November 6th is National Nachos Day, but EVERY day can be nachos day with my three tempting new recipes. I created these for FOX5's Good Day New York, for my first ever appearance on the show with their great hosts, Curt Menefee and Rosanna Scotto. This photo is of Curt making his Frito Pie Nachos!
Of all the things I cook, one of my very favorites is party appetizers. It’s certainly what so many of my friends know me for, thanks to all my big summertime and Christmas parties. I always say: "Why not aspire to be the King of Cocktail Hour?" In my cookbook I have a lot recipes that are great for game day—I even have instructions, or a plan, for a Game Day Snack Stadium! Have you ever seen one of those? SO much fun to put together when you have a bigger crowd.
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Without further ado, I'm proud to present:
my Frito Pie Nachos (with my quick chili, shredded cheddar, sliced scallions, and sour cream) — based on my cookbook's popular Easy as Frito Pie recipe.
my Nachos Cubano (with mojo pork, ham, dill pickle, shredded cheese, jalapeños, yellow mustard) — all the delicious ingredients of a Cuban sandwich.
and last, but not least, my Hot Fudge Sundae Dessert Nachos! (with homemade cinnamon & sugar tortilla chips, vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, chocolate and salted caramel syrups, strawberries, whipped cream, cherries, sprinkles and peanuts!)
First up: Frito Pie Nachos! This photo is of a classic frito pie . . . 🇲🇽
Chili ingredients:
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 small onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound ground chuck
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
If you're making Frito Pie Nachos, you need:
1 party size bag (15.5-ounces) Fritos SCOOPS
1 bag (8 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup scallions, white and green parts, in 1/4-inch slices
Squeeze bottle sour cream (about 12 ounces)
If you're making frito pies, you need:
Enough bags for your party of (1-ounce each) Frito chips
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese (do it yourself at home)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/3 cup scallions, white and green parts, in 1/4-inch slices
First, make my delicious quick chili!
In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil, add onion and garlic, cook till softened, about 4 minutes.
Add meat, breaking it up with wooden spoon. Add chili powder, paprika, salt, cumin, stir. When meat is no longer pink, add tomato sauce. Simmer over medium heat till most liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Makes 3 cups chili.
If making Frito Pie Nachos:
On attractive platter, spread Fritos Scoops. Spoon chili onto chips. Top with shredded cheese, scallions. Crisscross with sour cream & strap on the feedbag!
If making Frito Pies:
With scissors, cut open center of each Frito bag, lay each on own plate. Spoon a good helping of chili into bag on top of Fritos. Top with shredded cheese, sour cream, and a generous sprinkle of scallions. For maximum authenticity, eat with a white plastic fork. Enjoy any leftover chili for lunch tomorrow!
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Next up: Nachos Cubano! 🇨🇺
Note re Mojo Pork: You may need to buy more than one roast to get to a total 5 pounds for this recipe. Bone-in is more flavorful than boneless, but the latter works as well.
5 pound bone-in pork butt or blade roast (shoulder)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to coat meat
Garlic powder, onion powder, ground cumin to coat meat
1/4 cup olive oil
3 cups orange juice
1/3 cup favorite hot sauce
3 cups mojo marinade (store-bought)
1 large yellow onion, cut in eighthse
4 limes, cut in quarters
4 ounces roughly chopped mint leaves
1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
2 tablespoons minced garlic
Rest of nacho ingredients:
1 (11 ounce) bag hint of lime-flavor Doritos
1 (8 ounce) ham steak, cut in small cubes
Dill pickle chips (about 10 ounces), sliced
8 ounces shredded Swiss cheese (shred your own, or another white shredded cheese will suffice)
Sliced jalapeños (as desired)
Classic yellow French's mustard (in squeeze bottle!)
Make the Mojo Pork!
Heat oven to 350°F.
Coat all sides of roast (or roasts) with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders, cumin. Let seasoned meat come to room temperature out of fridge (45 minutes to an hour).
Heat oil in large Dutch oven, over medium high heat. Brown roast(s) on all sides, 4 minutes a side.
To Dutch oven, over meat, add orange juice, hot sauce, mojo marinade. Roast, covered, 1 hour, turning meat once.
Stir in onion, limes, mint, cilantro, garlic.
Cover, roast 45 minutes or till tender.
Remove meat from Dutch oven, rest 20 minutes, shred.
To assemble Nachos Cubano: On a large, festive platter, arrange chips. Top with heated mojo pork (you may not use all of it on first serving). Add ham, pickle, cheese, jalapeños, then crisscross with mustard, and dig in!
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Next up: Hot Fudge Sundae Dessert Nachos 🍨 🍒
Cinnamon & Sugar Tortilla Chips:
8" flour tortillas
one stick salted butter
1.25 ounces cinnamon & sugar mixture
Vanilla Ice Cream
Whipped Cream (in a can with nozzle)
Hot Fudge
Strawberries
Chocolate syrup (in squirt bottle)
Salted caramel syrup (in squirt bottle)
Sprinkles
Maraschino cherries (stems on)
Peanuts
Make the Cinnamon-Sugar Tortilla "Chips"
Heat oven to 425°F. Cover two cookie sheets in foil. Combine 1/3 cinnamon and 2/3 sugar in a single shaker—the spice container the cinnamon comes in works well for this.
Melt one stick butter in microwave. Slice a stack of about 4 tortillas into 8 pieces each. Line up side by side on cookie sheets, brush thoroughly with butter (don't drench though), then sprinkle generously with cinnamon/sugar.
Bake for about 9 minutes till crispy. You want to hit the sweet spot between still chewy and TOO crisp (or burnt). Crispy means they have body and will stand up well with the ice cream and other guests at the Hot Fudge party.
Makes about 28 "chips." Repeat as desired.
To plate your dessert nachos: On a large, festive platter, arrange "chips." Use an ice cream scoop to place 3 or 4 mounds of vanilla ice cream on top. Add some flourishes of whipped cream in between. Pour hot fudge over ice cream and elsewhere over chips. Add strawberries. Crisscross your creation with chocolate and then salted caramel syrups. Top whipped cream with sprinkles, top ice cream with cherries, decorate the nooks and crannies with peanuts. Et, voila! You're ready to dig in!
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Here I am with Curt and Rosanna on National Nachos Day, 2024! Click the photo to go to the video!
More here about National Nacho Day and the History of Nachos themselves:
Any discussion about the history of nachos has to begin in the Mexican border town of Piedras Negras — just west of the Rio Grande — across which sits Eagle Pass, Texas. One day in 1943 the wives of U.S. soldiers stationed at Ft. Duncan dropped in on a Piedras Negras hotspot called the Victory Club.
Unfortunately the restaurant had closed for the day.
Still, a manager named Ignacio “Nacho” Anaya decided to throw a dish together based on whatever ingredients he still had left. Among them? Cheese and tortillas. Anaya sliced the fried tortillas into triangles, added some shredded cheddar and jalapeño peppers — and started a new tradition which bears his name to this day. (Thanks Nacho! Where would our Super Bowl parties be without you?)
Speaking of which, an alternative take on nachos — using the now familiar cheese sauce — appeared at a Texas Rangers baseball game at Arlington Stadium in 1976. Two years later the iconic ABC sportscaster Howard Cosell mentioned the term “nachos” during a Monday Night Football game — helping to turn this rather simple dish into an American tradition.
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National Nacho Day recipes sound amazing! Frito Pie Nachos are definitely a winner—perfect for parties. The Nachos Cubano with mojo pork and ham are a great twist too. Adding sweet breads meat would make a unique addition to these nachos!