How To Make Chilli Cheese Fries

The Best Chili Cheese Fries

Youre about to have the most memorable party ever with The BEST Chili Cheese Fries! Featuring waffle fries made from scratch, a hearty chicken chili, and a luscious cheese sauce, these fries will have your guests wanting more!

You may have been seeing plenty of French friesrecipes on the blog lately. If youre to me on YouTube, then you know Ive been hosting a #funfries collab encouraging YouTube cooks to share their awesome French fries recipes! I know its August now but I just had to extend the collab by another week and end it with a bang! Ive always wanted to make chili cheese fries at home , and wow was I blown away with these! I guarantee that these will be The BEST Chili Cheese Fries youve ever had, and Ill show exactly how to make them!

Having the theme of French fries has totally motivated me to explore fries in ways Ive never thought of before! If you need some motivation to get cooking, then check out my free guide called 5 Tips To Make Cooking Fun! Ive also got a complementary one-month challenge to get your creative juices flowing, Live to Cook, so be sure to sign up to my newsletter to get those awesome goodies and tag me on to show me your fun fries – or any dish Ive inspired you to make!

Chili Cheese Friesfor Dinner

These chili cheese fries taste decadent: but theyre actually lighter than most recipes. In fact, you can get away with calling them dinner. Heres why:

• The fries are just potatoes and olive oil. This is part of a healthy diet!
• The chili is vegetarian and made of mostly vegetables. Black beans, corn, quinoa, tomatoes, onions: all healthy, good-for-you ingredients! You can choose a meaty chili if you like, which will make this recipe heavier and more caloric.
• The cheese sauce is minimal. Many cheese sauces pack in loads of cheese. This recipe has just enough. If youd like to go even more minimal, simply sprinkle with a few handfuls of cheddar cheese and pop it in the broiler to melt the cheese.

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BakedBree was originally created by Boston-based blogger Bree Hester but is now run by a team of food bloggers with a passion for all things food. Here you can get lots of weeknight meal inspiration, eat more plant-based meals, and still indulge in a decadent sweet treat. Baked Bree is a place where you will find great recipes and inspiration for your next adventure.

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How To Make Chili Cheese Fries Step By Step:

Chili Cheese Fries Ingredients

• 1 pound of ground beef
• 1 can of tomato sauce
• ¼ can of water
• ½ of a 15-ounce can of petite diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon of tomato paste
• 2-ounce can of green chilies
• 1 tablespoon cumin

• 1½ cups heavy whipping cream
• 3 cups of extra sharp cheddar
• 2 cups of shredded pepper jack
• ¼ teaspoon of salt
• ¼ teaspoon of onion powder
• ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon of chili powder

You Will Also Need

• 1 bag of frozen French fries
• jalapeños and green onions for garnish

SUBSTITUTIONS AND ADDITIONS

CHILI: Check out our homemade chili recipes. You can make it on the stovetop, in your crockpot, or even try turkey chili. If you have leftover chili from a previous meal, you could even reheat it and use it on top.

TOPPINGS: You can take these up another notch by adding crispy, crumbled bacon on top.

FRIES: You could use potatoes, sweet potato fries, or potato wedges instead of fries or even make homemade fries instead of store-bought.

SPICE: While there are some spicy elements in this recipe, you can always give it an extra little kick with a bit of hot sauce or cayenne pepper in your chili.

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Get Ready For Game Day With Nacho Chili Cheese Fries Using Beer Battered French Fries

This post is sponsored by McCain Potatoes but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Are you ready for game day? Its coming! My husband has become OBSESSED with football lately and has already let me know all the food items we should make for game day.

I say we because he actually does help me in the kitchen, so it usually is a we situation.

He actually used to be the one that did the cooking years ago when we were first married. He would always be in the kitchen whipping something up, and then when our schedules flip-flopped, I ended up learning to cook.

Although I do the majority of the cooking, he does help out a lot so I have to give him credit for that.

This past week, we decided to test out a new recipe using McCain Potatoes from Walmart. They happen to be a favorite choice, but this time I decided to focus on the McCain Craft Beer Battered Fries.

Do I Have To Use Sharp Cheddar Cheese

We highly recommend the sharp cheddar for this recipe. It is a more flavorful cheese where the flavor does not get lost in the other ingredients.

If you were to use a milder cheese, it would taste more like the seasonings than anything so if you want that cheese flavor to come through use the sharp cheddar for this recipe.

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Tips For The Perfect Fries

• You can use any shape fry you like for this dish. I recommend a larger cut fry rather than the shoestring variety. Try using steak fries, waffle fries, or thick cut traditional fries.
• The chili can be made up to 3 days in advance. I often make a pot of chili for dinner, then use the leftovers the second day to prepare this dish.
• Skip the store bought pre-shredded cheese and grate your own cheddar. The shredded cheese that comes in bags is often coated in preservatives and anti-caking agents and does not melt smoothly.
• Serve your cheese fries right away, as the potatoes will become soft as they sit under the chili.

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How To Make Cheese Sauce

Say CHEESE! This cheese sauce will be the layering piece to your Chili Cheese Fries. It is easy to make, and so delicious! Heat up the heavy cream until the sides start to bubble. Next, reduce the heat and add the cheeses and seasonings until the cheese is completely melted.

Pour the melted cheese onto the bottom of a plate to start your tower of Chili Cheese Fries. Add your Roasted Potato Wedges, top them with another layer of cheese, add your chili, and put your final layer of cheese on top of the chili. Garnish with green onions and jalapenos if you wish, and devour!

How To Make Sonic Chili Cheese Fries

Before you discard your old peanut oil from your turkey fryer try making some sonic chili cheese fries ! This side snack starts off by fresh sliced potatoes soaked in water for about a hour or frozen seasoned battered French fries . If your using frozen fries like I used please be carful and make sure theres no ice clogs in the fries this could cause fryer to boil over which can cause a fire. Start off by heating the oil if your not going to strain the oil , heat to about 325-350. Place frozen fries in a basket drop basket slowly into the hot oil for crispier fries leave fo about 6-8 min. After frying let fries drain for a few then dump into a clean aluminum baking pan. If you have Traeger place a whole big can of hormel bean less chili on the rack with temp set on 250 and the chili can lid opened 95% all the way around but still attached cracked open 1/4 inch. Let the chili heat for about 8 -10 min or desired temp. When the chili hits desired temp remove from Traeger. Take a aluminum pie pan fill with deep fried fries then pour chili over the fries then top with cheese of your choice this video I used Mexican four cheese blend. Place on Traeger that is still on and running at 250 degrees for 6-8 min serve and enjoy!

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What Type Of Cheese To Use

You can use any cheese you like. The best part of making this homemade is you can avoid a fake cheese sauce! Many of the restaurant versions are made with cheese that comes from a can.

I like to use cheddar cheese. I buy the cheese in block form and grate myself. Trust me, it makes a difference. If you have ever made my Southern Soul Food Mac and Cheese you have heard me discuss the difference in pre-shredded cheese that comes in a bag and cheese that you have to grate.

Pre-shredded cheese is coated with potato starch and chemical preservatives to keep it fresh longer. The potato starch adds a waxy coating to the cheese, so it wont melt as well. And you dont really need the chemical preservatives.

Other cheeses that will work well:

• Mozzarella

• 1 pound of ground beef
• 1 15-ounce can of tomato sauce
• ¼ can of water use the tomato sauce can to measure
• ½ of a 15 ounce can of petite diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon of tomato paste
• 2-ounce can of green chilies
• 1 tablespoon cumin

• 1½ cups heavy whipping cream
• 3 cups of extra sharp cheddar
• 2 cups of shredded pepper jack
• ¼ teaspoon of salt

What Kind Of Cheese Is Best

First of all, you want to make sure that you are using a freshly shredded cheese as it does not have any preservatives and will melt nicely.

Secondly, we like to use a sharp cheddar for this recipe, this makes sure that the cheese flavor does come out in the sauce. We have found that other cheddars do not come out as much so we stick to a sharp cheddar for this.

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Tips To Make This More Homemade:

• Swap the frozen french fries with roasted potato wedges: wash and slice 4 baking potatoes into wedges, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and bake at 425 for about 25 minutes or until the wedges are tender. Then proceed with the rest of the recipe!
• Use leftover homemade chili! About 2 cups of homemade chili can be substituted for the canned variety SO much more flavor, too!

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Chili Cheese Fries Recipe Ingredients

As you can probably tell from the name, this classic dish consists of three main components:

Well start with #1: the chili! Typically, chili cheese fries are smothered in beef chili. In my vegan version, I make homemade chili with plant-based ground meat instead. I love its hearty texture and smoky, spicy flavor in this recipe, but if you prefer, you can substitute regular veggie chili. My Easy Vegetarian Chili would be great here!

Next up: the cheese! Shredded cheese and cheese sauce are both common toppings for classic chili cheese fries. Here, I go the sauce route, loading up my fries with my go-to vegan cheese sauce. Its oozy, gooey, and positively cheesy! You wont believe its made with plant-based ingredients like sweet potatoes, cashews, and nutritional yeast.

Tip: if you have any leftover sauce, spoon it over a baked potato, or make vegan mac and cheese!

Last but not least: the fries! Because I make the chili and cheese sauce from scratch, I use store bought frozen fries as the base of this recipe. That way, once the sauce and the chili are ready, it just takes a few minutes to assemble everything.

Spread a layer of fries in a large bowl, on a baking sheet, or on a plate. Top them with spoonfuls of the cheese sauce, followed by scoops of the chili. Drizzle more sauce on top. Finish the fries with your desired fixings, and enjoy!

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Recipe Notes And Helpful Tips

• For optimum results use a good thick hearty chili that will help the fries stay crispy longer. For ease make the chili ahead of time.
• Air fryers work great for cooking fries, especially frozen French fries. Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees and cook about 10 minutes. If your cheese sauce is not quite ready hold them in the air fryer where they will stay warm. You can always crisp the fries for 1 minute right before assembling.
• This recipe is equally delicious with sweet potato fries and homemade French fries.
• If the cheese sauce thickens too much add a couple tablespoons of milk at a time till desired consistency.
• For optimum flavor purchase good quality sharp or white cheddar. The higher quality the cheese the better the flavor.
• Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Reheat in the microwave. The fries will no longer be crispy but the dish will still be delicious.

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The Easiest Chili Cheese Fries

Published: » By: Kylie » This post may contain affiliate links. »

These chili cheese fries are one of the easiest recipes ever! Seasoned waffle fries are smothered in melty cheese, homemade chili, and a mix of fresh toppings to create an appetizer the whole family will love! With only 5 ingredients and less than 30 minutes from start to finish, these chili cheese fries can be ready – with minimal prep work – for your family movie night or game day celebration!

How To Serve Loaded Chili Cheese Fries

The great thing about this chili cheese fries recipe is the versatility. Whether you make this recipe for a game day appetizer or as a main course, it will be well received!

To serve as an appetizer , I have included instructions in the recipe card for serving directly from the baking pan. To serve as a main dish or side dish, there are also instructions for assembling on individual plates.

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