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    Home » Recipes » Easy Dinners

    Frito Pie: How to Make the Original Chili Pie

    Published: Jun 14, 2017 Last Updated: Apr 13, 2020 by Marye 768 words. | About 4 minutes to read this article.

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    This is the original Frito Pie Recipe, created by the wife of one of the Frito executives in the 1950s. It's a classic, perfect football game food or anytime you want something that's quick and easy that the whole family will love. There are a lot of variations but this is the original!
    Total time 15 minutes
    Jump to Recipe

    Frito pie is a classic Texas recipe that's found at nearly every high football concession stand as well as in many high end restaurants. It's quick and easy, has many variations, and is addictively good. This is the original Frito Pie recipe, created by the wife of one of the Fritos executives in the 1950s. Plain, simple, and delicious! This post has been updated from the original February 2011 version.

    For this recipe you'll need: Fritos corn chips, Wolf Brand Chili, green onions or white onions, shredded cheese, sour cream optional

    Jump to Recipe

    Original Frito pie is a classic Texas recipe that's found at nearly every high football concession stand - addictively good. From RestlessChipotle.com

    I know. After I write this post about Frito pie I will need to create a new identity, dye my hair, and move to Far North Dakota, the frozen tundra... Frito pie? Really Marye?

    Umm... yeah. Really.

    I would love to tell you that I made homemade chili and hand fried the corn dough for the Fritos but I don't lie. Real Fritos, Wolf Brand Chili (no beans), a hunk of cheddar, and some sour cream. Welcome to my happy place. No one ever leaves. It is like the sailors in the Lotus Eaters:

    But, propped on beds of amaranth and moly,
    How sweet—while warm airs lull us, blowing lowly—
    With half-dropped eyelids still,
    Beneath a heaven dark and holy....

    Frito pie is a classic Texas recipe that's quick and easy! This is the original Frito Pie recipe, created by the wife of one of the Fritos executives in the 1950s. From RestlessChipotle.com

    I was first introduced to Frito Pie at a sixth grade football game. We had recently moved to Texas and I was a shy, plump adolescent with a Philadelphia uptown accent and knee socks. No girl in Texas wore knee socks past the age of 8 in the 1970s. The mamas were all ready teaching those girls about Texas big hair and pantyhose. Not one of the guys realized that in 12 short months I would sprout a chest the size of the Rocky Mountains and my waist would shrink to the point I looked like a wasp.

    Hello, boys.

    But that was a year away. That first game I was encouraged by my mom to get out, meet people, learn to fit in... so I, the shy introvert, stood uncomfortably by the bleachers trying to figure out what to do with my hands. All of a sudden a guy carrying a small Frito bag sauntered by. The Frito bag was sideways and cut open and something dark and spicy and wonderful seemed to be poured across the top.

    "Um, where did you get that?"

    He gave me a disdainful look and nodded over at the concession stand. I headed over there and tried to figure out what it was...Frito Pie.

    Frito pie is a classic Texas recipe that's found at nearly every high football concession stand as well as in many high end restaurants. It's quick and easy, has many variations, and is addictively good. This is the original Frito Pie recipe. From RestlessChipotle.com

    The first bite had me hooked and the second created those half dropped eyelids...

    Honestly? I never did fit in. Jr. High was painful and High School was unbearable. But... I did learn how to make killer Frito Pie.

    Frito Pie is a 3 minute dinner. You can make it in a casserole OR it would be fun for Super Bowl Sunday or any game day party to get the snack size bags and create Frito Pie high school football stadium style. Just open the bag sideways and dump in the chili then add your toppings.

    It also is good made with this creamy white chicken chili!

    Easy, right? And it is good. But please, don't tell anyone where you got the recipe. I have an image to uphold. 'K?

    One more thing.

    Frito Pie, delicious as it is, is not very photogenic.

    Original Frito Pie recipe is a Texas Classic! SO quick and easy! From RestlessChipotle.com

    Authentic Frito Pie Recipe

    Frito pie is a classic Texas recipe that's found at nearly every high football concession stand. SO quick and easy! From RestlessCHipotle.com
    4.5 from 6 votes

    Authentic Texas Frito Pie

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    This is the original Frito Pie Recipe, created by the wife of one of the Frito executives in the 1950s. It's a classic, perfect football game food or anytime you want something that's quick and easy that the whole family will love. There are a lot of variations but this is the original!
    Course Dinner (quick and easy)
    Cuisine Tex-Mex
    Prep Time: 5 minutes
    Cook Time: 10 minutes
    Total Time: 15 minutes
    Servings:8 servings
    Calories:566
    Author:Marye Audet-White
    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Ingredients

    • 8 ounces Fritos Corn Chips, , a little more wouldn't hurt
    • 48 ounces Wolf Brand Chili, , no beans
    • 1 large onion, , chopped
    • 2 cups Cheddar cheese, , shredded

    Instructions

    • Heat the chili until it is steaming hot.
    • Place Fritos in a lightly oiled casserole dish.
    • Cover with the chili.
    • Cover top with cheese.
    • Heat until cheese melts.
    • Serve sprinkled with onions and sour cream if desired.

    Notes

     
    You can also serve this right in the individual sized bags of Fritos. Just turn the bags on their sides, snip the top edge to open, and pour in the hot chili. That's the classic way it's served at football games around here.

    Nutrition Facts

    Calories: 566kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 22g | Fat: 39g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 67mg | Sodium: 1073mg | Potassium: 574mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 1585IU | Vitamin C: 5.1mg | Calcium: 313mg | Iron: 3.1mg

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      If you liked this easy Frito Pie you may also like...

      From left to right: King Ranch Chicken, Creamy Burrito Casserole, Candied Jalapenos (which would be amazing on top of the Frito Pie, by the way!)

      King Ranch Chicken  burrito casserole  candied jalapenos

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      About Marye

      With a 40 year focus on the importance of family and a passion for southern comfort food, Marye Audet-White is an expert in melding the two together effortlessly. Marye's a NY Times Bestselling author with 10 cookbooks under her belt and her recipes have been featured in Good Housekeeping, Country Living, Today, House Beautiful, Texas Living, Food & Wine, and many more.

      Reader Interactions

      Comments

      1. Bob

        April 24, 2022 at 9:36 am

        5 stars
        I came here for a frito pie recipe but got a softcore porn story about the author. Overall win.

        Reply
        • Marye

          April 24, 2022 at 9:54 am

          Bob... honey... if you consider this soft porn you are definitely not from around here. Put the controller away and ask if you can come out of the basement.

      2. ELIZABETH

        August 12, 2021 at 7:15 pm

        Fritos & Wolf Brand chili, both born in Texas. They make perfect partners, and grace our menu at least once a month, when neither myself or my husband are in the mood to cook. And to make clean up easy, we prepare it concession stand style. No shame in my book to share recipes like this. Keep 'em comin'!

        Reply
      3. Chris Casey

        March 10, 2019 at 1:23 pm

        I see that this an old post, but I just had to leave you a note!
        Your comments before the recipe is painful reading. I my song too. Now, at the age of 72, I can feel the emotion as if it happened yesterday. Isn't it terrific that you have created a wonderful life for your self in spite of a rocky start! Your web site is the best. !!

        Reply
        • Marye

          March 11, 2019 at 5:55 pm

          Thank you Chris! My life is SO much better now... But yeah.. it's a hard thing to go through. Thanks for reading!

      4. Ceinwyn

        February 03, 2011 at 4:01 pm

        This is exactly the sort of thing my husband ADORES while I sigh for Thai food. On the plus side he really, really loves me for making things like this, so now I have to make it. The downside is...the gas:)

        Reply

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      Hey Y'all, I'm Marye.

      NY Times bestselling author. Written over 10 cookbooks. Mom of 8 kids. Homeschooling mom for 22 years. Army veteran. Nothing fazes me & together we're going to get the kind of meals on your table that you (and your family) have been dreaming of. 

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