Sonic Is Testing New Tots With A Surprising Ingredient
The first batch of Tater Tots were invented in 1954 by the Ore-Ida company, which they debuted at that years National Potato Convention. The bite-size potatoes, made from French fry scraps, were so popular, the company trademarked the name (via Eater). Whether you call them tater tots, baby taters, tots, potato rounds, or potato puffs, Americans reportedly eat 70 million pounds of the snack each year. We've even got a National Tater Tot Day to celebrate these little crunchy potato gems — February 2nd (via National Today).
One of America's favorite places to grab tots on the go has become Sonic, with tots ranking just under the chain's mozzarella sticks, according to Ranker. It's because of Sonic's devoted tot following that there are multiple extreme tot creations on the Sonic secret menu and, earlier this year, the fast food chain offered the limited-time-only Totchos. Remember those? Imagine nachos, but with tots instead of tortilla chips, covered in cheese sauce, bacon, onions, baja sauce, and jalapenos (via Delish). So, are you ready for a new tot? Do you like vegetables? Wait! Don't let the "V" word scare you — you'll want to stick around for this.
How Sonic is incorporating a vegetable into its new tot
According to Delish, Sonic has taken one of America's favorite homemade comfort foods, broccoli cheddar casserole, and shrunk it down into the portable, poppable Broccoli Cheddar Tot. Are you still with us? This is not your below average plate of steamed broccoli, folks. We're talking about cheesy, crispy, fried tots filled with broccoli and melty cheese. Delish says a large order of the tots actually contains a full serving of vegetables, even though you might not know it.
Here's the bad news. The Sonic Broccoli Cheddar Tots are currently only being offered as a limited test run in two cities — Wichita, Kansas and Chattanooga, Tennessee — through November 29th (via The Wichita Eagle). However, Sonic spokeswoman Daniela Tellechea said the Broccoli Cheddar Tots are performing well so far, which is usually a good sign leading to possible national rollout (via Chattanooga Times Free Press). Until then, maybe opt for some cheese tots and add your own broccoli?