The taco bell chili cheese burrito, also known as the Chilito, was a huge hit for Taco Bell back in the 1990s but then Taco Bell did what taco bell does, they took it off the menu. Let’s not focus on that. Let’s take a look at the history behind the Chilito. Back in 1986 Taco Bell bought the Zantigo chain of mexican fast food restaurants in the mid-west. One of the items they had on their menu was the Chilito. Taco Bell picked it up, tweaked it a bit and released it nation wide in 1990. By the end of the decade the name had changed to the chili cheese burrito and then it became the previously available chili cheese burrito. Why does taco bell love to take away our favorite stuff like this? Don’t know. BTW, if you live in the Minneapolis area, there are 4 Zantigo restaurants still around and they have a few versions of the original recipe chilito still on the menu. Enough of that. OK, a couple of years ago on my main channel  https://youtube.com/@howtocooke  I made a video about how to make the chilito. Yes, I do know that name is hilarious for the Mexican members of the audience. My favorite comment was on that video was, “The easiest way to make a chilito is go swimming in really cold water”. Hilarious… I scoured the interwebs for a recipe to my old favorite menu item and everyone said it had re-fried beans in it. I made that recipe and it was fine, but not quite right. I did a ton more research and found out that there are in fact NO BEANS in the chilito. So, I made another video correcting the recipe. It was great and almost tasted exactly the same as the one with the beans. Crazy but true. Then, I came across the real secret on how this burrito is made… I was completely wrong about everything! Now I know for sure exactly what the recipe is. Are you ready for this? Enjoy!

To check out my video on YouTube about this CLICK HERE

Taco Bell’s Chili Cheese Burrito, AKA The Chilito

This fan favorite has a huge cult following. The original is still available at some TB locations but for most of us, this is the only option. Good thing I know exactly how it was made, right?

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Ingredients

  

Taco Bell Seasoned Beef Recipe

• 1 lb. 90/10 ground beef
• 1 tbsp Chili Powder
• 1 tsp Paprika
• 1 tsp Cumin
• 1 tsp Ground Mexican Oregano
• 1 tsp Granulated Garlic
• 1 tsp Onion Power
• 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
• 1/2 tsp MSG
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
• 1/2 tsp Sugar
• 1 spoonful of Tomato Paste
• 1 tsp Beef Base beef bouillon base
• 1/2 cup Water
• 1/2 tbsp Oat Flour or Masa Harina
• 1 tsp Lime Juice

Taco Bell Chilito Sauce Recipe:

• 1 1/2 cups Water
• 1/2 cup Tomato Sauce
• 2 tsp Chili Powder
• 2 tsp Paprika
• 2 tsp Cumin
• 1 tsp Granulated Garlic
• 1 tsp Lime Juice
• 1 tsp Dried Minced Onions
• 11/2 TBSP Cornstarch
• Pinch of Salt