Frito Chili Pie – The best frito pie loaded with Frito corn chips, ground beef, chili beans and tomato sauce. Topped with melted cheddar cheese and more fritos, it is a delicious Mexican-inspired casserole perfect for a quick weeknight dinner!
This crunchy, beefy and cheesy frito pie casserole is my go-to Tex Mex meals along with slow cooker chicken fajitas! It’s made from scratch and full of the best flavors!
WHAT IS THE BEST FRITO PIE RECIPE?
This unique dish is easy to assemble with a few simple ingredients. It tastes like tacos, and is a rich and indulgent treat for dinner. Frito pie casserole is always a huge hit in my house! You don’t have to go to Sonic for this amazing dish.
To make the best chili cheese fritos, you need to add lots of fritos chips with tons of cheddar cheese. I have tried different variations and find adding frito chips to both the bottom and the top is the best!
HOW TO MAKE FRITO CHILI PIE?
There are two popular ways to make this dish: bake it as a casserole or no-bake version as a walking taco. I like both of them for different reasons.
FRITO PIE CASSEROLE
For the baked method, the first step is to preheat your oven and prepare a baking dish.
Next, layer frito chips to the bottom of your baking dish.
Then cook ground beef, onions, chili beans and tomato sauce. Add the mixture on top of the chips layer.
Add more frito chips and lots of shredded cheddar cheese on top as you can see from the picture below. Then the casserole goes into the oven to bake, and that’s it! It’s a great way to feed a crowd at a party!
WALKING TACO
Walking taco is also called frito pie in a bag and is the no-bake method where the cooked beef mixture is added to bags of fritos and then topped with cheese and onions, as you can see from the picture below. It’s popular at Texas football games, and everyone can have their own individual servings of frito pie right in the frito packets!
TIPS FOR FRITO CASSEROLE
- I use 90% lean ground beef which is full of flavor but isn’t overly greasy.
- You can use any flavor chips even frito twists, and I prefer frito lay’s original flavor, chili cheese or nacho cheese flavor.
- Cheddar cheese is traditional for this recipe, but you can use jack cheese or Mexcian style blend.
CAN YOU MAKE FRITO PIE IN ADVANCE?
Yes, you can assemble everything up to 6 hours before baking it. Cover your casserole in the refrigerator until you are ready. Just increase the baking time by 5-10 minutes as you will be starting with a cold casserole.
HOW CAN I REHEAT FRITO PIE?
If you have leftover, reheat it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until hot throughout. You might need less time if you only have a small piece.
TOPPING OPTIONS
I typically serve my frito pie with green onions, sour cream and diced onions. Other great options include guacamole, cilantro, jalapeno and salsa.
Frito Chili Pie
Ingredients
- 4 cups Frito chips
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 onion medium size, chopped
- 20 ounces chili beans
- 20 ounces tomato sauce or enchilada sauce
- 2 1/2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
- green onions optional, for serving
Instructions
-
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and set aside a 9×13 baking dish.
-
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, sauté ground beef and onion until cooked through. Add chili beans, tomato sauce.
-
Layer 2 cups of frito chips to the bottom of your baking dish.
-
Transfer the beef mixture on top of the frito chips layer.
-
Add the rest of frito chips and shredded cheddar cheese on top.
-
Bake for about 20 minutes until cheese is melted.
-
Garnish with green onions and serve immediately!
Recipe Notes
To make walking tacos, you can skip the baking process. Just add the cooked beef mixture to individual Frito bags and then top with cheese and onions!
MORE QUICK AND EASY DINNER RECIPES:
[…] Frito Pie Casserole– this is going to start by making a big pot of chili in the slow cooker. I will use half of the pot for this recipe and freeze the leftovers to use in the coming weeks on baked potatoes. Frito pie is another recipe that screams fall!! Do you bake your Frito pie or make it all on the stove top? […]