Carnitas nachos! Imagine Mexican slow-cooked pork over tortilla chips and topped with jalapeños, avocados, tomatoes, cheese and sour cream. Doesn’t that make your mouth water? Not long ago I saw that on the appetizer menu in a barbecue restaurant. I didn’t order them, but didn’t forget about them either. 

One week into our 6-week motorhome trip, the fully stocked refrigerator in our 2019 Winnebago Vista LX broke. We bought two coolers to store all of our food. My goal was to use all of the defrosted frozen food as soon as possible, then deplete our supply of remaining perishable food. 

After a couple of weeks, the only remaining meat item was a shrink-wrapped package of Del Real carnitas from Costco. (Del Real foods are also available at Walmart, Safeway and other grocery stores.) I had some corn chips, cheese, sour cream that needed to be used. Carnitas nachos for dinner? Why not! This dish, sparked by two words on a menu and coaxed into being due to some unfortunate circumstances, is now my favorite nacho dish. Every cloud has a silver lining.

We used mostly what we had on hand, but we did make a grocery store run for a jalapeño, avocado and tomatoes. (How could I forget limes and cilantro?) You can make this dish your own by adding your personal favorites. Pico de gallo? Lime juice? Cilantro? Black beans? Olives? Corn? Go for it!

Make a true Mexican feast with margaritas.

Active time: 20 minutes Total time: 20 minutes

One-butt kitchen needs: 

• Nothing special for this one

Serves 2 to 4

Ingredients

• Tortilla corn chips
• 20-ounce pack of Del Real Carnitas (We had enough leftover for lunch the next day.)
• 1 cup shredded cheddar jack cheese (more or less to taste)
• 1 jalapeño, sliced or diced
• 1 avocado, diced (or made into guacamole) 
• 1 or 2 tomatoes, diced
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• Optional ingredients as desired: pico de gallo, lime juice, cilantro, black beans, olives, or corn.

Directions

Prepare carnitas according to directions on package. I like them cooked in a skillet on the stovetop to get a crispy texture, but they can also be done in a microwave. 

Place tortilla chips on a plate. Cover with carnitas and cheese, adding a second layer of carnitas and cheese if desired. Top with jalapeño slices. Add any other ingredients that should be warmed up, like black beans or corn. Heat in microwave in 30 to 60 second increments until cheese melts. 

Top with tomatoes, avocado, and sour cream.