Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 10x15-inch sheet tray with cooking spray and set aside.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown and crumble 1 pound ground beef until there is no longer any pink, 8-10 minutes.
Add the 1 ounce packet taco seasoning and stir it in.
Add 10 ounce can Rotel and stir it in until combined; take off the heat.
In a medium-sized saucepot, add 1/4 cup salted butter over medium heat.
Once the butter has melted, whisk in 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin and 1/4 teaspoon paprika. Cook for 1 minute.
Slowly stream in 2 cups milk while whisking constantly. Bring to a simmer, occasionally stirring until slightly thickened.
Take off the heat and add 8 ounces shredded Mexican blend cheese. Whisk until combined.
Place half of the 11 ounce bag tortilla chips on to the prepared sheet tray.
Drizzle half of the cheese sauce over the chips.
Add half of the meat mixture over the cheese sauce.
Top with half of the shredded cheese. Repeat one more time until you have used up all the ingredients.
Place the sheet tray into the oven for 5-10 minutes until the cheese has melted and it is warmed through.
Add your favorite toppings such as diced tomatoes, sour cream, sliced black olives and fresh chopped cilantro and serve immediately.
Notes
The trick to the best sheet pan nachos is the layering, you have to do at least a double layer so the toppings are evenly spread through all the chips and you don’t have a ton of leftover plain chips on the bottom.
Perfect for a make-yourself nacho bar, you can serve up a portion of nachos and have all the toppings laid out so your family or guests can add whatever toppings they like.
You can totally add beans to this, I would suggest adding a can of drained and rinsed black beans or pinto beans to the meat mixture. Or, you can warm up a can of refried beans and add dollops of that while layering the nachos.
Any store-bought tortilla chips will do, white or yellow corn. Just make sure not to use the “scoop” version as those would be difficult to eat.
As you can imagine, this is one hearty tray of nachos. You can eat them with a fork!
Keep leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, I will line a sheet tray with foil and spray it with cooking spray. Lay out the nachos on top and add another sheet of foil on top, again spray it with cooking spray on the underside so nothing sticks. I reheat them like this so they don’t dry out.
You can microwave them but they will become soggy. Also, I suggest storing it without additional toppings.
I do not suggest freezing, the cheese sauce may separate.
You can trade the ground beef, ground chicken or even chorizo if desired.