This simple recipe for ground beef nachos combines seasoned beef with melty cheese for a quick and easy appetizer or meal. Oven baked and gluten free, this one is a hit for the whole family.
Ingredients
What really elevates this nacho recipe is my own seasoning for the ground beef. You could use this in tortillas for ground beef tacos or on top of a taco salad. It’s super flavorful and delicious, plus only takes about 10 minutes to cook.
As for tortilla chips, I try to get something fairly sturdy that can hold a lot of the toppings without breaking. In Texas, we truly have a great selection of brands – G. Cardona is one of my favorites.
Toppings for Nachos
If you’re following a migraine diet, toppings can feel limited for some. Here are a few of my favorites.
- White American Cheese – I use either Boar’s Head or Andrew and Everett brands. Get it in block form from your deli counter and shred at home using a cheese grater. If you’re further along in the diet, Monterey Jack is another good option. Both melt well.
- Green Onions or Shallots
- Corn
- Sliced Jalapeno or Poblano Peppers
- Whipped Cottage Cheese as a sour cream substitute
- My salsa verde recipe or regular salsa, both in my cookbook.
- Mango Salsa
An Easy Weeknight Dinner
I joked on my instagram that I’m basically sitting on a throne of lies with the recipes I’ve been posting lately. It’s true that the first trimester of pregnancy really throws off the foods you normally love. In the past I adored salads and now I can’t even look at lettuce in my fridge without wanting to hurl. Hence the recipes lately for chicken tenders and now these ground beef nachos.
I figure though that anything that’s easy for me to make while I feel like garbage is actually perfect for people with migraine who don’t feel like cooking or have a lot of energy. Essentially I have a similar energy and vibe to when I was 24/7 chronic with vestibular migraine.
My hope is that people find this dinner as quick and easy as I do.
Easy Tex Mex Recipes
For more easy recipes like these ground beef nachos check out these:
Ground Beef Nachos
Ingredients
Seasoned Ground Beef
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/3 cup water
Nachos
- 1/2 12oz bag tortilla chips
- 1/2 pound white American cheese
- 4 green onions, chopped
- 1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- chopped peppers like poblano or jalapeno
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Add ground beef to a large pan over medium high heat and begin to cook till no longer pink about 5-6 minutes, breaking it up into small bits. Once cooked through, drain any excess fat and add the spices, stirring over medium heat till well-combined. Add 1/3 cup of water and bring to a simmer, until almost all the water has cooked off.
- Cover a large sheet pan with parchment paper. Place the tortilla chips on top and sprinkle with shredded American cheese. Add the rest of the toppings except for the cilantro. Bake for about 8-10 minutes until the cheese has melted.
- Add the cilantro to the top of the nachos and serve with salsa or any extra dips you'd like.
Notes
- Two brands I really like for white American cheese are Boar's Head and Andrew and Everett. You can get it in the "block" form from the deli counter.
These ground beef nachos are a regular Friday night dinner for us. I usually make them in my large cast iron pan and the chips get nice and crispy. So delicious!
I am wondering about the smoked paprika. I thought smoked was not good for this diet, so I have been avoiding anything smoked. Is smoked paprika ok?
Smoked paprika is ok. It’s really just smoked meats and liquid smoke flavoring you have to avoid.
A tried and true classic, there’s not much you can do to go wrong here! I actually subbed in the Queso from the Dizzy Cookbook as my cheese topping. I’ve done it multiple times now, it’s soooo good! Super great for a quick weekend night. I usually just bring the whole sheet pan to the couch and my husband and I eat right off of it!
Also, this is WAY better of a taco seasoning blend than the store-bought stuff is. I’ll never go back.
Alicia, could you just let me know you received my private email. I am not very computer savvy and just need to know I sent it properly.
Loved the flavor! I never thought to put corn with nachos but it tastes great! Thanks again for another wonderful recipe 🙂
Hi. Where do I find white American cheese? What brand do you use?
Hi Jackie, most grocery stores in the US carry it. I have brand recommendations in the post and recipe card. It doesn’t have to be the white kind though – it can be yellow.
Hi Alicia. Wanted to tell you I made your Mongolian Beef recipe tonight. I actually marinated the flank steak overnight and it was fork tender. OMG, the sauce and meat was so flavorful. Better than any Chinese restaurant I’ve eaten it at. Going to try marinade on Chicken next. Keep your recipes coming, as I have cooked every night for the last 7 1/2 months . Delicious. Also sent you that email you requested. Thankful as always
Hi Alicia. I have been having a very hard time lately as I’ve rebounded since I had my implants removed. So much so that I’ve actually have started having migraines which I haven’t had that symptom for a long time. I started thinking about which Dr. I might see. As there isn’t one that works with Vestibular Migraines in Vegas. I had been reading about you and Dr. Beh’s name popped up. I missed your podcast by 1 day, but thought maybe I could talk or see him personally. Is he located in Utah, Dallas or both? Do you need a referral? If so, could you help me out? Also it looks like he does tele appointments. Could you fill me in on what to do? Thanks, Carolyn
Hey Carolyn, will you email me at [email protected]?
Wow! This was amazing. Made it for dinner tonight, and what a treat! Easy and delicious. And, my husband was in heaven! I made the quick tomato salsa to go with it, and it was perfect.
this looks wonderful and not hard, can’t wait to try it.