Nachos Done Right - Cooks Illustrated

Published July 1, 2002.

Even this beleaguered staple of mall restaurants is worth doing well at home.

The Problem

Finding good nachos can be difficult. The worst combine chips that taste like cardboard with squirts of unnaturally fluid "cheese" and watery jarred salsa. If you're lucky, a miniscule portion of guacamole is served on the side.

The Goal

Good nachos should be crisp and hot, not lukewarm, soggy, or charred. Second, there must be no shortage of cheese, a chip without cheese is not a nacho. Third, there is no such thing as minimalist nachos. Good nachos require not only a hearty helping of cheese but also ample amounts of garnishes such as salsa, guacamole, sour cream, jalapeños, scallions, and so on.

The Solution

To ensure that all of the chips are cheesy and spicy, layer tortilla chips with a full pound of shredded cheddar cheese and sliced jalapeños. Use only the freshest ingredients to prepare quick homemade salsa and guacamole to garnish the nachos, and finish with fresh lime wedges and sour cream.

list of recipes

America’s Test Kitchen is a 2,500-square-foot kitchen located just outside of Boston. It is the home of Cook’s Country and Cook’s Illustrated magazines and is the workday destination for more than three dozen test cooks, editors, and cookware specialists. Our mission is to test recipes until we understand how and why they work and arrive at the best version. We also test kitchen equipment and supermarket ingredients in search of brands that offer the best value and performance. You can watch us work by tuning in to America’s Test Kitchen (www.americastestkitchen.com) on public television.