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Ultimate Nachos topped with chili and beans, roasted yellow corn kernels, and sliced jalapeños topped with shredded cheddar cheese
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4.86 from 14 votes

Ultimate Nachos

If you're looking for a delicious way to start your next get together or to make taco night extra special, try my Ultimate Nachos! Your friends and family will love this oh so flavorful dish!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time7 minutes
Total Time27 minutes
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Mexican
Servings: 8
Calories: 689kcal
Author: Chef Dennis Littley

Ingredients

Chip

  • 13 ounces tortilla chips

Chili

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 large sweet onion chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 3-4 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 ounces bourbon
  • 2 pounds ground beef turkey or chicken can be substituted
  • 15 ounces kidney beans drained and rinsed
  • 15 ounces chili pinto beans or plain pinto beans
  • 15 ounces cannellini beans drained and rinsed
  • 24 ounces crushed tomatoes
  • 8 ounces chicken stock
  • 2 tablespoons corn masa or fine cornmeal
  • 3 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoon sea salt or to taste
  • cayenne can be added for extra heat use with caution optional

Salsa

  • ½ cup red onion finely chopped
  • ½ lime juiced
  • 1 ½ cups plum tomatoes
  • 1 tablespoon cilantro chopped
  • ¼ teaspoon salt or to taste

Pan Roasted Corn

  • 2 ears fresh corn (or 1 cup frozen corn kernels)
  • sea salt and black pepper to taste
  • 1 teaspoon cilantro finely chopped

Assembly

  • 2 cups 3 bean chili from recipe above
  • 1 cup corn pan roasted kernels
  • 1 cup salsa from recipe above
  • 15 ounces refried beans
  • 2 jalapeños seeded and sliced into rounds
  • 1 ½ cups cheddar cheese shredded - or your favorite cheese
  • 12 ounces sour cream
  • 12 ounces guacamole

Instructions

3 Bean Chili

  • In a large skillet or pot add the chopped onions, garlic and olive oil. Sauté for a few minutes until the onions are lightly cooked.
  • Add brown sugar, mixing well and continue sautéing for 2 minutes. Carefully add bourbon, making sure it doesn't go near open flames.
  • Allow the alcohol to burn off bourbon for a minute as the mixture continues to cook
  • Add ground meat and begin the browning process. You may need to add additional olive oil.
  • Brown all the meat continuously stirring to break up the meat. ( You may find a heavy wire whisk helpful in breaking up the chunks)
  • When the meat is browned begin adding in your seasonings (remember you can always add more after its cooked for awhile).
  • Add tomatoes, chicken stock and beans combining all of the ingredients.
  • Reduce heat to simmer and allow to simmer for 1 - 2 hours, stirring so it won't stick to the bottom
  • If chili begins to get too thick you can add additional stock or water to get it to the consistency you like.
  • Taste and re-season to your taste.
  • Be careful in adding Cayenne if you decide to kick it up a notch as a little goes a long way
  • Reserve two cups (or more) for nachos and cool and refrigerate the remainder for another time.

Fresh Salsa

  • Mix red onion, lime juice, Roma tomatoes, cilantro, and salt in a bowl and allow to stand 15 more minutes for flavors to blend before serving.

Pan Roasted Corn

  • Cut corn off of ears.

Place corn in a hot sauté pan. Toss corn around pan to allow it to slightly brown. Remove corn from stove top and place on a plate to allow it to fully cool.

  • Season corn with sea salt and black pepper to taste.  Add 1 teaspoon of cilantro to the mixture and set aside till needed.

Assembly

    Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Use a large flat cookie sheet to heat the nachos.

    • Place parchment paper on cookie sheet making the piece larger than you need, so it can be lifted off of the sheet easily.
    • Mound chips on top of the parchment paper.
    • Spoon heated chili on top of chips
    • Sprinkle corn kernels on top of chips.  Then add jalapeños.
    • Top with as much shredded cheese as you desire. I used about 1 ½ cups of cheddar.
    • Place cookie sheet of prepared nachos into a preheated oven for 7-10 minutes or until the cheese has melted.
    • While nachos are in the oven, heat the refried beans. You can use a microwave or a sauté pan.  Just make sure they reach a temperature of 165 degrees.   Place the heated beans on your serving dish, spreading them out evenly, leaving the edge around the platter uncovered.
    • Remove the nachos from the oven and carefully pick up the parchment paper and slide the nachos off of the paper.  Be careful the pan is very hot and the paper can be hot to the touch. 
    • Straighten out the nachos on the platter.
    • Add fresh salsa on top of the nachos.  Serve with sour cream, guacamole and additional salsa.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 689kcal | Carbohydrates: 59g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 42g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 55mg | Sodium: 1307mg | Potassium: 812mg | Fiber: 11g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 1090IU | Vitamin C: 15.3mg | Calcium: 356mg | Iron: 4.5mg