Celebrate with an easy and delicious nacho bar
I’ve yet to meet any teen, tween (or parent for that matter) who doesn’t like nachos. Setting up a nacho bar at your home is a fun and delicious way to feed your friends and family, and entertain them, too. The best parties allow guests to participate in making something. Today, that something is a yummy plate of nachos.
Not just for parties, you can create a quick and easy nacho set-up for team meetings, movie binging, and study sessions. Our tricks let everyone build and heat up their own nacho plate without losing track of which creation belongs to what guest. Here’s how:
Ingredients:
- Chips
- Grated cheese (look for pre-grated Mexican blend to save time)
- Beans (canned is fine.) You can put out re-fried and black beans
- Guacamole (find our recipe here) or store bought works too
- Sour cream or Mexican crema
- A variety of salsas and hot sauces
- Your favorite drinks
Extras: Put out cooked chicken, pork, ground beef, or steak. Extra toppings can include chopped cilantro, onions, and jalepenos
Our Nacho-Perfect Tips:
- Purchase the best chips you can find. Shoot for large, thick, restaurant-style chips that hold all of the toppings without getting soggy.
- To make melting easier, purchase bulk sets of aluminum pie plates. Have each guest write his/her name on the bottom with a Sharpie.
- Before heating/baking, top your chips with ingredients that are supposed to be hot – beans, any meats, and lots and lots of cheese.
Two ways to cook:
Have someone at the oven helping guests place their pie plates inside, directly on the racks. You can heat your nachos just until cheese is melted and beans/meat are hot. Bake at 325 degrees for about 5-7 minutes. You can also broil your nachos but make sure someone is watching this very carefully. Broiling is quicker and should take about a minute.
Because portion sizes will vary with each guest, plates will be done at different times. Pull out each plate when cheese is melted, look on the bottom to see who it belongs to, and place the aluminum pie plate on a paper plate if the pie plate is too hot to handle. Repeat for every guest.
Now, the fun part. Add the rest of your toppings!
Be sure to have plenty of cold drinks ready (especially if you have fans of spicy toppings.) You can set up a pretty drink display on your bar if you’d like.
Here’s Kate’s finished product!
