@ninrn mentioned that they were thinking of hotdishes, and even mentioned one of the Hall of Fame Hotdishes, the Tater Tot Hotdish.
So I got to thinking about my hotdish recipes and realized I had not made one in quite a while. I only have two that I am even modestly familiar with.
Does anyone have one that they like above all others? I just remember at family events in the Hi Line area of Montana (Highway 2 from Shelby to Bainville and all the godforsaken country even further north than Highway 2) and thence on through No Dakota to Minnesota. There were nearly limitless versions of hotdish. The main thing is that they start with inexpensive canned goods, maybe some frozen peas or corn, add some cheap protein like hamburger or canned tuna and top with cheese or cracker crumbs, put it in a Pyrex or aluminum casserole dish, bake, cover in tin foil and bring it to the party. Campbells Soup had dozens of cookbooks for hotdishes that had their soups as the star of the show. Hotdishes show up at wakes, potluck suppers, church suppers, even some wedding parties.
So, any takers? What is your favorite hotdish?!
I will start this show, with two of my favorites.
My Mom always went with one of two dishes, and the one I can actually enjoy is her Tuna Tetrazzini.
This is the Campbells version, which is similar to but not the same as my Mom’s, and my, recipe.
Campbell’s Tuna Tetrazinni
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 35 mins
Total Time: 45 mins
Servings: 8
Ingredients:
- 4 cups hot cooked medium egg noodles
- 2 (10.5 ounce) cans Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
- 2 (10 ounce) cans tuna, drained [I use canned chicken from my larder instead]
- 2 cups frozen peas
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons dry bread crumbs
- 4 ounces shredded Cheddar
- Quarter cup finely minced yellow onion
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
Directions
- Gather all ingredients and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
- Stir cooked noodles, soup, tuna, peas, onions, some of cheese and milk in a 3-quart casserole.
- Bake in the preheated oven until hot, about 30 minutes; stir well.
- Mix bread crumbs with melted butter in a bowl; sprinkle over tuna, toss cheese on top of casserole and continue to bake until bread crumbs/cheese are golden brown and crispy, 5 minutes more.
- Serve and enjoy!
I added my own ingredients of onion and cheese because everything is better with onions, cheese and bacon. I have not added bacon to this dish yet, but the thought has occurred to me more than once.
Today’s version is a bit more moist than most of my Tetrazinni, I may have used too much milk.
I think what this dish needs is a beaten egg added in when all the ingredients are mixed. I will add that to my recipe for next time.
My mom would always make tamale pie. Crustless…the cornmeal went straight into the mince mix. She added giant canned black olives. She loved it, but I loved only the olives. I do not recommend this dish.
Oh, you do your Mom a disservice! Tamale Pie sounds delish! I do not have any idea what it looks like, but I love tamales and canned black olives.
Canned tomatoes.
Onions.
Ground beef (cooked).
Cheddar cheese.
Corn meal.
Black olives.
Stir. Bake. Enjoy.
OK, as long as we’re on it, Mom’s tuna casserole:
Canned mushroom soup.
Canned mushrooms.
Frozen peas.
Cooked noodles.
Canned tuna.
Stir. Top with cheddar cheese. Bake. Enjoy.
(Getting the drift?)
That is a hotdish right down to each of the major components. Canned goods, cheap produce like an onion, ground beef, staples like corn meal and then some cheese to add umami (though we did not have that word yet). I can see that on the table quite clearly now. And what were those large tables called? You had card tables for 4 seats, and then you had the large tables with the folding legs that seated 8. Nearly every Catholic family I knew had 1 of each. Some were battered but we all had them.
Your Mom’s Tuna casserole was the same as my Mom’s tetrazinni, other than the mushrooms. If you are going to be feeding a mob of people, hotdishes were the bomb.
Lol! The card table!!! I’d forgotten about that. The Kiddie Table…
Exactly! I still remember when I got promoted from the kiddy table to the 8 seat Teens Table. It was an epochal event in my childhood.
I make this Potato, Onion, Carrot & Cheese Casserole from time to time. I’ve been layering Chorizo in the middle, lately. Adds a nice flavor…
If I have a bag of potatoes starting to go bad, I’ll make this casserole and use up a 5 pound bag. We get 3 meals (6 servings) out of this dish.
It’s actually really tasty, as well!
Chorizo is like bacon.
It makes anything you add it to just a bit better.
I like tamale pie, Chile relleno casserole, tuna casserole, funeral potatoes, and breakfast cassereoles. That’s most of my repertoire.
I’m amused by the tater tot topped casserole, which I haven’t made yet.
I guess moussaka and pastitsio are also hot dishes I make.
Ziv, 7 layer dinner is common in every church and community cookbook in the Prairies, and is known as Shipwreck dinner in the Maritimes and Newfoundland. I am guessing it’s common in the Midwest and Montana as well. a layer of potatoes, a layer of rice, a layer of canned peas, a layer of sausages or browned ground meat, topped with canned tomato soup or cream of mushroom soup, and baked for hours.
Yay! Thanks, @ZivBnd ! All of these casseroles sound so warming and savory. This Thanksgiving I’m digging in my heels and doing a hotdish. Maybe something with tater tots and green chile. And grated cheese, of course.
Zoe, that Seven Layer Dinner looks good! I do not think it has migrated to northern Montana or I would have remembered it. I can imagine that the dish can change a lot with different types of sausage. The Baked Lazy Perogy is interesting but kind of odd for me. Mashed potatoes, cottage cheese and bacon? Somehow I need to taste that before I make a judgement. LOL! Why cottage cheese, though?
I like the Shipwreck name. Very appropriate for the region. I just spent some time at Portland Bill lighthouse in England where they had a map of all the shipwrecks off that coast, the waters off Halifax probably look similar. And given the fishing industry in the area there has been no shortage of boats lost.
