The perfect appetizer or main course, these are easy to make, super affordable with ground beef, and can be customized with your favorite toppings.
One dish and no fuss. Your cast iron skillet will make this super easy. If you chop your toppings ahead of time, you can make this recipe super quick. It’s perfect for Friday evening cooking.
Table of Contents
Ingredients and Tools You’ll Need
Feel free to swap out any ingredients. You can use ground turkey or chicken, different cheeses, and different veggies depending on what you like.
This will make roughly 6 servings, depending on if this is an appetizer or main course.
Equipment
- 8-inch or larger cast iron skillet
Ingredients
Seasoned Ground Beef
- ½ pound ground beef (85% lean or leaner)
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
To Assemble the Nachos
- 11 ounces corn tortilla chips
- 3 cups medium cheddar cheese
- ½ cup diced red onion
- ¼ cup sliced black olives
- ½ cup pickled or fresh sliced jalapeño
Fresh Toppings
- Chopped green onion
- Guacamole or fresh diced avocado
- Pico de gallo or fresh diced tomato
How to Make Cast Iron Skillet Nachos
Step One: Cook the Beef
Heat your oven to 425°F.
Cook the ground beef in your skillet over medium heat. Break it up as it cooks. Add all the spices and cook until the beef is browned and done. Put the beef on a plate. If there’s grease in the skillet, dump it and wipe the pan clean.
Step Two: Top and Bake
Layer chips in the skillet. Add cheese, then the beef, onion, olives, and jalapeños. Add another layer of chips and cheese.
Bake 7-9 minutes until the cheese melts.
Add the fresh toppings and serve from the skillet.
Storing & Serving
Leftover nachos do not store well. However, you can easily cook the ground beef and use only part of it to make a smaller portion of nachos. Any leftover beef will stay fresh in the fridge for 3-4 days and you can make another batch or use it in a salad.
Serve these for a fun friends night.
- Triple berry sangria is great for a party – just pour and chill.
- Everyone will love deep fried snickers. And maybe you can make it together!
- Nothing better than homemade fries for snacking on.
- This lemon sheet cake with lemon buttercream is simple but fresh – perfect after all the heavy food!
More Nacho Recipes
- Carnitas nachos have shredded pork and queso cheese. I love making this for myself for dinner.
- Apple pie nachos – all the flavor of apple pie with the wait!
Printable Recipe
Cast Iron Skillet Nachos
Equipment
- 8-inch or larger cast iron skillet
Ingredients
Seasoned Ground Beef
- ½ pound ground beef (85% lean or leaner)
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
To Assemble the Nachos
- 11 ounces corn tortilla chips
- 3 cups medium cheddar cheese
- ½ cup diced red onion
- ¼ cup sliced black olives
- ½ cup pickled or fresh sliced jalapeño
Fresh Toppings
- Chopped green onion
- Guacamole or fresh diced avocado
- Pico de gallo or fresh diced tomato
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Instructions
- Preheat oven. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C) with a rack in the center.
- Make the seasoned beef. Cook the ground beef in a cast iron skillet on medium heat, breaking it up with a spatula as it cooks. Then, add chili powder, garlic powder, oregano, cumin, onion powder, black pepper, and salt. Keep cooking until the beef is browned and fully cooked. After that, put the cooked beef on a plate and get rid of any extra grease from the skillet. Finally, use a paper towel to wipe the skillet clean.
- Assemble the nachos. Place a single layer of corn tortilla chips in the now-empty skillet. Then, sprinkle a generous amount of shredded cheddar cheese over the chips. Evenly distribute the cooked beef, diced red onion, sliced black olives, and sliced jalapeños over the cheese and chips. Repeat with another layer of chips, cheese, and toppings.
- Bake. Place the skillet in the preheated oven. Bake for 7-9 minutes or until the cheese is thoroughly melted and bubbly.
- Garnish and serve. Remove the skillet from the oven. Top the nachos with fresh toppings such as chopped green onion, guacamole or diced avocado, and pico de gallo or diced tomato. Serve immediately while hot and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Love,
This was delicious and so easy to make. I followed the instructions as written this time, but I think next time I will also provide liquid nacho cheese for those who want it. Thank you so much for this recipe 🙂
Hello! Waiting for this to come out of the oven however I wasn’t sure when to add back the ground beef. Was I supposed to layer in the beef while laying the chips? It smells great! Can’t wait!
So when do you add the meat?