Any chip alternatives for the Fritos in Frtio pie?

almostgoodbye99
almostgoodbye99 Posts: 60 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Good afternoon. I made some "homemade" chili overnight and I thought it might be nice to enjoy a Frito pie but if I recall, Fritos are pretty high in calories. Do any of you know any alternatives to Fritos that I could use that won't be super high in calories? If not, I'll "suffer" for tonight and just eat some Fritos....but I figured I'd check here first. Thanks!!

Replies

  • grelca
    grelca Posts: 10 Member
    I've made my own corn chips by cutting up and baking corn tortillas. I'm not sure that'd really translate to Frito-type corn chips, though.. more like Tostitos.
  • NaurielR
    NaurielR Posts: 429 Member
    Yes! Make your own baked corn chips. The brand Mission tortillas makes some corn tortillas that are 40 calories per 6 inch tortilla (they're marketed as "thin tortillas") but even then most 6 inch corn tortillas are about 50-60 calories each.

    Preheat an oven to 375-400. If you have a convection setting, turn that on.

    Take your tortillas and spray them lightly with oil (you don't have to spray them with oil. They will still crisp up. However, oil adds some flavor and helps them crisp up better, helps salt to adhere, and the calories added from the oil is negligible)

    Add salt

    Cut up your tortillas into frito sized chips

    Bake in the oven until they have darkened and the edges are slightly crispy (be sure to flip the chips a couple times so both sides of the chip get a chance to darken). The middle of the chip should feel firm, but won't crisp right out of the oven. It takes about five minutes out of the oven before they get completely crisp.

    I prefer the Mission thin tortillas, because I think it's easier to get them crispy. With the thicker tortillas, sometimes they don't crisp all the way through.
  • Tw1zzler
    Tw1zzler Posts: 583
    Nothing takes the place of Fritos...
  • Rockytop_relic
    Rockytop_relic Posts: 208 Member
    Baked Tostitos maybe?
  • feneticl
    feneticl Posts: 2
    What about Kelloggs' Special K* Cracker Chips (Original)? They are made with corn, and only 80 calories for 20 chips.
  • cupcake_jen
    cupcake_jen Posts: 26 Member
    Yes i agree you cant replace fritos but they didcome out with a "lightly salted" version but all these diy ideas sound very delicious too :)
  • mapnerd2005
    mapnerd2005 Posts: 363
    I just use fewer fritos. Weight out 1 ounce, add chili, add cheese.....mmmmmm, frito pie.
  • 3saLarson
    3saLarson Posts: 23
    Maybe home made ones. I found this recipe :
    1/2 cup cornmeal
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    3/4 cup boiling water
    1 teaspoon oil
    Combine all ingredients.
    Mix well.
    If dough is not stiff slowly add more cornmeal until the dough is stiff.
    Roll out dough to 1/8" thick.
    Cut into strips with a sharp knife or a pizza cutter.
    Place strips on a cookie sheet.
    Bake at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.
  • almostgoodbye99
    almostgoodbye99 Posts: 60 Member
    Thank you ALL! These are some great ideas for my dinner. The one that I am going to go with is 40 calorie Mission corn tortillas...it seems to be pretty simply and even though they won't taste like Fritos, it should still be good. I'll post back later and let you know how it was! :)
  • almostgoodbye99
    almostgoodbye99 Posts: 60 Member
    Hello everyone. Thanks again for the ideas and tips. My chips turned out very nice and tasty. I only used two tortillas so it didn't make very much, but I didn't really need that much I suppose. Anyway, I do recommend making your own if you get the chance or time. Keep up the good work!

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