Texas has its own rules when it comes to cuisine. I’ve seen foods here that I’d never heard of prior to meeting and marrying a Texan, then moving to her state as well. (O.K. She’s an Expat, we’re just stationed here, her license plates are Alaskan.)
This little gem is a tribute to football games, warm Texan nights and the fact that foods, especially snack foods, change by region.
Ladies and gentle-people, I give you the venerable Frito Pie!
I have no idea why it’s called a pie. There’s nothing pie-like about it, at least not in the way that I think of pies, meat, sweet or otherwise. If you’re a native Texan and have an answer for me, I’d love to hear it. I’d honestly cast it as a closer relative to Tortilla soup than to a pie, but I digress…
*Note: All of the ingredients used for this recipe, with the exception of the Fritos® themselves are of the “you’ll only find this is Texas” variety, at least I’ve never seen Wolf Brand Chili
- 2 ounces Fritos® Corn Chips
- 1 can Wolf Brand Chili, either hot or mild, no beans
- Several handfuls of shredded cheddar cheese
Method
Heat the chili. Add a layer of Fritos® and cheese in a bowl. Add chili. Repeat.
Garnish with cheese if desired.
Share (if you can bear to) and enjoy!
There ya have it Y’all. Mrs. seat of her Pants waxes poetic over this little snack, as does The Homesick Texan. I’ll take no credit for this. I actually stole the bowl away from my wife just long enough to get the shot at the head of this post, and I had the board staged before she got started.
(It’s hard to get perfect shots when there’s a five foot madwoman trying to claw her way through you to get to her lunch!)
More just plain Texan goodness is to come very soon, trust me.
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
The ingredients are right, but the best part about a Frito pie is how it’s served!
You slice open the side of the Big Grab bag of Fritos, put the chili, cheese (and I like some chopped onions) on top, and eat it right out of the bag! :)
Chris,
I’m a Texas native and have been eating frito pie for most of my life…I have never seen it served that way, but I can definitely see the appeal!
Love seeing you settle into the Texas cuisine. Hope you’re enjoying some of the new cuisine here in your new city too. So much interesting stuff going on here. And Chris is right about serving it in the bag. Every concession booth at high school football games serves it just that way.