Casseroles are king in Amish country. There are a few easier ways to fix supper, feed a lot of people, and make something hearty than throwing together a bunch of stuff into a dish and popping it in the oven. That’s basically a casserole. This Amish Beef Nacho Casserole fits the bill for hearty and easy and flavorful!
I’ve talked a lot about how Tex-Mex cooking has influenced Amish, but it’s probably worth going over again. we have a lot of newcomers to Amish365.com
The Tex-Mex influence and Amish cooking shouldn't really be that surprising. If you think about it, something like salsa is so easy to make from tomatoes grown in the garden. And then you can spice it up with jalapeños and peppers that also can be grown in the garden. So there’s a garden connection to Tex-Mex.
But then there’s also a growing cultural connection. There’s a large Hispanic population in rural America, and Mexican groceries and taquerias often bump up against Amish culture so there’s increasing exposure to Tex-Mex foods. Also, Mennonite and Amish families live in increasing numbers south of the Rio Grande, they taste and incorporate local culinary culture, send the recipes back home, so, yes, there’s a lot of connection between the two cultures.
This particular casserole is definitely a hybrid of typical American fare combined with a bit of Tex-Mex crunch and spice.
Casseroles like this are also favorites to take to large gatherings. They are easy to make and transport. Casseroles like Amish Beef Nacho Casserole can feed large groups of people. A casserole like this is also pretty easy to assemble with store-bought ingredients. You can use store-bought salsa just as easily as you can use your own homemade salsa. You can use frozen corn, or your own homegrown corn. It’s very versatile casserole, it can be assembled using homemade ingredients and homegrown ingredients, or straight off the supermarket shelf
Just use, in my opinion, a classic corn chip as this Amish Beef Nacho Casserole recipe calls for and, well, if I'm making this I'll use a mild to medium salsa. But if you want to spice things up more, well, sure, go for the really hot stuff.
I love corn in pretty much everything, so this is like an amazing Tex-Mex dish in deconstructed casserole form. Think Mexican street corn in a casserole. Amazing food there and not something uncommon in an Amish kitchen. You definitely see an affinity for salsas and corn chips.
This is a classic layered casserole. Bake and then pile it on your plate when done. You can easily cut this recipe in half if you don't want quite as much food!
🍲 Amish Beef Nacho Casserole
- 3 pounds ground beef, browned
- 1 quart (32 oz.) salsa
- 1 quart corn
- 1 ½ cup mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 6 cups corn chips
- 6 cups shredded Colby-jack, cheddar or mozzarella cheese
📋 Instructions
- Mix first 5 ingredients.
- Put half in the bottom of a large casserole.
- Then put in half of chips, then half of cheese.
- Repeat layers. Bake until heated through. Bake at about 350 for 30 minutes.
- You may top with lettuce and tomatoes if you would like. Note: Omit chili powder if using hot salsa.
🌮 More Amish Tex-Mex
🖨️ Full Recipe Print
Amish Beef Nacho Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 pounds ground beef browned
- 1 quart (32 oz.) salsa
- 1 quart corn
- 1 ½ cup mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 6 cups corn chips
- 6 cups shredded Colby-jack, cheddar or mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Mix first 5 ingredients.
- Put half in the bottom of a largecasserole.
- Then put in half of chips, then half of cheese.
- Repeatlayers. Bake until heated through. Bake at about 350 for 30 minutes.
- You may top with lettuce andtomatoes if you would like. Note: Omit chili powder if using hot salsa.
Karen
Verena, enjoyed reading your review of what you and your family have done lately. Sounds as if you've been busy.
Patrice Anita
Very well written and interest column Verena...good job!
GLORIA JOHNSON
What a lovely column Verena wrote! I really enjoyed hearing about what the youth are doing in her community.
Kentucky Lady
You did a great job Verena, and this recipe sounds delicious....will have to make it....thanks for posting it.....
have a question about Elizabeth's puppy tho, you said Izzy was almost litter box trained ! I didn't know you
could train a puppy like a cat ! Is this what you meant ? Just wondering.......:)
Elizabeth
hello for the Amish beef nacho casserole what do I set the oven to and for how long ?
Kevin Williams
350 for about 30 minutes
brenda
another daughter that can and does step in for her mother !! We really look forward from hearing from your family every week. it is so kind of you to share a visit with you all.
sometimes it really seems a bit of a marvel to hear of such cooperation and helpfulness.
Elizabeth and Timothy's friends/family with the 10 children must really indeed have their hands full. blessings for sure but it seems the young lady must have a lot of strength and energy to also be able to pull off a birthday get together Elizabeth.
don
Verena - Great letter.
Linda from KY
Verena, I enjoyed reading your article. You did a great job filling in for your mom. The casserole sounds delicious! I'll have to try that one for my family, but I"ll probably have to reduce it by 1/3 as there are just 5 people in our household.
Brenda
Great column and thanks for writing it.
Carolyn
Super job writing Verena. You young ladies are certainly following in your mother , and grandmother's footsteps am sure everyone enjoys these columns as much as I do. Again wonderful job.
lorraine stoddard
Great column Verena!!