Nachos Libres! Free at Last from Fake Cheese Sauce

In the thick of MLB playoffs, football weekends, and World Cup qualifiers (right...who is watching those) excuses abound to consume gastric-distress inducing foods. Nachos are the ultimate treat, designed to be shared among spectators and fellow travelers. (Or with racoons.) Most ballpark nachos feature soggy piles of those strange overly salted round chips and rubbery globs of fake cheese sauce. Check out the Franken-gredients in one version of velveeta-based stadium goo: MILK, WATER, MILKFAT, WHEY, WHEY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, MILK PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, ALGINATE, SODIUM CITRATE, APOCAROTENAL (COLOR), ANNATTO (COLOR), ENZYMES, CHEESE CULTURE MILK PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, ALGINATE, SODIUM CITRATE, APOCAROTENAL (COLOR), ANNATTO (COLOR), ENZYMES, CHEESE CULTURE, MILK, WATER, MILKFAT, WHEY, WHEY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, SODIUM PHOSPHATE ANNATTO (COLOR), ENZYMES, CHEESE CULTURE, MILK, WATER, MILKFAT, WHEY, WHEY.

The travesty here is that nachos are easy to make, highly customizable, and not so junky or processed when prepared at home with real cheese and vegetables. Sure, tortilla chips are not exactly a health food. But in your own kitchen, you determine the chip to sauce ratio and whether to use blue corn chips, which which are purported to have a lower glycemic index than chips derived from yellow or white corn. 

Here's how to do it right. Recipe feeds 4-6 people and is easily doubled for a larger crowd. Go giants!
Ingredients

• 2 Tbs. canola oil
• 1 red onion, chopped 
• 2 jalapeños (use one for less heat), finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper 
• 2 Tbs. + 2 tsp. all-purpose flour
• 1 cup half and half (milk also works)
• 1 12-ounce bottle of beer (a lager is best here) 
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese (an 8-ounce bag)
• 2 cups grated monterey jack cheese (an 8-ounce bag)
• 2 small tomatoes, chopped
• sliced black olives
• coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
• tortilla chips 

*Ideas for additional toppings: 1/2 can black beans; a sliced avocado; pico de gallo; halved cherry tomatoes; cilantro; sliced radishes

Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onion, jalapeños, cumin, chili powder, and cayenne. Cook until onion is soft, about 10 minutes. 

Sprinkle flour over onion mixture and stir to incorporate. Gradually pour beer into skillet, using a whisk to combine. Simmer over medium-high heat until beer has cooked down by about a third.     

   
Add half and half (or milk) to skillet and whisk about 5 minutes, until sauce is thickened. 

Reduce heat to low and add cheeses. Stir until completely melted. 

Remove skillet from heat and fold in chopped tomatoes and olives. Season with salt and pepper. Gently pour cheese sauce over tortilla chips.