When you think of Mexican cuisine, naturally, the first thing that will come to mind is nachos. It’s crispy, salty and has just the right flavour for a great snack! Nachos have gone a long way from being a staple Mexican entertainment dish. Now, it is widely becoming accepted as an appetiser and side dish in almost every restaurant, including fast food joints and American diners.
Everyone has their own specific ways of enjoying Nachos but no matter how you do it, we all agree that it’s a snack you can never get bored of.
The History of Nachos
Nachos were invented in Mexico in a city called Piedras Negras – a town bordering Eagle Pass, Texas. In 1943, the wives of soldiers that were stationed in Eagle Pass decided to go shopping in Piedras Negras. They decided to have food at the Victory Club. Unfortunately for them, the restaurant had just shut down for the day. However, the hotel Maitre called Ignacio Anaya decided to create a dish for the wives using what they had left for the day – tortillas and cheese.
Ignacio decided to cut the tortillas into small triangles, deep fry them, add shredded cheese, toast them and added jalapenos as a finishing touch before serving it to their surprised customers. Ignacio’s nickname was Nacho, and when he was asked what the dish was called, he named it after himself, Nacho’s Especiales or Nacho’s Special.
From there onwards, Ignacio’s creative invention made waves, and as word travelled, people shortened it to Nachos. Ignacio ended up opening up his own restaurant. Eventually, his recipe was published in 1954 in a book called St. Anne’s Cookbook.
Nachos’s popularity spread throughout Mexico and Texas and eventually it was introduced to Los Angeles and not long after – the world.
Different Dishes with Nachos
There are several different ways you can enjoy Nachos besides simply snacking it on its own. Mexican food lovers would know that Nachos goes really well with guacamole dip and salsa dip.
The recipe has gone through many variations as chefs have added minced beef or chicken, salsa sauce, guacamole, sour cream and melted cheese to nachos. In some countries like Australia, the minced beef is also replaced with minced Kangaroo meat. Those who are vegetarian can opt to substitute the minced meat with beans instead.
If you’re not interested in a sharing platter, you can also have Nachos with a burrito bowl. Often times, Nachos is used as a substitute for fries in a typical Mexican dish. Certain restaurants even take the love of nachos to the extreme by adding nachos to burgers for an extra crunch.
Where to get Nachos in KL
There are plenty of places to get a good bowl of nachos around the KL area. Nachoslah in KL has a wide variety of nachos dishes to choose from including Beef Blackpepper Nachos and the classic Cheese and Salsa Nachos. They also offer Beef Rendang Nachos and KPop Chicken Gochujang Nachos for fusion food lovers.
If you want something a little different, head to Sombrero Foods in Bukit Jelutong and try their Fiesta Trio Nachos. The dish contains imported nachos with 3 different dips including homemade guacamole, their spicy chipotle salsa and their Mexican cheese sauce for cheese lovers.
Not in KL? No worries. Get your Nachos fix at Gaveria Nachos in Temerloh. Their Nachos Daging is only Rm14.50. The best part is all of the restaurants mentioned are available on foodpanda so you can have your Nachos fix while watching your favourite movie at home.
