Halftime Nachos Recipes

CRAZY NACHOS

Steps:

• To make the chipotle taco meat, in a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add the beef and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the beef is lightly browned and the onion is translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the gar lic and cook for 30 seconds more. Add the tomato, chili powder, cumin, oreg ano, cayenne, and chipotle chile. Stir until the spices are well distributed, turn down the heat, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the masa harina until well combined, then taste and adjust the seasonings. Add salt and black pepper to taste. Stir in the lime juice and remove from the heat.
• To make the guacamole, mash the avocado until smooth. Stir in the jalapeno, cilantro, garlic, cumin, and lime juice. Adjust seasonings and add salt to taste.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• To make the nachos, pour 1/2 inch of oil into a heavy skillet and heat to 350 degrees F. If you don't have a candy thermometer, after 5 minutes of heating, you can stick a wooden spoon into the oil to see if it's ready. If the oil bubbles around the spoon, it should be hot enough. In batches, fry the tortillas for 1 minute, until golden brown, turning once. Drain on a paper towel and sprinkle lightly with salt.
• Place the chips close together but not overlapping on a baking sheet or cast-iron skillet, and top each with 1 teaspoon refried beans, 2 tablespoons chipotle taco meat, and 2 tablespoons cheddar cheese.
• Bake for 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. After removing the nachos from the oven, top each with 1 tablespoon guacamole, 1 tablespoon sour cream, and 1 pickled jalapeno slice. Serve warm, with salsa on the side.

THE ORIGINAL BBQ NACHOS

Steps:

• Arrange chips on a large serving platter. Cover with BBQ Pork Shoulder. Top with BBQ sauce and then smother with the Nacho Cheese/Queso Sauce. Sprinkle generously with rub and then serve immediately.
• Place oil in a deep fryer or in a large, heavy-bottomed Dutch oven. Heat oil to 325 degrees F.
• Meanwhile, combine salt and dry rub in a small bowl. Cut tortillas into chip-sized triangles. When oil is 325 degrees F, carefully add cut tortillas and deep fry for about 3 minutes, turning at least once until a light golden brown. Remove chips from oil and dust with salt-dry rub mixture.
• Preheat a charcoal grill for indirect cooking to 225 to 250 degrees F.
• Inject the meat with wash. Alternatively, you can also marinate the pork in Hog Wash overnight in the refrigerator. Season pork generously with dry rub. Place meat on grill and cook until the internal temperature of the meat is consistently 180 degrees F for at least 1 hour; it will take about 8 hours to reach 180 degrees internally. Remove meat from grill and let rest for at least 15 minutes.
• Pull the meat with your hands and remove any fat or gristle. Gently sprinkle pulled meat with dry rub and then toss like a salad.
• Combine all ingredients in a double boiler and stir until melted. Season with salt, to taste.

LOADED NACHOS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Put a large sauté pan with high sides over medium-high heat and add the bacon. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the fat has rendered and the pieces are crisp, about 5 to 7 minutes, then remove the bacon and set aside.
• Add the onions to the bacon fat and sauté, stirring occasionally, until they have softened and started to go brown around the edges, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the ground beef and garlic and cook, breaking up the meat with a spoon, until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the chile powder, cumin, salt, paprika, black pepper, sugar, cornstarch and red pepper flakes and stir to combine and toast the spices. Add enough chicken stock or water to loosen the mixture, and allow it to simmer, uncovered, until the sauce is slightly thickened, about 5 to 6 minutes. (Add a little more stock or water if mixture is too thick.)
• Assemble the nachos on a half sheet pan: Put a layer of tortilla chips on the pan and cover with about 1/3 of the meat sauce, then add about 1/3 of the lettuce, 1/3 of the jalapeños, some avocado slices and a handful of the Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses. Top with more tortilla chips, more meat sauce, more lettuce, jalapeños, avocado and cheese, then make a final layer of chips, meat, bacon, jalapeños, avocado and cheese. Top with crumbled Cotija cheese and slide the sheet pan into the oven to bake until the cheeses have melted through, about 10 to 12 minutes.
• Top cooked nachos with the sliced radishes and tomatoes, and dot the tray with teaspoons of sour cream. Scatter the cilantro over the top and serve, accompanied by limes and hot sauce.