Frito Chili Cheeseburger

A beast of a burger, piled high with a zesty chili con carne recipe, grilled onions, Fritos, shredded cheese and a juicy beef patty. This Frito Chili Cheeseburger Recipe brings two soda shop favorites together.

It’s burger Friday!!! We’ve only got two left this month so I want to make sure they count.

Today I’m giving you the naughtiest burger in my beefy arsenal, the Frito Chili Cheeseburger.

I make no apologies for this bad boy. He is what he is, take him or leave him.

Just know, if you cast him aside for light summer dishes, you are sorely missing out.

This cheeseburger recipe is an ode to trips to the old Main Street soda fountain/drug store that once held a place of high regard in downtown Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, where I grew up.

On special occasions, my dad would take me to Petrik’s Drugstore and lift me up on a stool at the soda fountain. We would order Vanilla Cokes and a Frito Chili Pie, or sometimes a Cheeseburger.

These were the best daddy-dates a little girl could remember. We’d talk about our week and munch on classic Americana offerings. We left hand-in-hand, with full bellies, toothy grins, and a Cow Tales candy.

When that little drugstore closed several years back, I was heart broken. It seemed like a chapter of my life had been permanently washed away.

So this cheeseburger recipe is dedicated to my dad, to Petrik’s Drugstore may it rest in peace, and to childhood memoires of Main Street America.

Lina Dishes from Villeroy & Boch.

This decedent towering chili cheeseburger starts with one fabulous chili con carne recipe.

The burger itself, doesn’t take very long to make, but do allow time to simmer up a great chili–it makes all the difference. You can make the chili several days in advance if you like, or make a larger chili con carne recipe one night for dinner and reserve some for these chili cheeseburgers later in the week.

The combination of old-fashioned beefy chili, with grilled onions, crunchy Frito corn chips, a perfectly grilled patty, and oozing cheese is something to experience.

I suggest you make them for somebody you love. Lifelong memories are sure to follow….

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Frito Chili Cheeseburger Recipe

YIELD: 6 burgers

PREP TIME: 30 minutes

COOK TIME: 2 hours

Ingredients:

For the Chili Con Carne Recipe:

• 4 strips of bacon, chopped
• 1 lb. beef chuck roast or stew meat, cut into small chunks
• 1 small onion, peeled and chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tb. chili powder
• 1 tsp. ground chipotle chili
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 14 oz. can kidney beans, drained
• 14 oz. can crushed or diced tomatoes
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 a lime, juiced
• 1 Tb. masa (corn flour)
• Salt and Pepper

For the Chili Cheeseburger Recipe:

• 2 lbs. ground chuck
• seasoning salt
• 1 large red onion, sliced into rings
• 1 bag Fritos corn chips
• 2 cups shredded cheddar
• 6 hamburger buns

Directions:

1. Place the chopped bacon in a medium sauce pot over medium heat. Brown the bacon, then add the chopped beef roast, onions, and garlic, and cook another 5-8 minutes until the beef is browned on all sides. Stir occasionally.
2. Add the spices and sugar to the pot, along with the canned tomatoes and beans. Add 1/2 tsp. of salt an 1/2 tsp. pepper. Stir and cover. Once the mixture comes to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 1 1/2 - 2 hours, until the beef is very tender. (The smaller you chop the beef the faster this happens.) Once the meat is tender, add the masa and lime juice. Stir and allow the masa to thicken the chili for another 5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.
3. Once the chili is ready, Preheat the grill to high heat. Separate the ground beef and form into 6 patties that are just slightly larger than the buns. Sprinkle both sides generously with seasoning salt.
4. Grill the patties for 3-5 minutes per side. (I like mine a little pink, so three minutes per side is usually perfect.) Then grill the sliced  onion rounds for 1-2 minutes per side.
5. To assemble: Place the grilled onions of the bottom bun, followed by the hamburger patty, a heaping scoop of hot chili, a hefty sprinkle of cheddar cheese, and a handful of Fritos. Place the top bun over the stack and press a little.

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