Ultimate Nachos Recipe – Two Peas & Their Pod

Quick Summary

Ultimate Nachos- Crunchy, salty tortilla chips covered in melty cheese, savory meat, beans, and lots of fresh toppings. This is the BEST nachos recipe! They are easy to make and can be served as an appetizer, snack, or even dinner.

nachos on sheet pan with cheese, ground beef, beans, tomatoes, avocado, sour cream, onion, olives, and jalapeño.

Nachos are the BEST! You can enjoy them as an appetizer, snack, serve them up for game day, or even eat them for dinner! They are good anytime of the day (we even make breakfast nachos) and they are always a crowd pleaser. Who doesn’t love nachos?

When we make nachos, we go ALL out, this is the ULTIMATE Nachos recipe.

Crunchy, salty tortilla chips covered in melty cheese, savory meat, beans, and lots of fresh toppings like avocado, tomatoes, and onion.

Nachos are easy to make, shareable, and fun to customize! Load them up and eat them up!

Ingredients

Oil– you can use olive oil or avocado oil.
Ground Beef– ground beef is classic, but feel free to use ground turkey or chicken. If you want to make vegetarian nachos, just omit the meat and use more beans.
Spices & Herbs– chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and oregano to season the meat.
Tortilla Chips– look for a sturdy chip that isn’t too thin.
Beans– we like to use black beans, but you can use pinto beans, refried beans, or even a mix of beans. Make sure you rinse and drain the beans before using.
Cheese– I recommend grating block cheese instead of buying pre-shredded bagged cheese because it has a powder coating and doesn’t melt as well. You can use cheddar cheese, Monterey jack, Mexican blend, or pepper jack.

Nacho Toppings

Prep all of the toppings before you put the nachos in the oven so you are ready to go! Make sure all of the toppings are chopped into small pieces so they are easy to top the cheesy chips!

Diced red onion or sliced green onion
Shredded lettuce
Diced Tomatoes
Sliced black olives
Fresh chopped cilantro leaves
Diced avocado or Guacamole
Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
Jalapeño slices
Pickled Red Onions
Salsa or Pico de Gallo
Queso– you can drizzle queso over the top or serve it on the side if you want maximum cheesiness!

ground beef cooking in cast iron skillet with spices.

How to Make Nachos

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
To make the taco meat: In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Brown the ground beef for about 5 minutes, breaking up the meat into small pieces using a wooden spoon. Drain any excess fat.
Season with chili powder, cumin, salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and oregano. Pour in the water and let simmer for 5 minutes or until thickened. Turn off heat and set aside.

tortilla chips on sheet pan with cheese, ground beef, and beans.

On a large-rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil, arrange the tortilla chips in single layer, it’s ok if the chips overlap a little.
Top with half of the grated cheese, the cooked meat, and the black beans. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top.
Place the pan in the oven and bake for 5 to 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
Remove from the oven and top with your favorite toppings.
Serve immediately.

Tips for Making Nachos

Make sure you line your baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil so the clean up is easy. You don’t want to be scrubbing melted cheese off of the sheet pan, trust me.
Arrange the chips in a single layer, it’s ok if they overlap a little, but if you pile them up the bottom chips won’t have any cheese on them.
Make sure you layer! Start with cheese, then add your ground beef and beans, and then MORE cheese! You want cheese in every bite!
Bake at a high temperature so the chips crisp up and the cheese melts quickly. It will only take about 5 to 10 minutes, so don’t go too far!
Don’t add the cold/fresh toppings until AFTER the nachos come out of the oven.
Add the toppings RIGHT before serving so the chips don’t get soggy, especially with toppings like sour cream, salsa, and tomatoes.
Serve immediately. Fresh nachos are best, so don’t plan on leftovers, just eat them all in one sitting:)
If you have leftover toppings, you can keep them in the fridge and make another batch of fresh, cheesy chips!

More Nachos Recipes

Snack

Ultimate Nachos

Crunchy, salty tortilla chips covered in melty cheese, savory meat, beans, and lots of fresh toppings. This is the BEST nachos recipe! They are easy to make and can be served as an appetizer, snack, or even dinner.

For the meat:

2 teaspoons olive oil or avocado oil
1 lb lean ground beef
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 cup water

For the nachos:

12 oz bag tortilla chips
15 oz black beans, rinsed and drained (can use pinto beans or refried beans)
4 cups grated cheddar cheese, can use Monterey Jack or a mix

Toppings:

Diced red onion or sliced green onion
Shredded lettuce
Diced Tomatoes
Sliced black olives
Fresh chopped cilantro leaves
Diced avocado or Guacamole
Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
Jalapeño slices
Pickled Red Onion
Salsa

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
To make the taco meat: In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Brown the ground beef for about 5 minutes, breaking up the meat into small pieces using a wooden spoon. Drain any excess fat. Season with chili powder, cumin, salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and oregano. Pour in the water and let simmer for 5 minutes or until thickened. Turn off heat and set aside.
On a large-rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil, arrange the tortilla chips in single layer, it’s ok if the chips overlap a little. Top with half of the grated cheese, the cooked meat, and the black beans. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top.
Place the pan in the oven and bake for 5 to 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
Remove from the oven and top with your favorite toppings. Serve immediately.

Calories: 794kcal, Carbohydrates: 59g, Protein: 44g, Fat: 43g, Saturated Fat: 18g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g, Monounsaturated Fat: 12g, Cholesterol: 122mg, Sodium: 1141mg, Potassium: 723mg, Fiber: 10g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 1328IU, Vitamin C: 0.1mg, Calcium: 631mg, Iron: 5mg