Loaded Beef and Bean Nachos

Loaded Beef and Bean Nachos have it all! Thick corn tortilla chips topped with a saucy beef and refried bean mixture, melty cheese and a plethora of toppings like bell pepper, red onion and black olives. Once baked, serve with guacamole, sour cream and hot sauce!

Yields 4 to 6 servings.

Course Appetizers & Snacks, Mains & Entrees

Cuisine Mexican, Tex Mex

Keyword beef, cinco de mayo, game day, nachos

Servings servings

Calories 837

Author Laurie McNamara

Equipment

Ingredients

3 cups cheddar jack cheese freshly grated/shredded
1 cup diced bell peppers I like a mix of red, orange and yellow
1 medium red onion finely diced
1/2 cup sliced black olives
4 green onions sliced
1 to 2 medium roma tomatoes seeded and finely diced
2 teaspoons olive oil or avocado oil
1/2 medium yellow onion finely diced
4 cloves garlic finely chopped
1 pinch kosher salt
1 pound lean ground beef I like to use 90/10
5 tablespoons taco seasoning see notes
1 recipe fat free refried beans or use store bought (I like La Preferida)
16 ounces thick/sturdy tortilla chips or more as needed
chopped fresh cilantro for serving

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS FOR SERVING:

guacamole
sour cream
salsa
jalapeños raw or pickled
hot sauce

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 325°F (or 160°C).
Prep your desired nacho veggies and shred 3 cups of cheddar jack cheese. We like a trio of bell peppers (for color of course), red onion, black olives, green onion and seeded and diced roma tomatoes. Set this off to the side.

MAKE THE BEEF AND BEAN MIXTURE:

Add oil, onion and garlic to a 10-inch skillet. Heat on medium to medium-low, stir and cook 5 to 8 minutes or until softened. Then add in the ground beef. Use a spatula to break up the meat into small crumbles and cook until no longer pink. About 10 minutes.
Next, add in taco seasoning. Stir until combined. Since we are making a saucy meat mixture, so you’ll want to make sure your taco seasoning has a thickener in it (like cornstarch or tapioca powder). See my notes above (under ingredient photo) on how to do that. Pour in 1/2 cup of water and stir until thickened slightly.
Next add in the fat free refried beans (in a pinch? you can use a can of fat-free refried beans – I like the La Preferida brand). Stir until combined, adding a little more water if needed to thin out. Remove the pan off of the heat.

BUILD THE NACHOS:

Arrange a single layer of thick sturdy chips on the bottom of a rimmed metal baking sheet. See blog post for the best size pan to use.
Top with a little of the beef and bean mixture and a sprinkle of cheese. Add a second even layer of chips, top with more beef and bean mixture, cheese, peppers, onions and olives.
Bake on the middle rack for 10 to 15 minutes or until both layers of cheese have melted.
Once baked, remove and top with tomatoes, green onions and finely chopped cilantro.
Serve with desired toppings like sour cream, guacamole, salsa, jalapeños, hot sauce etc.

Notes

Nutrition Disclaimer: All information presented on this site is intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information shared on SimplyScratch.com should only be used as a general guideline.

*The nutritional information is for the nachos only and does not include things like sour cream, guacamole etc. Also, nutritional value may differ depending on brand/type and how many chips you are using.

A Note About Taco Seasoning:

If using my homemade taco seasoning you’ll want to double the recipe but DO NOT double the salt, otherwise this dish will be way too salty. You can make the beef mixture saucy by adding a little cornstarch 1 to 2 teaspoons to your homemade taco seasoning. Then, once your meat mixture is cooked though and seasoned, pour in 1/2 cup of water and stir until thickened – increasing the heat if needed.

If using store-bought, I highly recommend Siete brand as you would only need 1 packet (if you’re using another brand, you may need 2). There’s no need to add cornstarch if using store-bought seasoning, simply follow the package directions.

Nutrition