Step 1

Preheat oven to 450 degrees and lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.

Step 2

Add ground beef, onion, and bell pepper to a large nonstick skillet. Cook, breaking apart ground beef with a wooden spoon, until it is cooked through and onions and peppers are soft.

Step 3

Drain any fat. Add tomato sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, and pepper. Stir to mix. Bring to a simmer for 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Step 4

Spread mixture in bottom of prepared baking dish.

Step 5

Sprinkle a little more than half the cheese on top of the sloppy joe mixture.

Step 6

Sprinkle tater tots (using about 2/3 of the bag) on top and sprinkle remaining cheese on top of them.

Step 7

Bake for about 25 minutes, or until tater tots are golden brown.