Loaded Nachos

Welcome back! 

Today, we have a great tex-mex dish: Nachos! And they're really loaded! This is about as great as you can get for nachos, and with all homemade ingredients, it tastes super fresh and is pretty healthy. Traditionally, nachos are supposed to be like a snack; the original, made in 1940, was just chips with cheese and jalapenos. Obviously, this is a lot more than that, as it's a whole meal!

Loaded Nachos

Makes one large plate - about 3 to 4 servings

Ingredients:

Nacho Meat (taco meat):

• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Rest of the stuff:

• Chips (about 8 to 12 ounces)
• Shredded cheese (cheddar, Mexican blend, 4 cheese blend, whatever you want!)
• Refried beans
• Pico de gallo
• Guacamole
• Sour cream
• Jalapenos
• Olives
• Cilantro

For refried beans, pico de gallo, and guacamole, refer to the Tex-Mex Trio for recipes, or you could just use store-bought versions.

Directions:

1. Make the meat:
1. In an oiled pan, put the beef in and cook it until it becomes rather fine. 
2. Along the way, add the spices in and mix evenly.
3. Take it out and wipe up any juices that may be there.
2. Prepare the refried beans:
1. Cook it according to the recipe here or however you want.
2. Add this mixture into the meat. Mix this up, and add some water, about 1/4 cup so it's not too dry.
3. Prepare the rest of your ingredients, like guacamole and pico de gallo.
4. Assemble:
1. Take a pan and lay the chips on it. Bake these in the oven at 350° for 3-5 minutes.
2. Take it out, and while it's still hot, add some cheese (not too much yet). This will help prevent any liquids from making the chips too soggy.
3. Add the meat/bean mixture on top.
4. Sprinkle some more cheese (you can put as much as you want here), and put it back in the oven for 5 minutes.
   
   
   
5. Take it out and add the rest of your ingredients.
5. Enjoy!
   

Now, the preparation of the nachos can vary a lot depending on what you like. If you don't like olives, don't add them, if you want more tomatoes, feel free to load it up with tomatoes. This is just a good way to make a base for your nachos, you can make the other toppings fit what you like! However, the way we did it was really great and I would definitely recommend trying it like this.

P.S.: We made this again, but this time, instead of using shredded cheese, we made some homemade Nacho Cheese, which is even better. Here's the recipe:

Nacho Cheese

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup milk
• 8 ounces cheddar cheese block, chopped into chunks
• Pinch of cayenne and salt

Directions:

1. Heat the butter in a small pot.
2. Add the flour and mix (like a roux).
3. Slowly add the milk into the mixture. Mix while doing this to get it completely incorporated.
4. Once this is thickened, turn the heat to low. Add the cheese, about a quarter at a time. Make sure it is all melted before adding in the next bunch of cheese. Stir this consistently.
5. Add the cayenne and salt and mix until smooth.

-Chefpo