Hack Your Frozen Fries With This Canned Staple For A Fast And Filling Meal

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There are a lot of mistakes that can plague home cooks looking to perfect frozen french fries, but turning freezer box spuds into a meal is pretty painless. All you need is canned chili. Don't let naysayers try and tell you that chili fries aren't a complete meal, either. What more can you ask for? With this, you have comforting, belly-filling carbs, protein from the beefy chilis — and beans, if you like that variety, although the "beans in chili" debate is complicated — and, depending on what you use to top your bowl, possibly some dairy as well.

Best of all, there isn't a lot of fancy technique involved in preparing your plates. Simply heat your frozen fries by way of your favorite method (air fryer or oven both work well), warm up your chili, and slather those fries with the meaty goodness. You can keep things simple and cheap with a good ol' can of Hormel Chunky Chili with Beans, or go plant-based with Amy's highly-rated spicy organic chili ... the choice is yours. 

Dipping fries in ketchup may have a long history, but we'd argue that chili is actually nature's perfect condiment for French fries. It's hearty, more or less nutritious, and actually elevates potato products instead of merely complementing them. Best of all, your family and loved ones will appreciate the innate whimsy and fun of a chili fry bar set up on the dining room table with your favorite condiments, since picking your toppings for chili fries makes them even better.

Cheese is the perfect pairing for chili and French fries, we think. You can't really go wrong when picking the type, although we're always biased in favor of hand-shredded versus the kind you buy in bags at the grocery store, since the stuff you process yourself melts better. And melting is kind of the point, right? Top your fries generously (some might say "aggressively") with cheese and pop the tray under the broiler for a few minutes to get things golden, gooey, and extra delicious.

But the best chili fries, in our opinion, don't stop with just cheese on top! Some diced onion is another classic condiment that hearkens to chili dogs. Heck, on that note, how about a drizzle of spicy brown mustard? We think you can't miss with sour cream, either. Or, if you want to amp up the heat, choose your favorite hot sauce or even some chili crisp. 

Leafy cilantro would lend a pop of brightness to your plate, but we wouldn't turn our nose up at some ripe avocado slightly mashed with a spoon, either. A little crunch is always a good thing, too, so don't skimp on the fried onions, scallions, crispy jalapeños, or even a handful of crushed Fritos. Chili fries are, at their root, a humble and unassuming meal, but we can't help but feel that they clean up nicely for a fun and relatively inexpensive party dish, too. How many entrées starring a tin can are able to say that?