5 non-standard nachos to make at home

Have the basic plate of nachos at the pub. Make something non-traditional at home.

Photo by Ingrid Kuenzel, courtesy of Culinaire Magazine.
Photo by Ingrid Kuenzel, courtesy of Culinaire Magazine.

When in doubt at a pub, order the nachos. When you're at home, however, you can do so much more than just open a can of olives and pickled sliced jalapenos. 

Here are five variations on the typical nachos.

Korean-inspired

Marinate bite-sized piece of chicken in a mixture of garlic, ginger, hot pepper paste (gochujang), hot pepper flakes (gochugaru), soy sauce, and cooking wine. Stir fry until chicken is cooked through. Sprinkle that over tortilla chips along with chopped kimchi and mozzarella cheese, broil to melt the cheese, and top with sliced green onions.

Barbecue pulled pork

Rub pork shoulder with your favourite spice rub and slow cook for two hours, or until the meat is tender. Shred pork in a bowl and toss with just enough barbecue sauce to coat the meat evenly. Add to tortilla chips with tomatoes and fried onions, and sprinkle with Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese.

Seafood

If you like shrimp tacos, this one is for you. Season shrimp with garlic powder and paprika or some chili powder and saute in a pan or cook on the grill. Add cooked shrimp, diced avocado, diced onions, chopped tomatillos, and chopped cilantro on top of chips. Sprinkle some mozzarella on top and put it under the broiler to melt the cheese a little.

Thai-inspired

Ideally, you would marinate flank steak overnight in a mixture soy sauce, ginger, garlic, lime juice, sugar and cilantro before grilling it; but if you have any cut of grilling steak, you can grill it to medium rare, slice it thinly and dress the slices with the same mixture. Add the dressed steak to tortilla chips (being careful not to add to much liquid to the chips) and top with diced tomatoes, chopped Thai basil, cilantro, crushed peanuts and some shaved Parmesan.

Vegetarian

You can have a plate of meatless nachos that’s not just made of olives, tomatoes, onions and hot peppers. Peel butternut squash or acorn squash and cut into small cubes. Roast in a 400 F oven for about 15 mins. Remove pan from oven and place over high heat on stove, add a touch of oil, minced garlic and sliced mushrooms and saute for three to four minutes. Add to tortilla chips and along with some toasted walnuts or pine nuts, and sprinkle goat cheese over top.