Ground Beef Nachos
Growing up nachos were an everyday afternoon snack in our household. It is absolutely one of my mom’s favorite foods (and ways to her heart) and was what we snacked on after school before practice. Unfortunately, I’m not talking about traditional nachos. I’m talking the kind that any 8 year old can make: tortilla chips with shredded cheese thrown in the microwave for about 1 minute and devoured in 2 minutes. Even though it wasn’t the most gourmet meal or appealing presentation, it was still delicious. Because of this, nachos will always have a special place in my heart. Now that I have the capability to cook and confidence in the kitchen to use more appliances than simply my parent’s microwave, I’m upgraded our nacho tradition.
**Before diving into this recipe, I want to take some time to acknowledge the history of traditional nachos. According to this piece in Time, nachos first appeared in 1943 in Piedras Negras, which is a small Mexican city near the US military base Fort Duncan (in Texas). The origination of this dish came from a time when Ignacio Anaya, a chef at a local restaurant, took pity on a group of US military wives looking for food when all other restaurants were closed and cooked them something out of what was left in the kitchen. The story claims that he sliced and fried some tortilla chips and topped them with shredded cheese and jalapenos and put it in the oven for a few minutes before naming it after his own nickname: Nacho. Since then. nachos have become a Mexican staple and have been adapted by many American restaurants. Now that you have some history, let me share what inspired this specific recipe.
Living with my parent’s during this coronavirus quarantine has been an interesting and unexpected dive back into my childhood. That being said, it has reverted us back, in some ways, to the people we were when we all lived under one roof. While this isn’t always pleasant (hint: I was not the easiest or nicest child), it has me turning to my childhood nostalgia staples. Now that I am the one responsible for dinners (self-appointed, sorry mom), I am trying to revamp some of the ones that we know and love so much. I decided nachos would be the perfect addition to our week’s menu. Let me tell you, everyone was extremely happy with this decision (can I say clean tray club??).
To make these nachos is to completely embody the theme of my cooking show, #FFDoThatIsh, and throw together everything you have on hand or are craving. Not into ground beef? Nix it or replace with shredded chicken. Not a fan of guacamole? One, who are you, but, two, remove it. Into onions (aka everyone but me), throw them on there! This is really a clean slate for the artist in you to experiment with and I cannot wait to see everyone’s creations! Personally, I’ve always been a ground beef nacho fan, so that is naturally the direction I went in, but, again, it is up to you!
To make these nachos, simply sauté ground beef and diced bell peppers in a skillet with some avocado oil, cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper. Once cooked through, pour them over a parchment paper lined baking sheet that is covered in tortilla chips. We are a Tostitos family from the very beginning, but I did one tray classic and one tray with Siete to make sure I pleased everyone. Next, top with either canned black beans or refried beans and queso. Cover that tray with shredded cheese (the more the better) and pop it in the oven at 375 degrees for around 10 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted. Once you remove the tray from the oven, top the nachos with shredded romaine, jalapeno peppers, guacamole, and salsa. Plop the trays in the middle of your table (or on the coffee table in front of your couch) and enjoy!
Ground Beef Nachos
Ingredients:
- Ground beef (1lb)
- Bell pepper (2)
- Romaine (1 head)
- Jalapeño (2)
- Lime (1)
- Guacamole (2 cups)
- Shredded cheese (3 cups)
- Refried beans or black beans (1 12oz can)
- Queso (1 cup)
- Salsa (1 cup)
- Tortilla chips (1-2 bags depending on size)
- Avocado oil (1 teaspoon)
- Cayenne pepper (1/2 teaspoon)
- Red pepper flakes (1/2 teaspoon)
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions:
How to cook Ground Beef Nachos
- Chop the bell peppers, romaine, and jalapeno peppers into small ¼ inch pieces and set aside
- On a hot skillet with 1 teaspoon of avocado oil, add the ground beef and season with ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper
- Break the ground beef into small pieces, using a large wooden spoon or spatula, and allow it to sear on one side for ~5 minutes
- Add the chopped bell peppers to the mixture and sauté, flipping the ground beef over, for an additional ~10 minutes so that the beef is cooked through and the peppers are crisped on the exterior and soft on the interior
- On two parchment paper lined baking sheets, add the tortilla chips and spread them out
- Pour the ground beef and bell pepper mixture onto the chips
- Using a spoon, spread the refried beans or black beans and the queso onto the chips
- Pour the shredded cheese onto the chips and place in the oven at 375 for ~10 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted
- Top with salsa, guacamole, chopped romaine, and the jalapeno peppers and enjoy!
- Gluten Free (depending on chips)
- Soy Free
- Nut Free
** after a lot of self-reflection and doing the work of Layla F Saad’s Me and White Supremacy (a book I highly recommend everyone reads) and Rachel Rickett’s Social Activism 101 & 102 courses, I realized the cultural appropriation that was occurring on my website when it came to recipes. I was modifying recipes deeply embedded in oppressed cultures without paying any respect to the history or original ingredients used. After realizing this, I went through and made changes to many of my recipes. This section is part of what was edited and included.