Whenever I make nachos, I can’t help thinking of my mum. Nachos were her go-to meal when we went out to lunch and she always ordered ‘Nashos’. It was so wonderful. We would coach her through saying ‘Nart-choes’ several times until she had our version of the enunciation perfected. Enter the waiter and it was straight back to an order of ‘Nashos’. Knowing my mum’s huge sense of humour, I can’t help think we were having our legs pulled big time.
Nachos traditionally used tortillas cut into triangles and fried; however, corn chips have replaced the tortilla pieces these days.
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes (in oven) or 2-3 minutes in microwave.
The following quantities will serve four generously.
Handy Hint 1: You could add scoops of guacamole, salsa or sour cream (or all of them) to the top of your nachos.
Handy Hint 2: You could cook the nachos in the microwave for a couple of minutes as an alternative to cooking them in the oven. The finished texture of the tortilla chips will not be quite as crispy from the microwave as the oven.
Handy Hint 3: Try adding thin slices of jalapeño chillies to the nachos. These chillies are available in bottles in most supermarkets.
Handy Hint 4: Years ago, I’d run out of corn chips when my family had a serious nacho craving. So having taco shells in the pantry, I roughly cracked some taco shells into pieces and, voila, instant corn chips.
Handy Hint 5: Shredded (pulled) cooked beef is an alternative to beef mince; simply adjust your cooking time to reheat the meat in the frypan rather than recooking it.
Ingredients:
- A small dash of vegetable oil
- 1 small onion, chopped finely
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 2 tsp Mexican chilli powder
- A good pinch of dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 250g beef mince
- 250g plain corn chips
- 3 cups grated cheese
- 1-2 jalapeño chillies, finely sliced (optional)
- 3 green shallots, finely sliced
Method
Heat your oven to 400F/200C.
On your stove, heat the vegetable oil over a medium heat in a heavy based frypan. Add the chopped onion to the pan and sauté until the onion has softened. Now stir in the garlic, chilli powder, oregano and cumin. Continue to cook until the spices are fragrant.
Add the beef mince to the pan and cook, breaking up any mince lumps with a fork or spoon, until the mince is no longer pink. This should take about five minutes.
Spread half of the corn chips into the base of a medium sized baking dish. Sprinkle half of the grated cheese over the chips, then top evenly with half of the spicy beef mixture from the frypan. Lay some slices of jalapeño chillies (if using) over the mince. Repeat the layers with the remaining corn chips, cheese and beef mixture.
Pop the baking dish into the oven and bake until the cheese is melted and golden brown. When cooked, remove the baking dish from the oven and allow to cool slightly before adding a scattering of sliced green shallots over the top of the nachos.
You can now serve your Beef Nachos as they come, or serve them loaded with accompaniments (see Handy Hint 1).
The full feature appeared in Caravan World #563. Subscribe today for the latest caravan reviews and news every month!