Bricklayer-Style Nachos Recipe (2024)

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Cooking Notes

Michael

What does "thick-cut bacon, thinly sliced" mean?

L Allen

Make the meat mixture, divide into four portions and freeze three. Pull one portion out at night for the next night. Microwave thawed mixture briefly, use a glass pie pan of chips, top with meat, cheese, etc and bake. Work night dinner, hot and salty and indulgent.

Dan

Definitely drain the tomatoes (and use half of what the recipe says) or you’re going to have soggy chips that can’t hold any weight. Use only half the onions and dice rather than slice.Garnish with lime juice and cilantro.

Margie

Cheese on chips first, then meat on top. Meat will get crispy in the oven, cheese melts under, helps save the chips from getting too soggy. Or just melt the cheese on the chips separately from the meat & have the meat as a 'topping' after. Ditto spritzing with lime juice while hot out of the oven, along with large flaky salt.

LXV

There's Spanish and Mexican chorizo.Spanish is cured hard, like a pepperoni, and doesn't crumbleMexican is like a bratwurst or Italian sausage: highly seasoned raw meat in a casing. It crumbles.

CC Baker

Yum! Instead of cooking bacon, I used bacon grease to cook the meat & veg. I also used a combo of fresh chorizo & ground chicken breast, and added blobs of refried pintos (also cooked with bacon grease) amidst the meat sauce. Fun, flexible recipe, regardless of how you chop your bacon, ha!

Kelly R.

This recipe is SO different from previous nacho recipes that I just had to try it. We loved it! However.... The tortilla chips turned out pretty soggy and couldn’t withstand all the juicy deliciousness of the sauce. Next time, I’ll serve the chips on the side

Kathy

Thin cross-wise slices, I believe.

Sarah

Meats used: bacon and ground chicken. Perfect combo. Cheeses: seaside cheddar and feta. Yum!Handmade tortillas? Yup!1/2 the tomatoe? Done.Did I listen to the feedback about putting the chips on the side. Nope. And that was the biggest mistake! You go through all this trouble and make handmade tortillas only to have them soggy. It’s a bummer. Heed the warning of the soggy chips. You’ll be glad you did!

Jessica

Made this switched out the beef for some diced up chicken because that’s what I had. Delicious. The whole family loved it. Great for the football game. Will make again.

Brian

Try this with roasted squash instead of chorizo/top sirloin! delicious...s is the original.

Val

Best nachos ever! But not a weeknight-friendly dish as it takes many steps and significant time to prep. Also quite decadent with so much fatty meat (in a good way). The bacon and chorizo make the sirloin look like spa food (ha!) Glad to have read the comments and thus froze half the meat-salsa topping for a future meal. Used drained, fire roasted whole tomatoes, which I roughly chopped. Glad I drained the tomatoes as am not fan, unlike other posters, of partially soggy nachos.

Sherry1950

I just cooked the sauce down until it was very dry before putting on the chips and they were not soggy.

Wendy

By mistake, I used thin-cut bacon, thinly sliced. Ruined the entire dish. Next time, I'll use thin-sliced bologna, coarsely chopped.

Bree LaFin

Intended to follow the recipe, until I discovered my chorizo was mostly "pork salivary glands" with the consistency of cat food. Total trash, but hey, sausage will be sausage, so I improvised. 1/3 the chorizo, 1lb ground beef instead of sirloin to hide the texture, less bacon because the ground beef was fattier. 1 can fire roasted tomatoes, added spices. Melted cheese on the chips and baked for 4 min to avoid sogginess. Refried beans with the meat mix to cut the funk from the offal. No fresco.

Paul

Fire-roasting the tomatoes makes a big difference. After adding tomatoes to meat mixture, it begs for some spice. Adding cumin, ancho chili, and smoked paprika really rounded out the flavor. Whole Foods sells sirloin flap, which has a nicer texture than top sirloin, and this worked beautifully in this recipe. A delicious, versatile filling for all things Mexican.

betsey

I didn’t drain the tomatoes, and that blew the whole dish if you’re going to pour the mixture over the chips. They were super soggy.

Cornell92

For those asking for a vegetarian version (despite the note asking - and I paraphrase “What the heck?” - do check the link at the top of the age here in the NYT article! It offers right at the beginning a discussion/recipe/suggestions for vegetarian versions.

cooked

Not very good. Don’t need to make again.

Island Cook

Worked out great even with our little toaster oven! Decided to cook the taco chips separately and serve the sauce along side as someone recommended. Would also cut the recipe next time as there was too much for two people. Might make the sauce and freeze to use as needed. Easy to make and delicious!

Scot F. Martin

Some cumin kicks the flavor up a bit.

Jen

this is a go-to in our house, especially when we're hosting. Always a hit

JH

It was okay. Only make what you'll eat straight from the oven. It doesn't hold for a next day leftover.

Jane S

After making the meat mixture I let it cool completely so it firmed up. So when I baked it over the chips they were not soggy. That said, I was still very disappointed with this recipe - it lacks heat, it lacks flavor, it just doesn't deliver. I do however like the concept so will try and create my own version of this - I think chorizo, ground beef or chicken together would work with more of a salsa style tomato base and cheese sauce, sour cream, avocado and plenty of spices!

Kathleen

Did anyone find the sirloin to be tough and/or dry? I like everything about this recipe except the sirloin; it’s Always been overly chewy or downright tough to me.

Melissa

Is sirloin steak the same as just sirloin?

Biel

Great recipe! Very yummy but the chorizo is too much to I didn’t add it

bem

Very adaptable to changes based on what is available. Took about 25 minutes start to finish. Delicious, quick & easy!

latenac

Fun idea for making nachos a more substantial meal but really too wet of a mixture and so much stuff that nothing really came through flavor wise.

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Bricklayer-Style Nachos Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to good homemade nachos? ›

Packaged, pre-shredded cheeses contain stabilizers which hinder their meltability. Shred your own cheese instead of chopping or tearing it: Smaller pieces will melt quicker, which means your nachos will be perfectly gooey without charred or overdone chips. One layer of chips and toppings is good.

How to layer nachos so they don't get soggy? ›

Layer Wisely

Start by spreading a single layer of chips on a baking sheet. Next, add a thin layer of refried beans or black beans to help create a barrier between the chips and the wetter toppings. Then, sprinkle a generous amount of shredded cheese over the beans. Repeat this process for additional layers, if desired.

How to keep chips crunchy when making nachos? ›

Limiting the number of ingredients baked with the chips is the key to crispiness. Top chips with no more than two or three toppings. Choose from items such as black beans, refried beans, chopped grilled chicken, seasoned ground beef (browned and drained), or chopped jalapenos.

What is the best cheese to use for nachos? ›

A: While you can technically use any type of cheese for nachos, some cheeses work better than others. The best options include Cheddar, Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack, and Queso Blanco.

Is it better to make nachos in the oven or microwave? ›

Here's a fact: If you put a plate of tortilla chips topped with cheese in the microwave and zap them until the cheese melts, the cheese will melt way before the tortilla chips have the chance to take on any color or toasted flavor. With nachos baked in the oven, the chips toast while the cheese melts.

Should I put parchment paper under my nachos? ›

Be sure to add a layer of aluminum foil or parchment paper to the bottom of your baking sheet before assembling the nachos. This will make clean up easy and prevent the nachos from sticking.

Do you put salsa on nachos before or after baking? ›

These wet toppings also end up cooling the nachos down too quickly. → Follow this tip: Any sauce-like thing that you wouldn't top the nachos with when they are baking, like sour cream, salsa, and guacamole, should be served on the side. Place them in little bowls with spoons so that people can serve themselves.

How do restaurants melt cheese on nachos? ›

Melting Salts:

We've found that the secret to perfectly velvety-smooth nacho cheese sauce is a combination of keeping the cheese at low temperature while cooking, and the use of sodium citrate (derived from citric acid) and SHMP (sodium hexametaphosphate).

Do you put cheese on nachos first or last? ›

To make sure every chip is covered in cheese, lay down the cheese on the chips first. The cheese will serve as a blanket, protecting the chips from liquidy, sog-inducing toppings.

Why won t my chips go crispy? ›

Why are my homemade chips not crispy? It's likely that too many chips were cooked at once (a crowded pan is never a good thing) and doing so means the temperature of the oil decreases, resulting in soggy, greasy chips.

What makes chips more crispy? ›

The difference lies in their starch content and structure. Waxy potatoes are amazing for boiling as they keep their shape, but floury potatoes fry up crisper. Use a floury (also called mealy) potato such as Russet or Shepody for your chips and you'll have better success.

What is the best way to melt cheese on nachos? ›

Steps to Make It
  1. Gather the ingredients. ...
  2. Spread the tortilla chips in an even layer on a microwave-safe plate. ...
  3. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the chips. ...
  4. Top with the jalapeño slices, if desired. ...
  5. Heat on high for 1 minute, just until the cheese is melted.
Sep 2, 2021

Are nachos better in the oven or grill? ›

The cooking method

Drummond "nukes" the nachos in a microwave and the NYT grills them, but the best results, I find, come from baking, which heats the dish all the way through without making the base layer soft and chewy.

Do you put salsa on nachos before cooking? ›

Tip tortilla chips on to a baking tray, pour over salsa and scatter over a few sliced spring onions. Grate over a good chunk of cheese (fontina is perfect, but cheddar will do). Add a pinch of crushed chilli flakes, then put under a hot grill for about 3 minutes to melt the cheese.

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