Loaded Nachos
These Loaded Nachos are guaranteed to be a hit! Made with tortilla chips, seasoned ground beef, cheese, peppers, black beans, guacamole and more! Perfect for weekends and parties.
If you’re looking for the ultimate nacho recipe, look no further! These Loaded Nachos have everything you could want on them…all your favourite toppings including a recipe for homemade taco seasoning and homemade guacamole. Make them as an appetizer or enjoy as a meal.
Is it really a party without nachos?!
Seriously though, who doesn’t love a tray of cheesy and delicious loaded nachos? These are perfect for game day parties! But they’re also great for small get togethers with friends and family. And they’re also a nice treat on weekends…we’ve been know to bust out a tray of nachos on a Saturday afternoon for no reason whatsoever.
Make them your own.
The great thing about nachos is that there really are no rules. Put what you like on them. Don’t love beef? Use ground chicken instead. Don’t love Jalapeños, don’t add them. If beans aren’t your thing, leave them out. Not enough cheese? Add more if you want. The nacho possibilities are endlesssssss.
The key is in the layering.
It’s true though. The key to the best loaded nachos is in the layering. You have to layer all of the ingredients, especially the cheese. That way every bite you get has all the toppings. No one wants nachos with no toppings! I like to layer like this: chips-beef-cheese-half of the toppings-more chips-more beef-more cheese-more toppings-then more cheese.
Baking Time
I have listed the baking time for these loaded nachos at about 15 minutes. BUT the baking time can really vary depending on how many layers you have and how thick they are. So the nachos could be done in 5 minutes, or in 15 minutes. Just watch them closely and look for melted cheese…and the chips shouldn’t be burning. 😉
Make it buffet style.
When serving your nachos make sure to put out extra bowls of salsa, pickled peppers, fresh cilantro, sour cream, chopped tomatoes, olives and green onions. I find that most people like to add more to their nachos and this gives everyone more options….picky nacho eaters appreciate this too.
I hope you enjoy these nachos!
Recipe Tips:
- Cheese: You can use any of your favourite melting cheeses: Monterey Jack, Colby Jack, Jalapeño Cheddar, Mozzarella, Cheddar. My biggest tip though is to shred your own cheese because it melts much nicer than pre-shredded cheese.
- Beef: Use lean ground beef and drain any excess fat after you’ve browned it.
- Meat Substitutions: You can easily substitute the ground beef for ground chicken, turkey or pork…what ever you like.
- Taco Seasoning: I like to use my Homemade Taco Seasoning because it’s so easy to make and it’s so flavourful! But feel free to use a premade taco seasoning packet as well, it’s delicious too!
- Garlic and Onions: A note about garlic and onions. The homemade taco seasoning calls for both garlic and onion powder, but I don’t usually add it because I prefer to cook the beef with fresh garlic and minced onion. So you can choose to use powder or fresh, what ever works for you.
- A note about the toppings. I have listed ingredient amounts, but really, nachos aren’t an exact science and you don’t need exact measurements. You can wing it.
- Salsa: I usually use a premade salsa, but you can make fresh salsa too. Pico de gallo is especially delicious.
- Tortilla Chips: Use your favourite tortilla chips…I think the salty ones are the best! Just don’t buy the thin chips, no one wants their chip to break in half when dipping into the salsa haha!
- Serve with: Homemade Guacamole, Pickled Banana Peppers, avocados, salsa and sour cream. You can also offer queso cheese on the side.
- Assembly Tip: Prep all the ingredients before you do anything…cook the meat, chop the vegetables, shred cheese…have it all ready to go before you assemble the nachos.
- Make Ahead Tip: If you know you’re going to have nachos at your next party or for dinner, you can prep quite a few things ahead of time: cook the meat, chop the vegetables, shred the cheese, then store everything in airtight containers in the fridge. Then when you’re ready to assemble, everything is ready.
- What to do with leftovers? Honestly, nacho leftovers just aren’t very good. So I would just recommend making enough to enjoy in one sitting. If you do end up with leftovers you could try to heat them up in the oven for a few minutes to melt cheese and crunch up the chips, but I haven’t really been too successful with that.
Loaded Nachos
These Loaded Nachos are guaranteed to be a hit! Made with tortilla chips, seasoned ground beef, cheese, peppers, black beans, guacamole and more! Perfect for weekends and parties.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
Ingredients
Taco Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp garlic powder (I didn’t use this, I just brown the beef with fresh garlic and onions)
- 1 tsp onion powder (I didn’t use this, I just brown the beef with fresh garlic and onions)
- 1/2 tsp salt
Beef:
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1 clove garlic, minced (don’t add this if you added garlic powder to the taco seasoning)
- 1 small onion, minced (don’t add this if you added onion powder to the taco seasoning)
Toppings:
- 1 large bag tortilla chips
- 3 cups shredded cheese (more if you like!)
- 3 medium tomatoes, chopped
- 1 cup sliced peppers (bell or sweet peppers)
- 1 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1/2 cup sliced black olives
- jalapeño peppers (optional)
- 3 – 4 green onions, chopped
- pickled banana peppers (I use these but store bought are great too)
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- homemade guacamole (I use this recipe)
- sour cream
- salsa
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- In a small mixing bowl combine all of the spices to make the taco seasoning. Set aside.
- In a skillet brown the ground beef with minced garlic and onions. Drain excess fat.
- Add the taco seasoning and about 1/4 cup of water.
- Simmer the beef until the water is gone.
- Now let’s get ready to assemble!
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add a layer of tortilla chips.
- Add 1/2 of the cooked and seasoned beef.
- Sprinkle on 1 cup of the shredded cheese.
- Then layer on half of the chopped tomatoes, half of the sliced peppers, and half of the black beans.
- Add the remaining tortilla chips.
- Add the remaining cooked and seasoned beef.
- Then sprinkle on 1 more cup of shredded cheese.
- Add the remaining tomatoes, sliced peppers, and black beans.
- Add the black olives and jalapeño peppers.
- Add the last cup of shredded cheese.
- Bake for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is melted just the way you like it!
- Garnish with green onion and fresh chopped cilantro.
- Serve with fresh guacamole, sour cream and pickled banana peppers.
Keywords: loaded nachos, the best nachos, easy nachos
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Have a delicious day!
