Campfire Nachos – How to Grill Nachos!

This Campfire Nachos Recipe makes for the crunchiest, cheesiest, and most delicious nachos around a campfire that you’ll ever have!

We just love camping, but our favorite part of camping is all of the delicious camping recipes that you can make over your campfire. I don’t know why, but camping food just tastes better! 

Campfire Nachos Recipe

I don’t know about you and your family, but as for me and mine… we love a good campfire! It’s definitely one of our favorite things about the summer. You know what else we love? … Mexican food. When I heard about these nachos, I knew we had to give them a try.

I am always on the hunt for new camping recipe ideas. It’s so fun to switch things up and make dinner over the fire sometimes, plus it gets the whole family outdoors!

When my neighbor passed along this campfire nachos recipe, I was sold. I mean those have to be two of my favorite words: campfire and nachos. I’m so in!

I am happy to report that they are just as delicious as they sound, and a major bonus is that this recipe could not be easier to throw together. I usually always have a couple of bags of tortilla chips and shredded cheese on hand – which are the two main ingredients.

Even better is the cleanup – or lack thereof! One pan (and you can totally use a disposable aluminum pan that you can just throw out when you are done….better yet, recycle!!)

Don’t have a campfire or don’t know how to make one? Not a problem, these can also be grilled nachos! Yes, that is totally a thing!! All you need is your grill and a cast iron pan or foil pan!

If you are looking for more great Camping Recipes, you may want to try our Campfire Potatoes! No clean up required! 

Ingredients

Below is everything you will need to make your campfire nachos. You will also want to make sure that you have a cast iron skillet to make this recipe (or as I mentioned, a heavy duty disposable aluminum pan will work as well). And if you’re not a pro campfire builder, you’ll want to find one of those as well!

• 1 8oz bag of tortilla chips
• ½ cup of sliced black olives
• ¼ cup of sliced green onions
• 2 cups of shredded taco cheese (whatever is your favorite blend, we love a Mexican blend or monterey jack cheese is always great!)
• 2 jalepeños (sliced with the seeds removed)
• Cilantro (to use as an optional garnish)
• Salsa, sour cream, guacamole (for serving)
  *Serves 4*

One of my favorite things about nachos, in general, is how versatile they can be. You can keep them super simple, or you can deck them out with garnishes and ingredients! It’s totally up to you.

These campfire nachos are no different. You can definitely doctor them up, or you can follow the ingredients and instructions we have provided here! If you do decide you’d like to add a little something extra, we’ve given you some fun ideas below.

More Topping Ideas for Grilled Nachos

Ahhh the endless variations and toppings that can be added to nachos! Seriously, the sky is the limit when it comes to things you can add.

One of my go-to additions is meat! This nachos recipe usually makes about 4 servings, and without the addition of meat, it’s not quite filling enough to count as a meal. But, by adding ground beef, or spicy sausage, it takes the nachos from being a snack or appetizer to being a full meal. Another great meat option is adding pulled pork.

Another idea for additional topping, especially if you’re looking to keep it meatless or if you have a vegetarian in the crowd, is black beans, refried beans or pinto beans!

Beans are always a great addition to nachos, and they are another option that makes these nachos more of a meal because they fill you way more than the nachos would without them. We also love the plant-based meatless crumbles. They are super tasty and add some protein to the dish.

Beyond these two ideas, you could also try adding red pepper or green pepper, green chilis, or red onion.

As for side options, you could easily include pico de gallo, lettuce, corn salsa, and fresh tomatoes as options for garnishes! Of course, don’t forget the guacamole! 

If you love cooking on the campfire, be sure to check out our Campfire Cones! They will make you question why you ever make traditional s’mores!

How to Make Campfire Nachos

1. To start out, you will want to layer ⅓ of the tortilla chips on the bottom of a 10.5” cast iron skillet.
2. Next, add about ⅓ of the cheese, ½ of the black olives, and ½ of the green onions to the top of the chip layer.
3. Make another layer with about ⅓ of the tortilla chips and about ⅓ of the cheese.
4. Then, make a final layer with all of the remaining chips, cheese, olives, and green onions. Add the jalepeños to the very top of it all.
5. Cover the entire skillet, loosely, with aluminum foil.
6. Place the skillet on the campfire and cook it until all the cheese has melted. It typically takes about 10 – 15 minutes. An alternative to cooking these nachos over the fire is to cook them on the grill! They turn out great that way as well. Just put them on the grill on medium heat and heat them the same way as above!
7. Finally, add the cilantro to the top, and serve with salsa, sour cream, and guacamole.

Tips

Whenever you are making any type of meal over a campfire, the biggest trick is to heat it up just right. It can be a bit of a struggle trying not to burn whatever it is you’re making.

The nice part about campfire nachos is that you’re not technically cooking anything. Even if you’re adding taco meat to the recipe you will cook it beforehand, so really you’re just heating the ingredients up.

The most important part is to make sure the cheese on top, and throughout, is melted… what are nachos without melty, gooey cheese!?

If you’re not confident in your campfire cooking skills, no worries! This recipe is still 100% doable. You can even still enjoy the great outdoors while cooking by baking the nachos on the grill instead! The heat on a grill is a bit easier to manage than the fire.

If you are heading out soon for your camping trip, don’t miss our AMAZING Grilling Hacks and Camping Hacks! There are some truly mind-blowing ideas that have changed how we pack for our trips! 

More Great Camping Recipes

• Campfire Pizza
• S’mores Dip
• Campfire Cones
• Creative S’more Ideas
• 7 Layer Dip
• Skillet Banana Bread
• Garlic Foil Potatoes
• How to grill corn 
• Easy Make Ahead Meals
• Great grilling recipes
• Campfire Apple Crisp In Foil Packets
• Grilled Chicken Kabobs

If you’re looking for new camping food or campfire recipe ideas, then you have to give these campfire nachos a try! They will become your new favorite camping trip meals, I’m sure of it.

They are easy, delicious, and really fun to make. It’s a great summer, camping, and outdoor meal that everyone will love!