Talk:Nachos

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Where invented

The article says nachos originated in Puerto Rico but were invented in Mexico.

Factrenderer (talk) 16:45, 15 October 2009 (UTC)

Rico's of San Antonio claims that the "Ball Park Nacho", nachos using cheese sauce, were invented by their founder Frank Liberto in 1977. This is not correct. This Wiki page says that Frank Liberto "marketed" this version of nachos at Arlington Stadium, introducing the dish to Howard Cosell, and thereby bringing it to the public in 1977. This is correct.

I created what I called "Fast Food Nachos" when I was a part time employee of "The Taco Spot" in Valley View Mall, Dallas, Texas, in 1974. The restaurant owners were looking for a way to serve nachos from a small steam table based operation similar to old Taco Bell's, etc. We did not have time or facilities to assemble and broil (or even microwave) a plate of traditional nachos by the order.

I was a big fan of our competitor's (Famous Ramos Hot Dog Place) chili cheese dog on which they used a canned cheese sauce. One Saturday I borrowed a can of that cheese sauce from Famous Ramos, microwaved it, put it on some broken taco shells along with some jalapenos, and gave it to the bosses. They loved it and it was on the menu the next day - broken taco shells and all. A couple days later I decided to put some refried beans on before the cheese. Gave that to the bosses, same story - on the menu the next day. "Would you like to try our new bean and cheese nachos, just 15 cents more?". At this time no one we served had ever seen this style nacho.

Although the owners were very happy to have found a use for all the broken taco shells they soon realized how "Cheesy" (pun intended) this was and bought a deep fryer so we could fry our own tortilla chips. Anyone who visited Valley View Mall in the 70's or early 80's may also remember our automated taco frying machine in the front window.

I stayed with the company for a couple of years after high school, eventually leaving in 1979. My "Fast Food Nachos" were a top seller and a heck of an add on item that boosted sales in all the stores. We sold the heck out of them in Taco Spot Restaurants (later renamed Picante's) in Valley View (Dallas), Town East (Dallas), Ridgemar (Ft. Worth) and Greenspoint (Houston) Malls.

Although there is no real way to know if I was the very first to think of putting hot cheese sauce on chips, everyone thought so at the time. Mike C. in Dallas, TX. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Bipeman (talk • contribs) 22:42, 25 May 2010 (UTC)

General discussion

It is said by many residents of Texas that Nachos originate there.

It is unlikely that the original name was Nacho's Especiales as Spanish does not use the apostrophe to denote ownership. also the translation for specialites is 'especialidades' in castellano at least.

Nachos would be nacho plural.

It sounds to me more like he was trying his best to speak English for the American women, and "Nacho's specials" came out 'Nachos especiales' —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.72.21.221 (talk • contribs)

Olives? I've never seen or heard of olives as a topping. Lefty 01:26, 2005 Mar 16 (UTC)

Then you never went to Taco Bell before they went cheap. ;-) --Roger McCoy 18:51, 20 February 2007 (UTC)

Where is the sour cream?

Some people, experienced with Tex-Mex food, say that "nachos" are corn chips, cheese and jalapenos. Adding additional ingredients turns them into "panchos", which implies that someone named Francisco first though of putting beans etc. on them. ("Pancho" is a common nickname for "Francisco", as in Pancho Villa.) They are usually called "loaded" or "deluxe" nachos on a Tex-Mex menu, although I know of at least one restaurant where you can order "panchos" https://order.chuys.com/menu/chuys-arbor-trails/products/30451729 . I mention this only to confuse the issue :-) Wastrel Way (talk) Eric

other cheese that goes with nacho chips?

What other cheeses besides melted cheddar "go" with nachos? I know I've seen a white cheese on nachos before, too (jack cheese? mozarella? not sure). --I am not good at running 17:58, 26 May 2005 (UTC)

Jack is a common cheese, yes. --Bijhan 03:29, 2 June 2006 (UTC)

Merging

Yeah, the international nacho day thing isnt special enough to exist on its own, MERGE. Jack Cain 11:32, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

POV?

It says that melted chedder cheese with nachos is delicious. I agree, but it's still an opinion.

• No... I'm pretty sure that's fact.

Agreed. When does somthing become so universal that it's essentially fact? Or to put it differently, when is deviation from a position so illregular that the position is fact? Is "orgasm is pleasurable" a fact?--Devon DeFazio (talk) 01:24, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Nacho Fesival website

http://mexicolesstraveled.com/nachofest.htm --Gbleem 03:13, 29 January 2007 (UTC)

Contorversy

Unless this news item has had a much larger impact on people's feelings about nachos in general than I imagine it has, I don't really think it desrves this much space (if any) on a general-info page about nachos. I have deleted the section entirely. If someone strongly feels that this info should be here, please re-write it to make it more concise and informative. (Or, at the very least, remove all of the superfluous paragraph breaks.) --Roger McCoy 18:50, 20 February 2007 (UTC))

"News item"? I thought this was an encyclopaedia article!

Nachos made out of corn aka. Corn Chips

Can anyone explain how they got around to making corn chips instead of tortilla chips? Usually its corn chips instead of tortilla chips - usually I find Corn Chips flavoured with "Nacho" cheese but now nachos is generally referred to Corn Chips and Cheese, rather than tortilla chips and cheese. So how did this happen? Timmah01 04:08, 27 February 2007 (UTC)

Corn chips are made from corn tortillas. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Heinzbitte (talk • contribs) 01:55, 11 October 2007 (UTC)

Contradiction

This page and the tortilla chips page contradict each other. The tortillas chips article says that they were created in the late 40s and that nachos are tortillas chips with cheese but this article says that nachos were created in 1943 (early 40s), that would be before tortilla chips were made. . That contradiction and the lack of citation for the source of the origin make me believe this article is wrong. --David13579 23:31, 6 November 2007 (UTC)

Both articles are now sourced, showing that Webb merely popularized the chips, but that they were created as early as 1943 by Anaya. Please sign your talk posts with four tildes, as such: ~~~~. This will automatically be replaced with your signature. Happy editing,—Swpb^talk.edits 16:27, 4 November 2007 (UTC)

Nacho Cheese

"Processed cheese is often used in place of freshly shredded cheese in institutional or large-scale production settings, such as schools, movie theaters, sports venues, and convenience stores, or wherever using freshly grated cheese may be logistically prohibitive."

This statement is misleading. Where as it is true that institutional or large-scale venues do indeed usually serve this type of cheese on Nachos, they are far from being the only sort of places to do so. In the United States, especially on the East Coast this type of Nacho Cheese is often more popular than tradtional shredded cheese, both at resturaunts and in home use, and often both will be used.

"Such processed cheese is referred to informally in the United States as "nacho cheese", though the term "nacho cheese" does not denote any particular variety of cheese."

This statement is simply false. Tostitos and Frito-Lay (among 100s of off brands) sell products with the formal name of Nacho Cheese Dip. In all cases it is a semi-liquid/liquid form of processed cheese with various blends of Mexican spices in them. In order for that statement to be true there would need to be another formal name for this type of product, and everyone informally refer to it as Nacho Cheese. However, this is not the case, as Nacho Cheese is indeed the formal name of this product. If I seem a bit obsessed with Nacho Cheese it is because I have lived in Australia for the past 3 1/2 years and they do not carry the product Nacho Cheese, which was one of my favorite dips in the states. Livingston

If you can find and source a consistent, officially certified formulation of "nacho cheese", or evidence that "nacho cheese" has been formalized or trademarked, please add it to the article.—Swpb^talk.edits 22:07, 10 November 2007 (UTC)

As Nacho Cheese is a type of food that varies widely in specific recipies other than being made with processed cheese (as it would be impossible to make without this) there can of course be no "officially certified formulation" or trademark. Just the same you will not find any such supported evidence for any other dipping sauce in existence unless it is a special dip created by a specific company that hold a patent for said recipe. I would challenge you to find any such information for another "traditional" mexican dip such as salsa or guacamole. Such information does not exist for either for the exact same reason. It is an informal recipe that varies based on company or taste with 2-3 staple ingredients. Yet salsa and guacamole are not informal names for said sauce/dips, and they both have their own articles. Just the same you will find no such information for Nachos and it's toppings. The nacho chips themselves can be made from both flour or corn tortias and can be prepared or manufacured in dozens of different ways. There is no "official" legislation on what makes a nacho a nacho or what can be put on them. If it's a form of fried tortia cut into chip sizes then its called a nacho. Just the same, liquid processed cheese with Mexican spices (peppers/chillis) is called Nacho Cheese. There is no other known term for said food product. Just because it wasn't made traditionally in some foreign country outside of the US, doesn't mean it isn't a formal product. Here is a site with Taco Bell's brand of Nacho Cheese - http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c21gg.html. Livingston

You seem to have made my point exactly. "Nacho cheese" is not formally defined beyond individual brands, which is what the article indicates, but what you initially seemed to disagree with. So what's the problem?—Swpb^talk.edits 23:33, 10 November 2007 (UTC)

It is formally defined the same way any other dip is formally definied, such as salsa or guacamole, it is made of 2-3 staple ingredients and recipes vary. My point is that salsa and guacamole are not considered to be informal names, so why should nacho cheese be considered as such? Livingston —Preceding comment was added at 23:55, 10 November 2007 (UTC)

I'm not really sure what you mean by "formal" then, but it doesn't matter since the article doesn't use the word formal. We agree that the ingredients are not consistently specified - saying "nacho cheese" does not tell a person exactly what they are dealing with. So I really have no idea what you think is wrong with what the article says now.—Swpb^talk.edits 06:05, 11 November 2007 (UTC)

The article is wrong in the fact that it implies that Nacho Cheese is only served when shredded cheese is unavailable or impractical, and that Nacho Cheese is an "informal" term that doesn't denote any particular variety of cheese. It is not an "informal" term and it denotes a very specific variety of cheese, that being a semi-liquid/liquid form of processed cheese with peppers/chilies added, which is indeed a particular variety of cheese. If you read the article on processed cheese you will understand that processed cheese is the only type of cheese that can be served in the form of Nacho Cheese, as all "pure" cheeses will separate when heated to melting point, before they will form a cohesive liquid. Thus processed cheese is the only variety of cheese with which Nacho Cheese can be made from. In no way shape or form is the term Nacho Cheese informal or ambiguous in any way, it is a very specific term. Any product you come by which is labeled Nacho Cheese (at least on the East Coast of the US) will be a sauce made from processed cheese, with chilies/peppers added to it. So you do indeed know exactly what you are dealing with. This article seems to be your baby, and frankly I don't really care enough about it to change it myself. I was simply pointing out the fact that your information is erroneous and misleading, which it is. If you disagree, that's fine leave it as it is, but you have yet to provide an argument of any substance what so ever that would support your claim that it is an informal term. Livingston 11:28, 11 November 2007 (UTC)

It's not really my fault that your arguments are nearly incomprehensible. It's processed cheese. The article already says that. Now go play outside.—Swpb^talk.edits 05:05, 12 November 2007 (UTC)

How are my arguments incomphrehensible? What part of "Nacho Cheese is not an informal name" don't you get? You really can't be as thick as you are pretending to be. The truth of the matter is you are playing dumb because you have wrote false information on the article and can not defend it with any proper sources. Unless you aren't a native English speaker, which would explain a lot.Livingston 21:35, 12 November 2007 (UTC)

I've spent more time and effort arguing with you than it would have taken to write it in the article. So I've taken your advice and done so. Livingston 22:25, 12 November 2007 (UTC)

Good job. You still don't have a source for what can and can't be called nacho cheese, but hey, when has Wikipedia ever cared about sources, right?—Swpb^talk.edits 23:54, 12 November 2007 (UTC)

First of all you had no sources at all for the paragraph you wrote on it. And actually there are 3 sources there for the manufacturers of products called nacho cheese - Frito-lay, Tostitos, and Taco Bell, which all use the same basic ingredients as I have now listed on the article. What on earth makes you think that there needs to be sources for things that can't be called nacho cheese? That doesn't make any sense. Perhaps if I mentioned some thing in the article about things that couldn't be called nacho cheese, but I haven't, thus why would there need to be a source? Furthermore show me where such sources exist on the articles for salsa and guacamole. Livingston 03:19, 13 November 2007 (UTC)

I think I kinda agree with Livingston on all this. I feel like the amount of deviation between various brands/recipes of nacho cheese is small enough that it's negligible. We call tequila "tequila" even though there are lots of different kinds. I mean, is every Swiss cheese you've ever had exactly the same? Probably not, but if you bought Swiss cheese you would not expect Chedder, even if someone told you it was "just a different recipe for Swiss." Cyberxstrm (talk) 00:38, 10 July 2012 (UTC)

Photo of the original nachos

If someone goes to Nacho's restaurant, they should photograph a plate of the original nachos (i.e. using the original recipe). That would be a cool addition to the article. Tisane ^talk/_stalk 07:41, 29 July 2010 (UTC)

Made fast?

Edited "made fast to serve as a snack" in the introduction to "made quickly to serve as a snack". You can make a rope fast, but not a snack!86.138.14.83 (talk) 21:34, 6 November 2010 (UTC)

Not totopos or nacho cheese

I edited the page yesterday but the changes were reverted. The reason given was that I had to be factual, but all I was doing was changing things already there which are not factual, for example:

1) In Mexico they are not called "totopos". Totopos are the tortilla chips, not the nachos (see the wikipedia entry for totopos!).

2) Nacho cheese is not a thing. The chips are covered with cheese, so it should just say cheese.

3) Since this "nacho cheese" does not actually exist, it does not come from Mexico. Nachos is a Tex-Mex food item, and as such all processed "nacho cheeses" come from the US.

4) "Salsa" is just the Spanish word for sauce, so the entry should read that they have sauce on them, because that is what salsa means.

In the "see also" links, there should be a link to Tex Mex food, and NOT to Mexican food. How can I make these changes without having some moderator reverse them? I don't want to give the impression that I'm trolling, but it's frustrating that I make a change to improve an entry and have it reverted by a mod.Alfachino (talk) 14:16, 25 March 2012 (UTC)

Can you find a reliable, external source that supports what you have written above? I'm not doubting your knowledge, but Wikipedia likes proper sourcing. HiLo48 (talk) 22:30, 25 March 2012 (UTC)

I have removed the bits about Nacho Cheese being from Mexico, it is indeed a Tex Mex product (which is sourced by the US companies that produce it), and no sources were listed for it's supposed Mexican origins. The onus is on the one who added it to prove this is true, not to show that it is false. Livingston 06:53, 28 May 2012 (UTC)

"Microwaved rat" ? Is this an alternative to under the salamander? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.115.208.61 (talk) 06:06, 1 May 2017 (UTC)

Tex Mex

To User:Opus88888 please explain why you continue to undo my sourced edits without explanation. You have not justified why nachos are not Tex-Mex cuisine: the source you give says they were created in Mexico- which I'm not arguing against. In fact, one of the sources I give, also mentions this. Your source does not give any indication of it belonging to Mexican cuisine. While both sources I give clearly state nachos are Tex-Mex. I want dialogue so we can come to a consensus. Xochiztli (talk) 05:10, 8 March 2015 (UTC)

You were the one who began to change the original edition that had sources, not me. --Opus88888 (talk) 12:16, 8 March 2015 (UTC)

The original change I made didn't change any sourced content, you gave a source (as I've said, it says that nachos were created in Mexico). I replace your source-which doesn't addess whether they are Mexican cuisine- with sources that say they are Tex-Mex and then you proceed to undo my edits without explanation. What gives? If you are so adamant about them not being Tex-Mex give sources that clearly state so. Xochiztli (talk) 15:24, 8 March 2015 (UTC)

Xochiztli, if you mean vaguely discussed, then that is was. While your sources provide the term "Tex-Mex," it fails to verify its origin. However, in other sourced texts, it explicitly says that it was first made in Mexico. So judging by that, I am not sure that those sources for Tex-Mex are credible given the fact that little to no information of its origin is provided. Here's a discussion. Please explain. Thanks. Savvyjack23 (talk) 05:13, 8 February 2016 (UTC)

User:Savvyjack23, it seems the issue has been around defining Tex-Mex. From what I can tell, the most common usage is as a generalized term for the cuisine of the Southwest US (not just limited to Texas). In addition, the term is sometimes extended to include northern Mexico (specifically the border region). As to nachos being Tex-Mex, it's not just those sources, that's how it's usually classified in cookbooks. However, including one of those as sources seemed less credible to me. The first source clearly states they were first made in the border city of Piedras Negras, Coahuila, as do a lot of other books that classify the dish as Tex-Mex (examples 1, 2, 3). Nachos are a pretty trivial topic, I don't think you're going to find a deep analysis of why they are or aren't Tex-Mex. Again, the problem lies in the ambiguity of the term (even the Tex-Mex article doesn't have a solid definition). I have no desire whatsoever to argue about what Tex-Mex means. I just see that nachos are commonly classified as being part of that cuisine in published sources. Just because it was first created in Mexico doesn't automatically qualify it to be part of the world heritage cuisine of central Mexico (which is what the article seemed to imply at one point). Xochiztli (talk) 20:48, 8 February 2016 (UTC)

Creator

This edit changes the creator in the lead section from Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya to "Jose Chio Lu" [sic]. The edit summary is too long, so the source given in it is cut off. In the future, please cite sources inline.

Searching based on the partial URL, I came up with this article, which is apparently a machine translation of the original. The article credits waiter Ignacio Anaya, "guided by" chef "Jose Evan Chio that time Lu". Our well-sourced version skips the chef and puts it all on "maître d'hôtel, Ignacio 'Nacho' Anaya".

The new source cites a brief Zócalo Saltillo story from 2013. Our version cites longer stories: One, credited to the OED resercher working on the etymology of the name, from 1999, in OED News and the other (telling a substantially identical story) a 2002 San Antonio Express-News article.

As the new edit claims a conflict of interest ("By proving the truth. My Grandfather was the chef at El Moderno who created the "nacho" that Ignacio guy took the credit for it.") and creates confusion in the article (with the lead and body telling different stories), I have reverted the edit.

Comments on how we should approach this? - SummerPhD^v2.0 15:16, 28 August 2016 (UTC)

• My opinion: The OED is still on board with the version we have.[1] Searching around, I find minor variations to the core story, some including the "guidance" of the chef, others not. Many of the articles including the chef still hang the title of "creator" on Anaya. I have not found longer stories in reliable sources that include the chef. A plaque in town apparently credits Anaya. Until such time as coverage in reliable sources regularly involves the chef in the creation (in some capacity other than vague "guidance"), I don't see us including him. - SummerPhD^v2.0 15:16, 28 August 2016 (UTC)

Types of cheese

Shredded cheese is not a type of cheese any more than sliced bread is a type of bread. Specific varieties of cheese should be identified, not simply forms that cheeses may take. Keith D. Tyler ¶ 20:31, 16 October 2019 (UTC)

Italics

Why is the title of this article in italics?

Mexican Cuisine

The article starts off stating nachos are Mexican cuisine, yet the main image is some nonsense from Malaysia. I think it would make much more sense to depict nachos in their traditional mexican form, and put the malaysian "nachos" in a gallery. 2601:243:C001:49E0:812F:A86C:4146:4264 (talk) 17:40, 21 December 2022 (UTC)

There is no "traditional Mexican form", as the dish further developed its popularity and ingredients in Texas (and elsewhere in the United States) rather than in Mexico. It would be more accurate to describe it as Tex-Mex cuisine rather than Mexican cuisine. Crasias (talk) 09:50, 9 February 2024 (UTC)

Requested move 25 December 2022

The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review after discussing it on the closer's talk page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

The result of the move request was: procedural close; requester has been blocked as a sock, and no other editor has supported the proposal. Dekimasuよ! 15:48, 25 December 2022 (UTC)

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Nachos → Nacho – =Wikipedia articles use the singular form. Amogus girl (talk) 01:02, 25 December 2022 (UTC)

• oppose - The dish, which this article is about, is called "nachos". -- Netoholic @ 08:41, 25 December 2022 (UTC)
• Oppose I can’t ever recall hearing the dish referred to in the singular form. Also, WP:SINGULAR does make exceptions for terms always used in plural form and I see this as one 9f those cases.--65.92.162.81 (talk) 14:27, 25 December 2022 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.