Frito Pie
Homemade beef chili ladled straight into a split-open bag of corn chips and topped with cheddar and chopped onion; eat it with a fork, right out of the bag.
Fritos began in San Antonio: America's Test Kitchen, citing Kaleta Doolin's 2011 book "Fritos Pie: Stories, Recipes, and More", says her father, C.E. Doolin, bought a corn chip recipe and an extruding press there in 1932 for $100. Who first poured chili on the chips is DISPUTED. Wikipedia says the oldest known recipe pairing Fritos and chili was published in Texas in 1949, names Daisy Doolin (C.E.'s mother) or his secretary Mary Livingston as possible inventors, and notes that Frito-Lay credits Nell Morris; New Mexicans credit Teresa Hernández at the Santa Fe Woolworth's lunch counter in the 1960s. Kaleta Doolin says the dish came from the company's marketing department and kitchen, and after the 1961 Frito-Lay merger the bags carried the recipe: heat a can of chili, pour it into the bag and top with cheese and onions (ATK).
🇺🇸 This one is American
Homemade beef chili ladled straight into a split-open bag of corn chips and topped with cheddar and chopped onion; eat it with a fork, right out of the bag.
🇺🇸 The original
The Texas bowl of red is chunks of beef simmered with dried chiles and spices until tender. No beans, and in the strict version no tomatoes. See the Texas Bowl of Red (San Antonio Chili con Carne) recipe.
Why it works the kitchen science
Cornmeal in the chili
A spoonful thickens it and adds a corn sweetness that mimics canned chili (ATK).
The bag is the bowl
Cutting along the long side opens a wide boat, so the chili reaches more chips while the bottom layer stays crunchy.
Step by step
- Step 1
Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the beef and salt and cook, breaking the meat into 1/4-inch bits, 12 to 14 minutes, until browned and a brown crust forms on the pot (well past 160°F).
- Step 2
Lower the heat to medium, add 1/2 cup of the onion and cook 5 minutes, until softened and lightly browned. Stir in the garlic, cornmeal, chili powder, pepper, cumin and oregano and cook 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Step 3
Stir in the tomatoes, beer and chipotle, scraping up the browned bits. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat and cook 1 hour, stirring now and then, until thick.
- Step 4
Lay each chip bag flat and cut along one long side from end to end with scissors. Fold the top edge back to make a cuff.
- Step 5
Spoon about 1/2 cup chili into each bag, top with cheddar and the remaining chopped onion and serve right away with forks.
Frito Pie
Serves 6 (1 bag each) · about 3 cups chili, 6 bags · 1 hr 30 min total
Chili
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3/4 lb 85% lean ground beef
- 1 tsp table salt
- 1 medium onion, chopped fine (about 1 cup), divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp cornmeal
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 3/4 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 can (14 oz) crushed tomatoes (or half a 28 oz can)
- 3/4 cup mild lager
- 1/2 to 1 tbsp minced canned chipotle in adobo
To serve
- 6 (2 oz) bags original corn chips (Fritos)
- 6 oz mild yellow cheddar, shredded (1 1/2 cups)
Method
- Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the beef and salt and cook, breaking the meat into 1/4-inch bits, 12 to 14 minutes, until browned and a brown crust forms on the pot (well past 160°F).
- Lower the heat to medium, add 1/2 cup of the onion and cook 5 minutes, until softened and lightly browned. Stir in the garlic, cornmeal, chili powder, pepper, cumin and oregano and cook 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Stir in the tomatoes, beer and chipotle, scraping up the browned bits. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat and cook 1 hour, stirring now and then, until thick.
- Lay each chip bag flat and cut along one long side from end to end with scissors. Fold the top edge back to make a cuff.
- Spoon about 1/2 cup chili into each bag, top with cheddar and the remaining chopped onion and serve right away with forks.
Adapted from America's Test Kitchen, "Frito Pie" by Mark Huxsoll (2023), halved from 12 bags to 6. ATK says its chili was inspired by the one in Kaleta Doolin's book. America's Test Kitchen. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
Tips
- Serve as soon as the chili goes in; the chips soften fast.
- For a crowd, set out the chili in a slow cooker with the bags, cheese and onion on the side.
- A casserole version (chips, chili and cheese layered in a baking dish) is also called Frito pie (Wikipedia).
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- Served in the bag. Documented as the classic serve (Wikipedia; the company recipe quoted by ATK).
- Canned chili is part of the dish. Folklore: ATK says many devotees claim canned chili is essential; ATK found homemade better.
- Cheese and onion on top. Documented (company recipe quoted by ATK).
- Who invented it. Disputed: Daisy Doolin, Mary Livingston, Nell Morris (Frito-Lay's version) or the Frito company kitchen (Kaleta Doolin), all in Texas; or Teresa Hernández in Santa Fe in the 1960s. Wikipedia dates the oldest known recipe to 1949 in Texas.
- Texas or New Mexico. Disputed: both claim it. Name both, pick neither.
- Beans. Folklore either way: Wikipedia lists refried beans as one optional addition.
Every other chili
Texas Bowl of Red (San Antonio Chili con Carne)
Big cubes of beef chuck braised for three hours in a purée of toasted whole dried chiles, with no beans and no tomatoes.
Chile Colorado (Northern Mexican Red Chile Beef)
Beef and potatoes stewed in a smooth guajillo chile sauce thickened with a little flour, the Chihuahua way, and spooned into warm flour tortillas.
Chili con Carne with Beans
The American home classic: ground beef, kidney beans and tomatoes simmered two hours with chili powder, cumin and a little heat.
Cincinnati Chili (Three-Way to Five-Way)
A thin, cinnamon-and-allspice-scented meat sauce ladled over buttered spaghetti and built up in "ways" with beans, onion and a mound of finely shredded cheddar.
New Mexico Green Chile Stew
Pork, potatoes and plenty of roasted New Mexico green chile simmered in broth, the comfort-food bowl behind New Mexico's official question, "Red or green?".
Chile Verde with Pork
Pork shoulder braised for hours in a chunky purée of charred poblanos, tomatillos, garlic and jalapeño until it falls apart.
White Chicken Chili
Shredded chicken and creamy white beans in a light, green-chile broth of poblano, Anaheim and jalapeño, finished with lime, cilantro and scallions.
Three-Bean Vegetarian Chili
Pinto, black and kidney beans simmered with crushed tomatoes, toasted cumin seeds, red pepper and corn, finished with lime and cilantro.
30-Minute Weeknight Beef and Bean Chili
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Fast-Food Style Chili, Inspired by Wendy's
A mild, beefy, tomato-heavy chili with kidney and pinto beans, onion, celery and green pepper, simmered low and slow like the drive-thru favorite. Inspired by, not official.
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