Loaded Sheet Pan Nachos are a showstopper at any dinner or party. Pick your toppings and layer on a sheet pan. Bake and devour!
These are not your average ball park/stadium food nachos. You know, the kind with the two trays - one for oversalted and stale chips and the other for cheese that isn't really cheese at all?
Well these nachos are not those nachos. These are...
Sheet Pan Nachos
and they're delicious. So delicious in fact, I wrote some facts from A-Z, just so you can appreciate them in all their sheet pan glory.
A - Avocado is amazing on top of sheet pan nachos. Let’s just say that right outta the gate.
B - Bake or broil? We’re gonna want to bake these, folks. It heats up the chips, it melts the cheese, and it makes the whole darn pan fall in love.
C - Cheeses. You can make a cheese sauce (but really, who has time) or use shredded cheese. The best cheeses for melting are mild cheddar, monterey Jack or a Mexican cheese blend. I like to use freshly shredded cheese when I can because I think it melts just a bit better, BUT I also understand grabbing the nearest bag of cheese and calling it a day. No judgment here!
D - Deanne (hey, that’s me!) loves tacos. I consider nachos a cousin of the taco, so therefore, I love sheet pan nachos, too!
E - Everything doesn’t go in at once. The recipe instructions below cover that in more details.
F - fresh tortilla chips. Buy your very, very favorite tortilla chips because they are the foundation upon which all nacho greatness is built. No ball park chips here.
G - Ground beef. So tasty! Cook and drain well before adding seasonings.
H - Hot Sauce. If you love spicy, add a shake or two of hot sauce, but only to your individual plate or kids (and some adults) will begin to cry, and that’s not good.
I - Ignacio "El Nacho" Anaya created nachos in 1940. The original nachos consisted of fried corn tortilla chips covered with melted cheese and sliced jalapeño peppers.
See? This recipe is educational, too!
More nacho details
J - Jalapeno peppers. These get added at the end, or you can serve them on the side. (See “H”)
K - Kung-Fu fighting may ensue when there’s only one bite left. Go ahead, launch yourself across the table and grab it! I won’t judge, in fact, I'll applaud you.
L - Load ‘em up but not too much. See “O”.
M - Melty cheese. That’s what we’re going for. I say nacho, you say cheese! Nacho, cheese!!! Nacho, cheese!!!
N - Nachos are the most craved food by pregnant women AND they can be eaten on the go. How do I know? Four kids and a lot of nachos bell grande drive thru, friends. You’re welcome.
O - Overcrowding can be a problem. Don’t overcrowd or the chips will break. If you must make a gigantic platter of sheet pan nachos, make two layers with chips in between each layer.
P - a Simple Pico de Gallo makes an excellent topper.
Q - Quick and easy are the name of the game in my household. If you’ve made Batch Taco Meat you can whip up a pan of nachos in minutes. Work smarter, not harder!
R - Really, really good. They are!!! Really. Good.
S - Seasonings. Use a blend of chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, paprika, chipotle powder, pepper and salt.
T - toppings. You can make them as mainstream or as exotic as you want.
U - unique, as in you can jazz these tasty bites of nacho up however you like! I guess I kind of said that above but hey - U is a tough letter. Unless you're named Ursula but I digress.
V - Variety - use a variety of toppings on nachos and you will never tire of these, I promise! Yes, we're still talking about toppings. Isn't that what nachos are all about??
W - What do you call cheese that isn’t yours? A: Nacho Cheese!!!
X - xoxo you nachos
Y - You can’t eat just one, don’t even try!
Z - Zesty, because Tex-Mex usually is!
What to serve with Sheet Pan Nachos?
Sometimes you just eat nachos, other times we serve them with a Mexican Chopped Salad, Restaurant Style Salsa or Vegetarian Refried Beans.
Other Tex Mex Recipes:
Loaded Sheet Pan Nachos
Ingredients
- TACO SEASONING
- 1 tablespoon ground chili powder
- 2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon chipotle powder optional
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ medium red onion finely chopped
- 2 teaspoon minced garlic
- salt and black pepper
- REMAINING INGREDIENTS
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 large bag 11-14 oz. tortilla chips
- 1 8- oz. bag 4-cheese Mexican blend finely shredded
- 2 large green onions green parts only, sliced thin
- 1 large jalapeño pepper sliced thin
- 1 6- oz. can black olives chopped
- 1 cup tomatoes diced
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350°F. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpa baking mat and set aside.
- Combine the taco seasoning ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped red onion and minced garlic. Season with salt and black pepper and stir to combine. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft and starts to develop a bit of color, approximately 5 minutes.
- Add the beef and break up into small pieces with a spatula. Add 2 tablespoons of the taco seasoning mixture and stir to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the beef is browned. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Spread the tortilla chips into an even, overlapping layer on the prepped baking sheet. Using a slotted spoon, evenly distribute the seasoned, browned beef on top of the tortilla chips. Be careful not to overcrowd!
- Add the cheese on top of the beef and nachos in an even layer and place in the pre-heated oven for 5-7 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted.
- Remove baking sheet from oven and cool slightly before topping with sliced green onion, chopped black olives, salsa or hot sauce, and sliced fresh or pickled jalapeño pepper.
- Spoon avocado and cilantro over the top, if using. Ole!
Nutrition
This Farm Girl Cooks is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Val - Corn, Beans, Pigs & Kids
Love this! I have recently fallen in love making tatchos with tater tots very similar that my kids gobble up!