Nacho Cheese

[Chris Hennes]

I eat a lot of nachos. They are quick, easy, and go great with beer and football. But I sometimes struggle with what kind of cheese to use. I'm not looking for a fine aged gouda or anything, just a tasty supermarket cheese, readily available. I've recently been using half Cabot extra sharp cheddar and half Dietz & Watson Hot Pepper cheese. It's good. But I'm looking for suggestions to branch out... what kind of cheese do you use on your nachos, or other salty melted cheese products?

[JAZ]

As I mentioned here, the Sargento Artisan Mexican blend is quite good, especially for a pre-shredded product. It's kind of pricy, but if you can find it on sale, it's worth a try. (Just make sure you get the Artisan and not the regular blend.)

Otherwise, I tend to use a hot pepper Monterey jack cheese.

[Lisa Shock]

Commercial nacho cheese contains about 1/3 cream cheese, adding a little to homemade nacho cheese can thicken it a bit and add a smooth texture.

[Jaymes]

I guess the first question I'd ask is what kind of nachos are you making?

Are you going for the traditional, hot, sublime, perfection itself, single-chip nachos, as they were originally invented by Ignacio Anaya several decades back, and depicted in this photo: Homesick Texan nachos

Or are you going for the "pile of goo," cold-chips-right-from-the-bag-with-everything-but-the-kitchen-sink-dumped-over variety?

_______________

Edited January 11, 2010 by Jaymes (log)

[Chris Hennes]

Cold nachos?! What kind of loser do you take me for?!! My nachos typically feature relatively minimalist toppings, including going pretty easy on the cheese. And they are hot (both spiciness and temperature). Remember that Oklahoma is really just a big suburb of Texas, after all...

[Jaymes]

Well then, in that case, if I use anything but a mild-to-medium sharp cheddar - a colby or something - but good quality so that it melts well, traditionally sold in the longhorn cut, sometimes called 'rat cheese' in the old days, my family gets pretty upset.

And a thin smear of refried beans. Topped with the slices of jalapenos en escabeche, of course. And a dish of salsa or pico alongside.

Nothing else.

Some things, in our family anyway, don't call for experimentation.

Personally, I've long thought that perhaps one of the saltier Mexican cheeses might be good for an occasional change of pace.

However, that would have to be for somebody else's family, I fear.

_____________________

Edited January 11, 2010 by Jaymes (log)