Fully loaded vegan bean nachos with plenty of creamy queso on top are ready in about 15 minutes. No waiting while they bake in the oven!
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Who wants NACHOS? These vegan black bean nachos are super easy to make and incredibly delicious. They're perfect for a lazy dinner or a late night snack.
Y'all, these vegan nachos are basically an excuse for me to make my 6-minute vegan queso yet again. This easy vegan cheese sauce only uses two ingredients and cooks in the microwave! You can cook it on the stovetop, if you prefer, but it will take longer to melt.
Using this queso means you don't have to bake the nachos for 30 minutes in the oven. Instead, you make the creamy queso in six little minutes and slather it all over your chips and toppings for 15-minute vegan nachos.
If packaged vegan cheese isn't your thing, no worries! Replace this queso with my cashew queso or nutritional yeast cheese sauce instead.
This recipe is also an excuse to whip up another batch of my pickled jalapeño guacamole. If you haven't had this pickle-y guac yet, you are in for such a treat!
Vegan bean nachos hit all of the high notes: crunchy, creamy, umami-packed, and full of amazing FLAVOR! You can use the toppings listed or mix and match to build the vegan nachos of your DREAMS!
✓ Ingredients and substitutions
- tortilla chips - This is the base for your nachos. You can also use crispy potato slices as the base for vegan potato nachos!
- tomato, black olive, black beans, and corn - For topping. Feel free to omit things you don't want to use and add anything that you do! Instead of black beans, you can also use pinto beans, vegan refried beans, or my smoky Instant Pot pinto beans.
- vegan cheese - I like to make these with Chao Creamy Original Slices (not a sponsor), but your favorite vegan cheese will work, as well. Just use shreds or cut a block into cubes before melting.
- diced tomatoes and green chiles - Adds moisture and flavor to the queso topping.
- toppings - I'm topping this with green onion and my pickled jalapeño guacamole. You can do the same or use your favorite toppings like fresh or pickled jalapeños, vegan sour cream, etc.
🔪 How to make vegan bean nachos
Either divide the chips between 4 plates or spread them onto one large serving platter. Scatter the olives, beans, tomato, and corn evenly over the top of the chips.
Put the cheese and diced tomatoes with chiles into a small microwave-safe bowl.
Microwave on high for 3 minutes (see 💡tips below for stovetop directions), and stir. Keep microwaving in 30-second to 1-minute increments, stirring well each time until you have a smooth, creamy mixture.
Pour the queso over the top of your nachos, trying to coat them as evenly as you can.
Sprinkle on the green onion, and serve with a dollop of guacamole on top. Feel free to use other toppings of choice, too!
💡 Helpful tips
- If you don't want to buy vegan cheese, you can use my cashew queso in place of the 6-minute queso. It works beautifully!
- Your queso be fully melted before it looks fully melted. Before deciding to pop the dip back in, try breaking up the chunks of cheese with your spoon or fork as you stir. They might just need a little bit of help to combine into the queso.
- If you don't do microwaves, you can make this queso in a pan on the stovetop. Just add the vegan cheese and the canned tomato to a small saucepan and heat on low, stirring constantly, until the cheese melts completely. No need to yell at me about microwaves. 😉
🫙 Storage directions
If you end up with leftovers, after you examine your life choices, you can store these for up to 3 days. Just transfer them to an airtight container, and stick them in the refrigerator.
To reheat, transfer the vegan nachos onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil, and bake at 350° F for 5 to 10 minutes, just until the cheese melts again.
You can also store the queso, chips, and toppings separately for up to 3 days. In that case, assemble your nachos, and heat the queso in the microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring in between, until it melts, then drizzle it all over the chips.
💬 Frequently asked questions
I love black beans on my nachos, but you can also use pinto beans or dollops of refried beans instead.
Conventional refried beans are cooked with lard, but it's easy to find canned vegan refried beans! Look for cans marked "fat free" or "vegetarian."
📖 Recipe
🫘 Vegan Bean Nachos
Ingredients
For the Nachos
- 6 ounces of your favorite tortilla chips
- 1 medium tomato chopped
- 2.25 ounce can of sliced black olives drained
- 1 cup of cooked black beans drained and rinsed
- ½ cup corn kernels fresh, canned (drained) or frozen (thawed)
For the Queso
- 1 7-ounce package Chao Creamy Original Slices cut into 1" pieces (Just cut through the whole stack of slices.), or use 7 ounces of your favorite, meltable vegan cheese shreds
- 1 cup diced tomatoes and green chiles undrained (about ½ of a 15 ounce can)
On Top
- 2 green onions chopped
- 1 batch Pickled Jalapeno Guacamole or your favorite guacamole
Instructions
Make the Nachos
- Either divide the chips between 4 plates or spread them onto one large serving platter. Scatter the olives, beans, tomato, and corn evenly over the top of the chips.
Make the Queso
- Put cheese and diced tomatoes with chiles into a small microwave-safe bowl. I used a Pyrex measuring bowl, for easy pouring.
- Microwave on high for 3 minutes (see notes for stovetop directions), and stir. Keep microwaving in 30-second to 1-minute increments, stirring well each time until you have a smooth, creamy mixture.
Assemble
- Pour the queso over the top of your nachos, trying to coat them as evenly as you can. Sprinkle on the green onion, and serve with a dollop of guacamole on top
Got a question? Tried this recipe? Leave a reply!