From the Archives -- Could Ice Cream with Nacho Cheese Taste Good?

Recently a situation arose where I was put in a position to try nacho cheese with vanilla and chocolate ice cream.  Some of the friends I was with appeared disgusted at the thought of the mix and others were intrigued to watch me tempt my taste buds with two seemingly opposite flavors.

I used an inexpensive nacho cheese from a local Safeway grocery store.  Rather than pour hot nacho cheese all over my ice cream, instead I took a clean spoon and dipped it in the nacho cheese bowl.  Then I filled the rest of the spoon with a mix of chocolate and vanilla ice cream.

I ate it.

It did not taste good.  It could have been the worst thing I've tasted in a while.  This mix of nacho cheese with ice cream just does not work.  In fact, I drew a blank when I began thinking about other flavors of ice cream that might taste better with nacho cheese than the vanilla and chocolate did.

Frenchos? I'll take the Zero

If there's any nacho out there that could be classified as doltish, this is it. Just as it was declared earlier that fondue is not nacho cheese, this little recipe is in no way, shape, or form nachos. Lest anyone think that by melting a dab o' fromage on a tortilla chip automatically constitutes a nacho, they are sadly mistaken. Nachos should never have to be "plated" or "presented." Nachos are to be prepared by grabbing a handful of chips, thowing them into a bowl, and smothering it with molten hot nacho cheese. 

This recipe is a disgrace and an insult to all nacho lovers. Now excuse me while I slice a cube of Reblochon and pair it elegantly with a bold glass of 2003 Cotes du Rhone Villages Cairanne.

Taste Test: Cheese vs. Cheese

About a week ago I took it upon myself to conduct a head-to-head comparison of two popular grocery store nacho cheese varieties - Tostitos Con Queso & Fritos Chili Cheese. Both were microwaved in their containers for three minutes, mixing well at one minute intervals. Both were delicious and while each definitely had a unique offerings, the Tostitos brand Con Queso rose up as the winner in my opinion. In the end, I felt that the Tostitos Con Queso had a better consistancy and wasn't as runny as the Fritos Chili Cheese.

Nachos Please... Hold the Cheese

Review written by: Eric L. Email us a story.

Eric is proving to be a true ILoveNachoCheese.com Superfan. First he sends us "It's Nacho Love (That I Need)" - an original song he wrote just for the site - now he's written a review of some nachos he ate during a recent business trip! It's honest, humorous, informative, and well written. He even took a picture.

Nice work, Eric. Nice work, indeed.

Click here to read the entire review.

Radio Alice II: The Wrath of Cheese

After a quick phone interview with Sarah & No Name last Thursday, the three of us were invited into the studio the following morning to do an on-air "private nacho tasting" of our Official Recipe with the morning crew.

That morning we met up and carpooled into the Alice @ 97.3 Station located in beautiful San Francisco. Already excited, on the way up we got even more amped when we heard them discussing our upcoming appearance. At that point, all we could think about was how terrible it would be if they ended up hating the recipe. When we arrived, we were greeted by Hooman and led into the Green Room to set up shop and begin cooking up our heavenly orange-colored gravy.

Below we've included two audio clips. The first is a little pre-appearance banter; the second, our on-air interview. Wondering how it all turned out? Well...you'll have to listen. But to give you a clue, they've invited us back for their Cuatro de Mayo broadcast! Oh yeah...one last thing. Christy, the gal that called in with your...ummm..."joke?" Could you email us and explain? We're all still trying to figure that one out!

Great Game, Better Nachos

I just got home from the last game of the regular season for the San Jose Sharks. And what a game it was! Trailing 2 to 3 against the visiting Canucks, Jonathan Cheechoo scored with only 30 seconds left in the third to force overtime. But before we get to the final outcome, lets reverse time to before the start of the game.

When I arrived, I made my way to the Una Mas! Mexican Grill located in the HP Pavilion. I ordered nachos, a large soda, and then headed to my seats in section 212 before digging into the box of chip and cheese goodness.

To read the entire review, click here.

Wild Nacho Tamed

Shopping at my local supermarket, I came across a Doritos flavor I'd never seen before -- Wild White Nacho. Already having an opinion on pre-packaged "nacho cheese flavored" chips, the correct choice would've been to walk away. Instead, I was compelled to try this wild new flavor and report my findings to the NCLC (Nacho Cheese Loving Community).

For starters, I think I liked these chips better when they were called "ranch." And as for being "wild," they were anything but. I was expecting a chip that would tickle my tastebuds with some zest, or have a little spicy kick and bite back. But alas, I was left with a relatively boring chip that didn't have any sort of lasting impression.

To read more about this chip, click here.

Dog Bites Shark

Last night I watched the exciting NHL match-up between the home-ice San Jose Sharks against their Pacific Division rivals, The Ducks. And while the final score was a bit disappointing (2-3), there was one thing that made my trip to The Tank all worthwhile -- The San Jose Sharks Hotdog.

The SJ Dog is a site to behold and a taste to savor. This is the 8th game I've gone to so far this season, and I think I've eaten a SJ Dog at six of those eight games. It's become a game night staple. And by taking a look at the picture I'm sure you can see why. This foot long dog is first covered in all-beef chili, sprinkled with finely chopped white onion, drenched in nacho cheese, and topped with a bit of sour cream for good measure. This hot dog is pure heaven.

The vote is in, and my score is as follows:

Taste: 9/10
Presentation: 4/5
Total: 13/15

Tasty Subs Nachos

For the most part, I eat lunch at the company cafeteria. The food is good, it's subsidized, and they serve nachos at least once a week. But occasionally my co-worker buddies and I will head off campus to the local sports bar Tasty Subs. They've got delicious subs, a good selection of beer on tap (I'll usually get a Fat Tire) and their nachos are damn tasty as well.

Tasty Subs goes for the minimalist approach when building their nacho, which I appreciate. They start off with a good restaurant quality tortilla chip and pour on a generous portion or your traditional nacho cheese sauce. Then they layer on a handful of freshly cut jalapeno peppers and top it off with a ice-cream sized scoop of guacamole.

The vote is in, and my score is as follows:

Taste: 8/10
Presentation: 2/5
Total: 10/15

Make Peace and Eat Nachos

MySpace is a cesspool for miscreant, pedophile, and musician profiles. But dig deep enough and you'll find some profiles that are absolute gems. One such gem is "All About Nachos." This profile is home to two girls (Saucee and Peppah) whose mission statement is simple:

"We are here to try out nachos in a variety of locations in Austin and surrounding cities here in Texas. We are looking for taste, sex appeal, aesthetics, and price. The chip is as important as the toppings. Must have excellent salsa and margaritas."

Their reviews are informative and humerous. In fact, my only complaint is that they don't include pictures of the nachos they review. If you're a nacho lover that lives in the Austin area, "All About Nachos" is one MySpace profile worth checking out.

Nacho Cheese Sunflower Seeds

I'm certain nearly all of us have spent time cracking open traditional salt-coated sunflower seeds. But have you tried nacho cheese sunflower seeds?

DAVID, the most well-known maker of sunflower seeds has a wide assortment of other flavors, including nacho cheese.  While I am not a fan of the Ranch and Bar-B-Q flavors, I applaud DAVID for taking the leap and serving a nacho cheese flavor as well.   

The verdict?  I tried DAVID nacho cheese sunflower seeds and I like them.  One caveat...I have eaten a whole bag of them and I could see how the flavor could be over-powering if not complemented by a nice cold beverage.

A Chip in Nachos Clothing

Take a nice long look at the image to the left. It's a picture of Chili's Restaurant starter called "Classic Nachos." Now riddle me this? Does it look appetizing? See how the cheese is dripping off the chip while the single jalapeno clings on for dear life? If you said, "yes" I would have to agree with you. In fact, I can tell you first hand that these are delicious. Unfortunately, delicious or not, I question the validity of these nachos. Yes, they have all the correct ingredients of a solid nacho, but presentation is key. And last I checked, Iron Chef believes presentation is worth 5 out of a total 20 points.

Jar of Cheese vs. Can of Cheese

JAR

Campbell's Nacho Cheese Dip / Soup

OK, after watching this advertisement from Campbell's Soup, it's arguably a bit lame and I think it was made in the 1980's.  But, the ad clearly depicts many different ways that nacho cheese can be used to enhance the flavor or experience of meals.  It made my mouth water (except for the meat loaf).

While I've never tried this hybrid nacho cheese / soup, I'm certainly intrigued.  I'll report back on my taste test when I can see if it's still available somewhere.  If anyone out there has tried Campbell's Nacho Cheese Dip / Soup, please leave a comment with your opinion. 

Nacho Cheese on Gourmet Sausages

It's not a new thing to try nacho cheese on hot dogs.  Cheese on hot dogs has been used for many years, though it usually takes a more solid, grated form.

Recently I tried a very basic nacho cheese (Frito's version) with a gourmet sausage cooked on a bbq from a local meat store that specializes in sausages.  The sausage I chose was a spicy linguisa topped with nacho cheese in between a bun that resembled a sliced portion of french bread.

The result was an amazing mix of cheese and sausage, delicious down to the last bite!  Using nacho cheese on sausages is highly recommended.  I'm looking forward to trying this again and adding even more things like diced tomatoes and onions.