Beef Nachos

This simple and mouth watering Beef Nachos Recipe is the ultimate appetizer or dinner that keeps everyone happy and is on the table in under 30 minutes! Flavor-packed ground beef is loaded up onto cheese piled tortilla chips, then baked in the oven with all your favorite nacho toppings.

This elevated ground beef nachos recipe is perfect for parties, game days, or as a weeknight dinner when you don’t feel like cooking. Try it out!

Reasons You’ll Love This

Loaded Nachos – This ground beef nachos recipe is not for the faint of nacho eaters. These are packed to the brim with all the good stuff.

Easy to Make – Anything you can throw on a pan, bake for less than 10 minutes, and comes out as good as this nachos recipe should be a crime!

Toppings Galore! – The nacho is only as good as the stuff you put on it. Fill with all your favorite toppings, salsas, and veggies.

Kid Approved – When you tell the kiddos it’s nacho night, everyone is happy!

Crowd Pleaser – Have you ever heard anyone say ‘no, please don’t bring out the nachos!’? Exactly.

Beef Nachos might be the greatest thing ever invented. Whoever said, “Let’s throw every delicious food that’s ever existed on top of tortilla chips” needs an award. What are you waiting for? Crack open that bag of chips, get your toppings ready, and let’s get to assembling!

Ingredient Info

Ground Beef – You can use whatever percentage of lean ground beef that you prefer. Just make sure to drain the excess fat before adding the rest of the ingredients to the beef. You can also use ground turkey, or ground chicken for this recipe.
Taco Seasoning – The pre-made package of taco seasoning is great, or you can make your own by combining an equal amount of cumin powder, chili powder and garlic powder.
Sour Cream – You’ll add this to the ground beef mixture to make it creamy, and you can use it as a topping as well. You can omit this if you don’t like sour cream.
Tortilla Chips – The amount of tortilla chips you use is up to you, but usually 1 regular sized bag is enough.
Shredded Cheese – Highly recommend both cheddar cheese and Monterey Jack cheese for this recipe. You can also use other cheese like Pepper Jack, Colby Jack, white cheddar, etc. It’s best to use freshly grated cheese for this recipe, because it melts better. You can grate your cheese quickly using this cheese grater!
Nacho Toppings – The toppings that go on these nachos are completely up to you, but if you want to follow the recipe exactly, grab yourself some jalapeños, black olives, cherry tomatoes, guacamole, and cilantro.

Step by Step Instructions

Start by preheating your oven to 350°F. In a large skillet over medium high heat, add the ground beef. Cook and break up the beef until fully browned then add the taco seasoning, water, and ¼ cup of sour cream.
Grab a baking sheet and line with foil or parchment for easy cleanup. Add the tortilla chips evenly on the baking sheet. Evenly sprinkle half of the shredded cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese on top of the chips.
Add the ground beef mixture to the top of the cheese layer, then spread it around to even it out. Add the sliced jalapeños and black olives on top of the ground beef layer. Sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese on top of everything.
Bake the nachos in the oven for 5-7 minutes. Remove from the oven once the cheese is bubbling. Add the cherry tomatoes, sour cream, guacamole, and cilantro evenly over the top of the nachos. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Tips & Advice

Storage – Since nachos can get pretty soggy, even after an hour or two, I don’t really recommend saving any leftovers. If you don’t want to waste food, I recommend halving this recipe, or keeping all the toppings separate, and only assembling/baking what you think you’ll finish eating.

More Topping Choices

When it comes to Nachos, the topping choices are unlimited! Some other toppings I recommend are pickled jalapeños, diced onion, pico de gallo, corn, pinto, refried or black beans, salsa, queso, sliced avocado, shredded lettuce, green onions, bell peppers, hot sauce, and so much more! Don’t be afraid to get creative with this!

Equipment

For this recipe you’ll need the following materials:

Skillet
Sheet Pan
Foil or Parchment Paper
Meat Chopper (Optional)
Cheese Shredder (Optional)

FAQs

Do you put meat or cheese first on beef nachos?

The nachos will likely hold up a bit better if you put a layer of cheese down before the beef mixture. However, these are your nachos, and you can assemble in any way you see fit!

What is the best melting cheese for beef nachos?

The best melting cheese is anything freshly shredded! I recommend going for a block of cheddar and monterey jack, and shred it right before you add it to the recipe. I don’t recommend using anything pre-shredded, or a hard cheese like parmesan.