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These Big Mac Nachos are loaded with seasoned ground beef, melted cheese, crisp iceberg lettuce, diced pickles, and onion, all drizzled with a creamy homemade Big Mac sauce. They come together in about 20 minutes and taste just like the real thing.
It’s the Mac Sauce for me.
Did I share a copycat Taco Bell creamy jalapeno sauce recipe just last week? Yes.
Am I back with a Big Mac situation this week? Also yes.
I’m sorry, but I’m a sucker for a good drive-thru situation. Sometimes you just need cheesy, saucy goodness and the drive-thru tends to deliver.
This time around I’m turning the classic Big Mac into nachos and lemme tell ya – this one is a big win.
Crispy chips, seasoned beef, pickles and onion and lettuce and sesame seeds – and the copycat Big Mac sauce drizzled all over the top to really seal the deal.
This is a fun little twist on burger night that really gets the family excited. Of course, it’s also great for game day!
Not into nachos? Our Big Mac sloppy joes are a huge hit too!
3 Reasons You’ll Love This Recipe:
🧀 Same flavor, no drive-through needed. The homemade Mac sauce is the star here, and it takes about two minutes to whisk together.
⏱️ Ready in about 20 minutes. Brown the beef, melt the cheese, pile on the toppings. That’s really it.
🏈 Perfect for sharing. This recipe makes a big sheet pan’s worth, which is ideal for game day, movie night, or a dinner that you know the kids won’t complain about.
Ingredients, Swaps, & Tips:
For the Big Mac sauce, you’ll need ketchup, mayo, relish, and spices.
For the nachos, you’ll need ground beef + seasoning, chips, lettuce, pickles, onion, and tomatoes.
Lean beef works great here. You could try subbing in ground turkey, but it won’t be quite the same.
The chips matter. Go for a thicker tortilla chip so they hold up under the beef and toppings. I like the Tostitos Cantina Traditional chips for this one.
Customize the toppings. Diced tomato is a great addition here, even though a traditional Big Mac doesn’t have it.
Make the Mac sauce ahead. It keeps in the fridge for up to a week, so you can whip it up on the weekend and use it all week. It’s also fantastic as a dipping sauce for fries or spread on our smashburgers.
Serving a smaller group? Use half the chips, half the beef, and scale the toppings down. The Mac sauce recipe makes a generous amount, so you’ll have plenty left for dipping.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Step by Step Instructions:
Whisk together all of the homemade Big Mac sauce ingredients in a bowl until smooth.
Brown the beef in a skillet with the seasonings and drain off the excess grease.
Top the tortilla chips with the beef and cheddar and bake for about 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
Top the nachos with lettuce, pickles, onion, and the homemade Big Mac sauce.
Helpful Tip!
Storage
Mac sauce: Store covered in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Nachos: Best eaten right away. Those chips are going to get soggy quick if you put them in the fridge.
Leftover beef: Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat and pile onto fresh chips when you’re ready.
Leftover Hack!
Store everything separately so that you can make a fresh batch of nachos, or pile leftover meat + toppings + Big Mac sauce on a bun to make a little loose meat Big Mac situation for dinner.
More Ground Beef Recipes:
Big Mac Nachos
Ingredients
For the nachos:
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cracked pepper
- 5 ounces tortilla chips about 1/2 full size bag
- 2 cups shredded cheddar
- 2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
- 1 cup diced pickles
- 1/2 cup diced yellow onion more or less to taste
- Sesame seeds for garnish
For the Mac sauce:
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 2 tablespoons dill relish
- 2 teaspoons mustard
- 2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
Instructions
To make the nachos:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Add the ground beef to a skillet over medium heat and use a wooden spoon to crumble up the meat as it cooks. When the meat is about halfway cooked through, sprinkle on the onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Continue cooking until no longer pink.
- Drain the grease from the beef, if needed.
- Arrange the tortilla chips in a layer completely covering the bottom of a rimmed 15×10 baking sheet. You can use more or less chips to suit your tastes, but we generally use around ½ of a 10 ounce bag of tortilla chips.
- Spoon the beef evenly over the chips and sprinkle with the cheese.
- Place the pan in the oven for about 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
- Remove from the oven and top with the lettuce, pickles, and onion.
- Use a spoon to drizzle the Mac sauce over the top and then sprinkle with sesame seeds.
- Serve immediately.
To make the Mac sauce:
- Whisk together all of the ingredients in a small bowl.
- Store leftovers covered in the fridge for up to a week.
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