Piled high Loaded Nachos are the perfect game-day food or appetizer. They’re easy to make and customize with your favorite Nacho toppings!
Loaded Nachos pair perfectly with Salsa Verde, Homemade Salsa, or Queso Blanco. They are filling and hearty, a perfect appetizer or main dish!
Homemade Nachos
I have a weakness for chips and dip. Spinach Artichoke Dip and Layered Bean Dip are some of my favorites along with these Loaded Nachos. It doesn’t get much better than meat, carbs, and cheese, am I right?!
These Nachos can count as your meal because they’ve got it all, carbs, proteins, veggies, and dairy. I mean they’re pretty much a Taco just in a different form.
Now, if you’re going to go to the trouble of making all the toppings you might as well make a lot (go big or go home)! This Nacho recipe with fill an entire pan. 🙂
How to Make Nachos
PREP. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
PICO. Make the Pico de Gallo by mixing together ½ of the chopped onion, 3 Roma tomatoes, jalapeño, cilantro, lime juice, and salt. Set aside.
MEAT. Add the beef and other ½ of the chopped onion to a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until no longer pink and the onions are translucent.
Drain off the fat, and mix in the water and taco seasoning. Bring to a simmer, cover, and turn down to low. Simmer for 8-10 minutes until tender.
BEANS. Stir in the black beans (add another ¼ cup of water if too thick) and simmer another 4-5 minutes.
CHIPS. Meanwhile, line a large rimmed baking sheet with a layer of chips.
LAYER. Spoon half the meat/bean mixture over the chips followed by half the cheese. Add a second layer of chips and repeat with meat mixture and cheese. Place in the oven for 3-5 minutes until cheese is melted.
GARNISH + SERVE. Top with pico de gallo, avocados, extra cilantro, and sour cream. Serve immediately.
Best Nacho Toppings
As we already mentioned, Loaded Nachos can be made to your liking. We feel like the more you add the better, but we wanted to compile a list of some of the best Nacho toppings for you to pick and choose from.
- Meat (ground beef, chicken or turkey, steak, shredded chicken, or pulled pork)
- Cheese (we love Mexican blend or Monterrey Jack best) or Nacho Cheese
- Beans (refried, pinto or black)
- Cilantro, Corn, Green Chiles, Black Olives, Green Onions, or Tomatoes
- Avocados, Guacamole, or Sour Cream
- Salsa or Pico – Red Salsa or Sweet Salsa Verde
Make your own chips for these delicious nachos:
Recipe Tips
Keep chips from getting soggy.
- Use a thicker, sturdy tortilla chip as the thinner style ones will get soggy easier.
- Don’t add the pico, sour cream, or guacamole until right before serving. Alternatively, serve them on the side for people to add to their own portions.
- Make sure to spread out the ingredients in even layers.
- Drain excess oil and liquid from anything you’ll be adding to the Nachos.
Cheese. Avoid pre-packaged shredded cheeses as they are coated with an anti-clumping agent which inhibits their ability to melt well.
Working with jalapenos.
Start by cutting the jalapeno in half lengthwise. Working from the bottom of the pepper to the top, take a spoon and scrape out the membrane and seeds. Dice it as desired.
Wearing gloves when handling jalapenos is a good idea. If you didn’t have any handy and burnt your hands here are a few things to try:
- Rub your hands with a bit of vegetable or olive oil.
- Wash hands with dish soap instead of hand soap.
- Make a baking soda and water paste and apply it to your hands. Leave it on until it dries off.
Storing info
Make ahead of time. Loaded Nachos are best when eaten hot out of the oven. You can prep all the ingredients the day before (make the pico, cook the bean/meat mixture and chop the produce) and store them separately until you’re ready to assemble and bake the Nachos.
STORE leftover Nachos covered in the fridge for no more than a few days.
To reheat, place them on a parchment-lined baking tray and reheat in a low-temperature oven, carefully watching to ensure the chips don’t burn. (Remove the lettuce from the top before reheating so it doesn’t get soggy.)
For complimentary dips and salsas:
Loaded Nachos Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 ounce chips
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 cup water
- 1 15 ounce can black beans drained and rinsed
- 4 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 1 large sweet onion diced, divided
- 3 roma tomatoes diced
- 1-2 jalapeno finely diced
- 1/3 cup Cilantro chopped
- 1 juice of lime
- salt to taste
- 10 ounces cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 avocado diced
- Sour Cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Make the Pico de Gallo by mixing together ½ of the chopped onion, 3 Roma tomatoes, jalapeño, cilantro, lime juice, and salt. Set aside.
- Add the beef and other ½ of the chopped onion to a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until no longer pink and the onions are translucent. Drain off the fat, and mix in the water and taco seasoning. Bring to a simmer, cover, and turn down to low. Simmer for 8-10 minutes until tender.
- Stir in the black beans (add another ¼ cup of water if too thick) and simmer another 4-5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, line a large rimmed baking sheet with a layer of chips.
- Spoon half the meat/bean mixture over the chips followed by half the cheese. Add a second layer of chips and repeat with meat mixture and cheese. Place in the oven for 3-5 minutes until cheese is melted.
- Top with pico de gallo, avocados, extra cilantro, and sour cream. Serve immediately.
The pictures have me drooling – I just can’t resist – I will be making this this weekend. Thanks
LOL!! You will just have to make them! Thank you!
Okay, yum!!! They even look beautiful too
SO delicious!! Family loved it!
I am so happy to hear that! Thank you for letting me know!
These pictures are making me hungry!! Loaded nachos are so flavorful & easy to make & make everyone happy!
I love that these can be a main Meal or an APpetizer! I also love that you can add anything you want to them too!
I have four burly brothers who are going to love this recipe when i bring out to our next family activity. Looks really easy and so yummy
Who doesnt like nachoS? You can make them to your liking and it feeds alot.
How do you re heat these? I thought I saw it but now I can’t find it??
You probably wouldn’t want to reheat these, since they have all the toppings on them. I would just make enough, where you won’t have to reheat or save.
Serve without the toppings. Have the topping on the side to add to your plate. Then you can reheat the meat and nachos. Of course wouldn’t be as fun to eat… Like to just dive in, but some people these days dont want all the hands digging in a large platter
Thanks for the suggestion!
Using for baby shower. Thanks!
You’re welcome! Hope the baby shower goes well!
I made these last night to watch football and my kids loved them. We are making them again for the Superbowl!
As a nachos lover, this nachos recipe is a winner! It is appetizing and loaded, it always makes our game day enjoyable.
We always have nachos every time we have our family movie night, this one’s remarkable, they were impressed with its flavor. This recipe is worth keeping!