Frito Pie Casserole
This Frito pie casserole is a cheesy ground beef and bean bake with a crunchy corn chip top. Ranch Style beans bring the smoky chili flavor, and a pile of Fritos goes on right before it hits the oven. Make it for football Sunday or a busy weeknight, and prep the filling up to 3 days ahead. It takes 50 minutes and serves 8.
I’d never heard of Frito pie until I met a friend from the Midwest. One bite and I was hooked. It’s still my favorite way to eat chili and corn chips.
My husband eats Fritos like they’re going out of style. If there’s a bag in the house, it’s gone. So when I make this, I buy an extra bag and hide it. Otherwise there’s nothing left for the casserole.
If you’ve had walking tacos, you already know the Fritos and chili combo. This is the version you bake in a 9×13 and feed to everybody. If you want it as a party dip instead, my Frito pie dip is the skillet version.
More Chili and Taco Casseroles
- Crockpot Taco Casserole – slow cooker taco casserole with potatoes
- Mexican Casserole – a Tex-Mex casserole for a crowd
- Cornbread Cowboy Casserole – skillet ground beef dinner under cornbread
- Chili Dog Casserole – classic chili dogs but in casserole form
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See recipe card for complete information on ingredients and their quantities.
Ingredient Notes
Ground Beef – Use lean ground beef or swap in ground turkey.
Beans – Ranch Style beans give it that smoky flavor. Flavored chili beans work if you prefer.
Rotel – Diced tomatoes and green chilies. Use the whole can, juice and all.
Chips – Frito corn chips. Chili cheese Fritos are fine too if you want more seasoning.
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How To Make Frito Casserole Recipe
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a 9×13 dish with nonstick spray. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion until it softens, then add the ground beef and cook until it’s no longer pink. Drain the fat if you like. Add the garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until fragrant.
- Stir in the tomato paste and cook for a few minutes. Add the Ranch Style beans with their juice, the enchilada sauce, the Rotel with its juice, and the broth. Stir in the chili powder and cumin and simmer on medium low for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Stir in the sour cream and spread the mixture in the prepared dish. Top with the shredded cheese, then all the Fritos.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until it’s bubbly and the chips are light golden brown. Add your favorite toppings and serve warm.
For the full recipe and detailed instructions, please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
How To Store, Make Ahead and Freeze Frito Pie Casserole
Make Ahead: Make the filling, spread it in the dish, cover, and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Hold back the cheese and Fritos. Add them right before it goes in the oven so the chips stay crunchy.
I haven’t baked it straight from the fridge myself, so start with about 10 extra minutes, then check every 5 minutes until it’s bubbly and the Fritos are light golden.
Leftovers: Keep covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in a 350°F oven until hot.
Freezer: Bake it without the Fritos, let it cool completely, wrap it tightly and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, add the Fritos, and reheat in the oven.
Ranch Style Beans
Ranch Style beans are pinto beans in a seasoned sauce with cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika and garlic. The sauce is smoky and so good. Look for the cans next to the rest of the canned beans.
If you can’t find them, seasoned pinto beans work, and so do seasoned black beans.
Frito Casserole Variations and Toppings
Ground Turkey – Swap it in for the beef.
Chili Beans – Use flavored chili beans in place of the Ranch Style beans.
More Seasoning – Use chili cheese Fritos on top.
Toppings – Avocado, green onions, shredded lettuce, jalapeños or cherry tomatoes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Mine starts with ground beef, onion and garlic browned in a skillet. Then come Ranch Style beans, red enchilada sauce, Rotel, tomato paste, chicken broth, chili powder and cumin, with a little sour cream stirred in at the end. Mexican blend cheese and two bags of Fritos go on top. Full amounts are in the recipe card below.
Not in my version. Both small bags go on top. If you want chips on the bottom too, use one large bag and split it between the bottom and the top.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- If the beef mixture looks soupy after it simmers, spoon off some of the liquid before it goes in the dish.
- Everything’s already cooked before it hits the oven. You’re just melting cheese and toasting chips, so pull it once the Fritos turn light golden.
- Spray the dish first. Cleanup is so much easier.
Sides for Frito Pie Night
- Green Chili Corn Casserole – Jiffy corn casserole with a mild green chile kick
- Frito Corn Salad – a no cook corn salad with more Fritos
- Mexican Street Corn Salad – street corn flavors in a salad bowl
- Cast Iron Skillet Cornbread – cornbread baked in a hot skillet
If you love this recipe as much as I do, please leave us a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ five-star review in the comment section below. Thanks!
Frito Pie Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 large sweet onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 15 ounces Ranch Style beans
- 10 ounces red enchilada sauce
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 7 ounces Fritos corn chips
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 10 ounces diced chilies & tomatoes or Rotel
- 2 cups Mexican cheese shredded
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- salt and pepper to taste
- garnishes avocado, green onions, shredded lettuce, jalapenos, cherry tomatoes (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13 dish with nonstick spray.
- Add the oil to a large skillet. Heat over medium heat and add the diced onions. Cook until they soften and then add the ground beef.
- Cook until no longer pink and drain the fat if desired.
- Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant (1-2 minutes).
- Add the tomato paste and cook for a few minutes.
- Add the Ranch Style Beans (with the juice), enchilada sauce, diced green chilies and tomatoes (with the juice), and the broth.
- Stir in the spices and continue to cook on medium-low simmer for 15 minutes.
- Season with salt and pepper as preferred.
- Stir in the sour cream and transfer to the prepared dish.
- Top with the shredded cheese and Fritos corn chips last.
- Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly and the chips are a light golden brown.
- Remove from oven and top with your favorite garnishes. Serve warm.
Notes
- Make ahead: Assemble, cover and refrigerate up to 3 days. Add the cheese and Fritos right before baking. From the fridge, add about 10 minutes, then check every 5.
- Freezer: Bake without the Fritos and freeze up to 3 months. Thaw overnight, add the Fritos, reheat at 350°F.
- Fritos: Both 3.5 ounce bags go on top. For chips on the bottom too, use one large bag and split it.
- Swaps: Ground turkey for the beef. Chili beans or seasoned pinto beans for the Ranch Style beans.
- Soupy filling: Spoon off some liquid before transferring to the dish.
Nutrition
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