Cheesy Frito Taco Skillet
Published 9/25/2022
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This Cheesy Frito Taco Skillet is everything you love about a walking taco but served in a skillet. Make this for a fun appetizer or easy dinner!
Cheesy Frito Taco Skillet
Say hello to this delicious and flavorful cheesy frito taco skillet! Think a walking taco, but served in skillet form for easy serving. This skillet is seriously easy to make, and feeds a crowd. Did we mention it’s topped with frito chips and two varieties of cheese?! 😀
Why you’ll love it!
- This cheesy frito taco skillet is easy to throw together in under 30 minutes.
- You can serve as an appetizer for a party or as a fun meal for your family.
- It is easy to make this skillet your own by adding different taco toppings.
Featured Ingredients
- Frito chips: can’t have a frito taco skillet without the fritos! You’ll be topping the skillet with fritos right before serving.
- Ground beef: our ground meat of choice is beef! We used 85/15. If you have a different ground meat on hand, feel free to use that.
- Yellow onion: we love the flavor of yellow onion, but any onion will work.
- Red bell pepper: red bell pepper adds beautiful color and crunch to this cheesy frito taco skillet.
- Canned pinto beans: pinto beans add more fiber and protein plus a bite. Feel free to sub for another canned bean like black beans or great northern beans.
- Taco seasoning: we love using the Fit Foodie Finds Homemade Taco Seasoning but a store bought taco seasoning will also work.
- Tomato sauce: adding the tomato sauce to the base of this skillet adds the perfect amount of moisture and great flavor.
- Shredded cheddar and pepper jack cheese: freshly shredded is always our preference, but a bag of shredded cheddar and pepper jack will also work.
How to Make a Cheesy Frito Taco Skillet
Saute beef & veggies
Preheat the oven to 350℉, and heat avocado oil over medium/high heat in a large oven safe skillet. When the oil is fragrant add the onions and peppers and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes.
Add in beans & seasonings
Once the beef is fully cooked, add the pinto beans, taco seasoning, and tomato sauce and cook for a few minutes.
Top with cheese & fritos
Sprinkle the cheddar and pepper jack cheese on top of the beef mixture, and pour the Fritos on top of the cheese so that it is completely covered.
Bake & enjoy!
Place the skillet in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Serve with your favorite taco toppings. YUM!
Cheesy Frito Taco Skillet Toppings
Don’t skip the toppings on this skillet! Here are some ideas:
- Fritos, of course!
- Sour cream or Greek yogurt
- White queso
- Diced tomatoes
- Fresh cilantro
- Queso fresco
- Green onion
- Salsa
- Guacamole or sliced avocado
Top Tips for the Perfect Taco Skillet
- Use your favorite ground meat: don’t like beef? Any ground meat will work for this skillet, including a plant-based ground.
- Any canned bean will work: black beans, garbanzo beans or great northern beans could replace the pinto beans.
- Make it spicy: kick up the spice a notch and only use pepper jack cheese for the topping and add in diced jalapeños when sautéing the peppers and onions.
Storage
Store this cheesy frito taco skillet in an airtight container for up to 3 days without the fritos. Reheat over medium/high heat on the stovetop until warm and add the fritos before serving.
Cheesy Frito Taco Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- ½ medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 large red bell pepper, diced
- 1 lb. 85% ground beef
- 15 oz. can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 15 oz. can tomato sauce
- 4 oz. shredded cheddar cheese, ~1 cup
- 4 oz. shredded pepper jack cheese, ~1 cup
- 4 cups frito chips
Optional Toppings
- Sour cream
- Salsa
- Sliced avocado
- Guacamole
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉.
- Heat avocado oil over medium/high heat in a large oven safe skillet.
- When the oil is fragrant add the onions and peppers and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes.
- Once the beef is fully cooked, add the pinto beans, taco seasoning, and tomato sauce and cook for a few minutes.
- Next, sprinkle the cheddar and pepper jack cheese on top of the beef mixture.
- Pour the Fritos on top of the cheese so that it is completely covered.
- Place the skillet in the oven and bake for 20 minutes.
- Serve with your favorite taco toppings.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Don’t forget to tag your posts on social media with the hashtag #cheeseknees, we’d love to see what you’re up to!
Amazing dish! My wonderful boyfriend made this tonight on my suggestion and we both enjoyed it tremendously! Is an individual serving 529 calories?
So glad you guys loved it! And, yes, that’s correct on the nutrition info 🙂