Description
Pressure Cooker Frito Pie recipe - cut open a bag of Fritos, add a scoop of chili, a handful of cheese, sprinkle with chopped onions, and dig in with a spoon. Heaven.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ cup chili powder blend
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano (preferably Mexican oregano)
- 1 cup water (or substitute beer)
- 1 ¼ pounds 85/15 ground beef
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 (15-ounce) cans red kidney beans, undrained (or 4 cups homemade red kidney beans with bean liquid)
- 1 (10- to 14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chiles (like Ro*Tel tomatoes and chilies)
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Fritos
- Single-serving bags of Fritos
Toppings
- Shredded cheese (cheddar or Mexican blend)
- Diced onions
- Hot sauce (I like El Yucateco Green Habanero, but use your favorite)
Instructions
- Sauté the aromatics and toast the spices: In an Instant pot set to Sauté mode - high, heat the vegetable oil until it starts to shimmer. (Use medium-high heat in a stovetop pressure cooker). Add the onions, garlic, and ½ teaspoon fine sea salt. Sauté until the onions are softened, about 5 minutes, then make a hole in the middle of the onions and add the chili powder, cumin, and oregano. Toast until you smell the spices, about 1 minute, then stir them into the onions.
- Simmer the beef until no longer pink, stir in the beans, top with the tomatoes: Pour in 1 cup of water, then scrape the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to loosen any stuck onions or spices. Add the beef, 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, and brown sugar. Cook, stirring and breaking up the beef, until the beef is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Stir in the beans. Pour the tomatoes with green chiles on top of the beef mixture, but don't stir - the tomatoes may burn if they sink to the bottom of the pot.
- Pressure cook for 12 minutes with a natural pressure release: Lock the lid on the pressure cooker. Cook at high pressure for 12 minutes in an Instant Pot or other electric PC, or for 10 minutes in a stovetop PC. (Use Manual, Pressure Cook, or Pressure Cook- Custom mode in an Instant Pot). Let the pressure come down naturally, about 15 minutes. (You can quick release any remaining pressure after 15 minutes if you're in a hurry.
- Serve in the Fritos bags: Unlock the lid, add the fresh ground black pepper, and stir, breaking up any large clumps of meat. To serve: Cut open a single-serve Frito bag, cutting lengthwise across the side of the bag (the top of the bag is kind of small, making it hard to eat out of that side). Spoon a ladle or two of chili into the bag, then top with the shredded cheese, diced onions, and (optional) the hot sauce. Grab a spoon and eat straight out of the bag. Enjoy!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Weeknight Dinner
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American