Sunset Magazine's Frito Pie

Total Time: 26 mins Preparation Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 16 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 2 lbs lean ground beef (7% fat)
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained (i prefer kidney beans)
• 3 tablespoons ground dried new mexico chiles or 3 tablespoons regular chili powder
• 4 1/2 cups frito corn chips (15 ounce bag)
• 6 tablespoons finely diced onions
• 1 1/2 cups shredded good quality cheddar cheese
• 2 cups finely shredded iceberg lettuce or 2 cups lettuce
• 3/4 cup diced fresh tomato
• sour cream
• green onion
• black olives
• jalapeno

Recipe

• 1 in a pan over medium-high heat, stir ground beef, garlic powder and 1 teaspoon salt until beef is crumbly and well browned, 6 to 8 minutes.
• 2 with a large slotted spoon, push beef mixture to one side of pan and tilt pan so liquid runs to opposite side.
• 3 stir flour into liquid until well blended, then mix with beef mixture.
• 4 add 2 cups water, black beans (or kidney beans) if using, and dried chilies; stir until mixture boils and thickens, about 8 minutes.
• 5 spread about 1/3 cup of fritos in each of six individual sized bowls and sprinkle chopped onion equally on top.
• 6 divide chili equally among the bowls and top with cheese, lettuce and tomato.
• 7 add more salt to taste if desired.
• 8 note: for large party gatherings, i usually triple the recipe and prepare this buffet style for each person to "build your own" frito pie. for diehards, you must have sliced fresh jalapenos as a garnish, too!