Sheet-pan nachos for 8: 2 pans of tortilla chips layered with taco-seasoned ground beef, black beans, cheddar and Monterey Jack, baked until the cheese melts and loaded with cold toppings. Cook the beef ahead and the nachos take about 15 minutes at kickoff, in the oven for a homegate or in foil pans on the grill at the lot.
Feeds: 8 · Hands-on: about 25 min · Total: about 40 min
Home gear: 2 rimmed half-sheet pans (18 × 13 in.) and parchment or foil
Pack for the lot
- Cooked beef, in a sealed container, in the cooler
- Shredded cheese, in the cooler
- Pico, guacamole, sour cream, green onions and cilantro, in the cooler
- Black beans and jalapeños
- Tortilla chips (pack them on top so they don't crush)
- Limes
- 2 large foil pans and a skillet
- Instant-read thermometer
- Charcoal and a chimney starter, or a full propane tank
- Spatula, plates, napkins and trash bags
Lot notes
- Fuel: charcoal or propane both work. You need a cool side and a lid, because the cheese melts from the heat around the pan, not under it.
- Watch the bottom: foil pans scorch chips on a hot grill. Keep them on the cool side, and nest each in a second foil pan if the bottom starts to brown.
- Cold toppings stay cold: guacamole, sour cream and pico ride in the cooler at 40°F or below until the nachos come off the heat.
- Eat them hot: nachos go soggy before they go unsafe, but anything with beef, cheese or sour cream on it gets tossed after 2 hours out, or 1 hour over 90°F. Build a second pan when the first is gone instead of leaving one out.
- Cleanup: parchment at home, foil pans at the lot. Fold and toss.
Can you make sheet pan nachos ahead?
Make the beef up to 2 days ahead and refrigerate it, then reheat it to 165°F at kickoff. Build and bake the nachos right before you eat, or the chips go soft.
How do you keep nachos from getting soggy?
Layer the cheese first so it seals the chips, drain the beans well and add the wet toppings only after baking. Serve them straight off the pan.
How do you keep nachos hot at a tailgate?
Don't hold them. Bake 1 pan at a time on the grill and start the next when the first is half gone, so each one comes off the heat hot.
How many sheet pan nachos for 20 people?
Multiply everything by 2½: 5 lb of beef, 5 bags of chips, about 2½ cans of beans and 15 cups of cheese, across 5 sheet pans. Bake them in rounds of 2.