Vegan Nachos

Among all the delicious Mexican foods out there that people can enjoy nachos take the cake. With queso, sofritas, beans, salsa, and guacamole, everyone from vegetarians, vegans, or people consuming meat will be thrilled from this vegan nachos. It has also always been possible to easily customize them.

I am here to stand for the fact that nachos are a meal. Of course nachos are known to be appetizer or party food but I find it creative to elevate it into a main course. When it comes to all those toppings and the texture isn't at all grueling then having a dinner helping is something I don't mind.

My current best favorite restaurant offer in Los Angeles is the super nacho hour at Bar Amá. That's right, no ordinary happy hour but rather a better nachos at a lower price at the Tex-Mex restaurant. And while their standard nachos are pretty great, I'll typically order their vegan nachos. They are equally enjoyable when topped with vegan queso and then garnished with whatever toppings you desire.

He made these vegan nachos inspired by Bar Amá and these are also topped to the maximum. Yes, you can call them a game day snack or even a casual appetizer but why not have a very fun nacho dinner at home?

The Key Components

All good nacho recipes are made up of layers of flavoured ingredients and the same is a case with vegan nacho recipe.

• The Chips: When it comes to nachos the recommended tortilla chips are the good-quality restaurant-style type. Even if thin chips are so tasty for the snack, they don't fit for the nachos because these chips simply cannot withstand the heavy coverings. Layer with thicker but still very crunchy tortilla chips and briefly toast these before topping (a trick I wasn't aware of until trying these nachos!).
  
• The Protein: My recipe requires some sofritas and I've listed an easy copycat sofritas recipe here. The tofu seasoned with chipotle gives a perfect substitute for ground beef or pork that has been seasoned. I also like to add the black beans so that the taste is not the same as the beans they are also of different texture. Jackfruit, refried beans, vegetarian ground beef crumbles, etc., are the right replacements.
  
• The Cheese: Our vegan queso recipe is used in vegan nachos to give fully cheesy experience. Also it is very simple for preparation and it can be prepared a day or two before preparation. For even more gooeyness add an additional layer of shredded vegan cheese.
  
• The Toppings: When preparing nachos for the ultimate conferment don't be sparing on the toppings. I use salsa, guacamole, and pickled jalapeños because they're versatile; feel free to use your preferred toppings.
  

Swaps and Substitutions

What I love most about nachos is that it is rather flexible. There are toppings which is optional and you can add extras of your choice until you get the desired vegan nachos. Here are some toppings you can swap out or add-on to your vegan nachos:

• Pulled jackfruit
• Inedible or Beyond meat cooked with taco seasoning
• Well, seasoned vegetarian "meat" crumbles
• Refried beans
• Sautéed peppers and onions
• Vegan shredded cheese
• Pico de gallo
• Mole sauce
• Diced avocado
• Vegan sour cream
• Green onions
• Sliced black olives
• Hot sauce

Planning Ahead

Some part of vegan nachos could even be prepared ahead of time for the quickest assembly known to man. To give it time to marinate, make the sofritis up to 3 days before then refrigerate it. Looks best when sliced and re-heated slightly before placing on top of the nachos. It is best to prepare the queso up to 2 days before serving and warm it slightly in the microwave then drizzled over the top.

Tip

This vegan queso is likely to thicken up when refrigerated, or as it sits in the refrigerator. It makes it possible to reheat it again adding some water because it might become thicker to pour. Since the sofritas and queso can be prepared in advance, all that's left to do is place the chips, toppings, and warm before serving. Vegetarian nachos are actually ready for serving in as early as 20 minutes.

Ingredients

• 1 (10 to 11-ounce) back strong tortilla chips
• 1 recipe copycat sofritas, warmed (approximately 3 cups)
• 1 can = 15 ounces black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 recipe vegan queso, warmed; will yield approximately 2 cups
• 2/3 cup salsa, either that bought at the supermarket or one prepared at home
• 2/3 cup guacamole either store bought or homemade
• 1/3 cup pickled jalapenos
• ⅓ cup minced fresh mint
• 1 to 2 limes, cut into wedges

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2. Bake the chips:

   Place the chips individually flat on a jelly roll pan or half sheet pan lined with sides if any. They should lay one on top of the other though not neatly covering each other part way.

   Put them in the preheated oven for five minutes roasting them slightly.

3. Add the queso, sofritas, and beans:

   Spoon the warm queso over the chips; drizzle about 1 ½ cups of this. Finally place the beans and the sofritas on top.

   Bake until warmed through for about 5 minutes.

4. Add the remaining toppings:

   The eggs should be immediately topped with an additional 1/2 cup of queso.

   Afterwards spread the salsa and guacamole evenly on top and scatter the pickled jalapeños across the dish. Lastly garnish with cilantro if you want and then release the pot and serve hot with lime wedges.