Ajpal

Easy recipes and foodie travel

Beef

Easy Frito Pie Casserole

This easy walking taco casserole recipe is simple, delicious, crunchy, creamy, tangy, spicy, and fresh – loaded with meaty taco

  • Serves 9 servings
  • Prep 10 minutes
  • Cook 20 minutes
  • Total 30 minutes
Jump to the recipe
Easy Frito Pie Casserole

Like a walking taco, but on a plate – this dinner is a family favorite, quick to prepare, and totally delicious!

picture of frito pie casserole in a baking dish

At Ajpal, I add lots of tips in all of my recipes – because I am a home cook without any formal training, and I find I am more confident making dishes when I understand why it works, and what each ingredient means to the flavor of a recipe. My goal is for even the most beginner home cook to feel empowered in the kitchen.

picture of frito pie casserole in a baking dish

Walking Taco Casserole

If you love walking tacos, crunchy fritos, cheesy casseroles, and comforting Tex-Mex flavors, this Frito Pie is for you! We’re baking up a dish full of hearty, spicy goodness loaded with fritos, ground beef, sour cream, lettuce, corn, and other delicious Southwest flavor.

picture of frito pie casserole in a baking dish

How To Make Frito Pie

To make this recipe, you’ll need:

  • Fritos – we love to use chili cheese fritos for the extra seasoning, but you can use any type of fritos, including scoops.
  • Ground beef – we love using ground beef in this recipe – but you can also use ground pork, ground lamb, ground turkey, or ground chicken in frito pie too!
  • Taco seasoning – you can use whatever brand seasoning you love for this recipe, I love using taco bell.
  • Adobo sauce –
  • Chunky salsa
  • Southwestern corn
  • Colby cheddar cheese, shredded
  • Shredded lettuce
  • Diced tomatoes
  • Diced red onion

We love to serve with:

  • Sour cream
  • Cilantro
ingredients for frito pie sitting on table
cooked ground beef in a pan
salsa and ground beef in a pan
seasoned ground beef in a pan
cheese in a bowl
fritos in a casserole dish
fritos and ground beef in a casserole dish
fritos beef and corn in a casserole dish
fritos corn beef and cheese in a casserole dish
baked frito pie casserole
frito pie casserole with lettuce and sour cream in a dish
  1. Heat a frying pan over medium high heat. Add a swirl of olive oil once hot. Sear both sides of the ground beef, then break apart. Cook for 2 minutes. Stir in ½ the taco seasoning packet, adobo paste, and salsa. Cook for 5 more minutes. Drain and set aside
  2. Preheat the oven to 375*
  3. Shred the cheese and add to a bowl. Toss with the remaining taco seasoning.
  4. Cover the bottom of a 9×13” casserole dish with a thin layer of chips. Next, spread half of the taco meat over the chips, then add a layer of corn over the taco meat. Top with half of the cheese. Layer on the remaining taco meat, remaining corn, and remaining chips. Evenly sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the top.
  5. Place the casserole dish into the oven on the center rack and bake for 15 minutes.
  6. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes. Top with shredded lettuce, Diced tomatoes, diced red onion, and drizzle with sour cream. Garnish with fresh cilantro. Enjoy!
picture of frito pie casserole in a baking dish

Tips to Make Frito Pie and FAQs

Frito pie is super simple to make – its a lot like nachos, layered with fritos, meat, and cheese – then baked to crispy, crunchy perfection.

picture of frito pie casserole in a baking dish

FAQs

This recipe can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days. We recommend removing any lettuce or sour cream from the top before saving as they won’t keep well.

Frito pie, or walking taco casserole, is a baked Tex-Mex taco casserole loaded with taco meat and fixings, as well as plenty of crunchy fritos – for the ultimate comfort food!

We love adding jalapeños, cilantro, diced white onions, sliced black olives, salsa, hominy, and more.

picture of frito pie casserole in a baking dish

What to Serve With Frito Pie

Birria Tacos

Taco Seasoning

Slow Cooker Shredded Beef Tacos

Fried Chicken Tacos

Easy Chicken Tinga Recipe

Spicy One Pot Taco Rice

Cheesy Beef Taco Skillet

Slow Cooker Carnitas

Frito Pie Casserole Recipe

Share on Facebook

Pin this now to find it later

The recipe

Frito Pie Recipe

Crunchy, creamy, tangy, spicy, and fresh – loaded with meaty taco flavors and crunchy chili cheese fritos, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and sour cream!

  • Serves 9 servings
  • Prep 10 minutes
  • Cook 20 minutes
  • Total 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 bag (9oz Fritos chili cheese)
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1 packet taco seasoning
  • 2 tbsp adobo sauce
  • 1 cup medium chunky salsa
  • 1 can southwestern corn (drained (15oz))
  • 8 oz block Colby cheddar cheese (shredded (makes 2 cups))
  • 1 cup Shredded lettuce
  • ½ cup diced tomatoes
  • ¼ cup diced red onion
  • For serving
  • Sour cream
  • Cilantro

Method

  1. 1

    Heat a frying pan over medium high heat. Add a swirl of olive oil once hot. Sear both sides of the ground beef, then break apart. Cook for 2 minutes. Stir in ½ the taco seasoning packet, adobo paste, and salsa. Cook for 5 more minutes. Drain and set aside.

  2. 2

    Preheat the oven to 375*

  3. 3

    Shred the cheese and add to a bowl. Toss with the remaining taco seasoning.

  4. 4

    Cover the bottom of a 9×13” casserole dish with a thin layer of chips. Next, spread half of the taco meat over the chips, then add a layer of corn over the taco meat. Top with half of the cheese. Layer on the remaining taco meat, remaining corn, and remaining chips. Evenly sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the top.

  5. 5

    Place the casserole dish into the oven on the center rack and bake for 15 minutes.

  6. 6

    Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes.

  7. 7

    Top with shredded lettuce, Diced tomatoes, diced red onion, and drizzle with sour cream. Garnish with fresh cilantro. Enjoy!

Nutrition

  • Serving1 g
  • Calories366 kcal
  • Carbohydrates12 g
  • Protein26 g
  • Fat24 g
  • Saturated Fat11 g
  • Polyunsaturated Fat9 g
  • Cholesterol87 mg
  • Sodium920 mg
  • Fiber2 g
  • Sugar4 g

Questions

How do I store Frito pie?

This recipe can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days. We recommend removing any lettuce or sour cream from the top before saving as they won’t keep well.

What is Frito pie?

Frito pie, or walking taco casserole, is a baked Tex-Mex taco casserole loaded with taco meat and fixings, as well as plenty of crunchy fritos – for the ultimate comfort food!

What can I add to Frito pie?

We love adding jalapeños, cilantro, diced white onions, sliced black olives, salsa, hominy, and more.