Frito Chili Pie
Dehydrated chili poured straight over corn chips in the bag. Two ingredients, one boil.
- calories
- 720
- weight
- 5.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 131
- protein
- 22 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 2 min
- cook
- 10 min
- total time
- 12 min
- water
- 500 ml boiled
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Lunch
- Canister stove
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Campfire coals
- Backpacking
- Car camping
- Thru-hike
- Day hike
- Eat in the bag
- Grab and go
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Dehydrated chili mix | 1 packet | vegetarian brands rehydrate faster than the meat ones |
|---|---|---|
| Corn chips | 2 oz bag | Fritos: corn, oil, salt, and nothing else |
| Hard cheese | 1 oz | cheddar or dry jack, grated at home |
Method
- Boil the water your chili packet calls for, usually around 500 ml.
- Stir in the chili and let it sit off the heat until the beans stop being gravel. Ten minutes for most packets, longer above 10,000 feet.
- Crush the chip bag lightly, open it, and pour the chili in on top of the chips.
- Drop the cheese in and stir once. Eat out of the bag with a long spoon.
The chips are structure, not garnish. Corn fries up rigid enough to hold its shape under hot chili for a few minutes, which is what separates this from soup with crumbs in it. Eat it before the bottom layer gives up.
The cheese does the fat work. Chili packets are lean and salty by design, so an ounce of hard cheese stirred in at the end is most of what makes this a dinner instead of a side. Grate it at home; a cold block will not melt in there.
No dietary tags on this one: the cheese rules out vegan and dairy-free, and chili packet blends vary too much to call it anything else with confidence.
Packing
Chili packet, chips, and a small bag of grated cheese. The chip bag is your bowl, so do not crush it flat in your pack.
Variations
- A foil packet of chicken or a handful of freeze-dried beef bulks it up.
- Hot sauce, dried onion, or a squeeze of lime powder if the packet chili tastes flat.
https://camprecipes.com/classic-recipes/frito-chili-pie