Chili-Cheese-Nachos (loaded chili cheese nachos)
Tortilla chips layered and baked with a quick bean chili and melted cheese in stages, rather than dumping the topping on all at once, so every chip gets properly coated instead of the top layer swimming and the bottom staying dry. This works well as a way to use up leftover chili sin carne, or as its own quick dish.
Prep15 min
Cook15 min
Oven200°C
Servings4
Christoph's loaded nachos, layered and baked in stages so every chip gets coated instead of the top swimming while the bottom stays dry.
Ingredients
Units
Temperature
Servings
Nachos
- 250 g tortilla chips rounded
- 400 g cooked bean chili, such as Chili sin Carne, warm rounded
- 200 g grated cheese, a melting variety such as Gouda or a Mexican blend rounded
- 80 g pickled jalapeños (optional) rounded
- 100 g sour cream (optional) rounded
- 15 g fresh coriander (optional) rounded
- 1 spring onion, sliced (optional) rounded
Dietary labels are a guide, not a guarantee. If you have an allergy, read the ingredients yourself.
Method
- Heat the oven to 200°C. Spread half the tortilla chips over a baking sheet or ovenproof platter.
- Spoon half the warm chili over the chips and scatter with half the cheese.
- Layer the remaining chips on top, then the remaining chili and cheese, building in two layers rather than one so the coverage is even top to bottom.
- Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until the cheese is fully melted and bubbling and the top chips are still crisp at the edges.
- Scatter with jalapeños, coriander and spring onion. Serve immediately with sour cream on the side.
Notes
- Build the nachos in two layers rather than one thick pile. A single layer of toppings on a mountain of chips leaves the bottom half dry and untouched by cheese; two thinner layers coat everything.
- Use warm chili, not cold straight from the fridge. Cold chili takes far longer to heat through in the oven, by which point the chips underneath have gone soft.
- Serve immediately. Nachos wilt fast once out of the oven; there is no good way to hold them and keep the chips crisp.
- This is a genuinely good way to use leftover chili, and the reason the two recipes are worth having side by side in this book.
Ingredient substitutions
- Bean chili can be any leftover chili, bolognese-style sauce, or refried beans warmed through, in a pinch.
- Grated cheese should be a good melting variety; pre-shredded bags sometimes contain anti-caking agents that stop them melting smoothly, so grating a block yourself gives a better result.
- Guacamole spooned on at the end is a good, common addition alongside the sour cream.
From Christoph Mayer