John's also has coin shaped tots called "Potato Olés". Hotdish

Food franchises Potato Corner and Papa John’s also offer tater tots in select locations, though in the latter case these are branded as ‘Potato Tots’.

Oceania

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

, they are known as "potato gems", "potato royals" or "potato pom-poms". The New Zealand

Pizza Hut Pizza Hut is an American multinational restaurant chain and international franchise founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas by Dan and Frank Carney. They serve their signature pan pizza and other dishes including pasta, breadsticks and desse ...

franchise offers "Hash Bites" as a side dish, available alone or with an

aioli Aioli, allioli or aïoli ( or ; Provençal oc, alhòli or ''aiòli'' ; ca, allioli ; es, alioli ) is a cold sauce consisting of an emulsion of garlic and olive oil; it is found in the cuisines of the northwest Mediterranean, from Andalusia ...

dipping sauce.

References

External links

* {{Deep frying foods Fast food Frozen food brands Heinz brands Potato dishes Products introduced in 1953 American inventions