Saturday 29 March 2014

Recipe: Cheesy Potato Nachos

When it comes to food, the boyfriend will eat just about anything as long as there is lots of it. Restaurants that serve tapas or "small plates" don't really work for him, but he certainly gets his money's worth (and mine!) when we go for all you can eat. Which is why we are frequent Costco shoppers, and we buy our potatoes in 20 lb bags.

As you can imagine, I am often left scrambling to find potato recipes to use up the remainder of the 20 lb bag before the potatoes begin to sprout. 


This recipe has become an instant favourite in our house, and I'm sure you can imagine why. Anything covered in melted cheese and bacon is hard not to love, especially when that anything happens to be french fries. The sour cream ranch sauce is also key - don't skip it! The recipe comes from oh so Delicioso and has been adapted to suit our family's tastes. 

Of course, we like to load ours up with hot sauce and cilantro. Some people aren't big on spicy, and others are adamantly opposed to cilantro. This recipe is really more of a guideline; it can be modified to whatever you have in your fridge and whatever your family likes. One night I chopped up tomatoes to sprinkle over the top, another night I added salsa. This recipe falls somewhere in the realm between nachos and poutine. It's actually lot like irish potato nachos. If you've never had irish potato nachos, our favourites are from Limericks in Calgary. But I digress; on to the recipe!


We've made a few different variations of this winning dish

Cheesy Potato Nachos

(adapted from oh so Delicioso)

Ingredients:



  • 6 large russet potatoes
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • Salt and peper
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 1/2 cup shredded cheese blend
  • 1/2 cup real bacon bits
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1/3 cup ranch 
  • 2 tbsp milk
These are what I would call the "mandatory" ingredients. Anything else is totally optional and should depend on your family's particular tastes (and whatever is in your fridge!). See my list at the end of the directions for other topping ideas.

Directions:


Preheat your oven to 400 F. 


Slice the potatoes into wedges. The thickness will dictate how long you have to cook the potatoes. I like them on the thinner side so that they get nice and crispy. I always leave the skin on my potatoes (extra fibre!) so make sure you give them a really good scrub. Or you can always peel them - again, this is up to you.

Crispy Potato Wedges

Toss the potato wedges in a bowl with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, until evenly coated. It's important to make sure your potatoes are well-seasoned, otherwise you will have delicious toppings on bland chunks of potato.

Spread the potato wedges out on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake for 30-40 mins, depending on thickness. After about 20 mins, take the potatoes out and flip them over so that they get nice and brown on both sides.


Meanwhile, mix your sour cream, ranch, and milk together. Depending on the fat content of your sour cream, you may need more or less milk. You want to have a smooth mixture that you can drizzle over your potatoes.


Spread about 2/3 of your sour cream on an oven safe dish (I just use another cookie sheet, we're not fancy). Once your potatoes are out of the oven, place them on top of the sour cream mixture and turn on your broiler. Sprinkle the cheese over top of the potato wedges. You can use any cheese blend, just make sure it's one that will get nice and melty. 



That's the melty goodness you're looking for!

Place the potatoes under the broiler for about 60 - 90 seconds to melt the cheese. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with your choice of toppings and drizzle with remaining sour cream ranch sauce. And don't forget the *real* bacon bits!


Other topping ideas:

  • Diced tomatoes
  • Fresh herbs: parsley, cilantro, chives
  • Green or red onions
  • Salsa
  • Hot sauce
  • Pickled jalapeƱos
  • Olives
  • Diced chicken
  • Guacamole
  • Fresh peppers

The possibilities are really endless! I think anything that could go on top of nachos could be added here and would be delicious.

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