America’s Test Kitchen: Nachos for dinner? Yes, please!

Who says nachos can’t be dinner? When they’re loaded with seasoned ground beef and pickled jalapeños, they’re sure to be plenty filling.

We made a simple microwave cheese sauce, so you don’t even need to turn on your oven to make these easy nachos.

Ground Beef Nachos with Sweet Pickled Jalapeños

Serves 4

4 jalapeño chiles, stemmed and sliced thin

1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar, divided

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons table salt, divided

1/2 cup ice plus 3/4 cup water

1 pound 85% lean ground beef

2 tablespoons taco seasoning

1/4 cup tomato paste

12 ounces American cheese, chopped coarse

3/4 cup whole milk

1 tablespoon minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce

12 ounces tortilla chips

1. Bring jalapeños, 1/4 cup sugar, vinegar, and 1 teaspoon salt to boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until jalapeños are just softened, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a heatproof bowl and stir in ice. Refrigerate until needed.

2. Combine beef, taco seasoning, remaining 1 teaspoon sugar, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt in a 12-inch nonstick skillet. Cook over medium-high heat, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon, until beef is no longer pink, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook until paste begins to darken, about 1 minute. Stir in water and cook until sauce thickens and coats beef, about 4 minutes.

3. Microwave American cheese, milk, and chipotle in a large bowl until cheese is fully melted, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Arrange half of the chips on a serving platter. Drizzle half of the cheese sauce over chips. Repeat with remaining chips and cheese, then dollop beef mixture over top. Drain jalapeños and scatter over nachos. Serve.

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