My Mom’s 2-Ingredient Snack Was the Reason I Watched Football Growing Up

It doesn't get easier than this.

I grew up in a big football-loving household. I’m talking we weren’t allowed to have playdates on Sundays because no one would drive us anywhere while the football games were on. And not just when the Pittsburgh Steelers games were on…but every game from 1 p.m. to 8:20 p.m.

I will, begrudgingly, tell you that before I became a diehard Steelers fan in college, I was only interested in football Sundays because it meant special food.

My Mom's 2-Ingredient Football Snack

Now, my mom didn’t go all out every week with dips, sliders, and wings—that was saved for the big Super Bowl party every year. Instead, those regular season Sundays were reserved for one recipe: nachos.

But not just any nachos. Remember, my parents were parked on the couch for most of the day, so it had to be something that could be ready in mere minutes during a commercial break or halftime.

That meant microwave nachos.

Hey, don’t turn your nose up at them just yet. My mom can make some pretty mean nachos in the microwave—and why wait for something to bake in the oven when the microwave can do the trick?

How To Make Microwave Nachos

All nacho recipes are pretty simple. After all, you really need only two ingredients: tortilla chips and shredded cheese. From there, you can add whatever toppings you like. Typically, I microwave just the chips and cheese together first, then add the toppings, but if you want to include meat or beans, you’ll want to top the nachos before microwaving.

The key to microwave nachos is not overcooking the cheese. Because contrary to what naysayers believe, microwave nachos can still give you the crispy chip and gooey cheese experience—you just have to get the timing right.

You only need to zap your chips and cheese for 1 to 2 minutes for the cheese to melt. Just as you see it getting gooey is when you want to remove them from the microwave, because the cheese can go from nice and melty to dry and crusty really quickly.

Once you remove your cheesed-up chips, you’ll add your toppings. I’m a simple banana peppers, pickled jalapeños, and salsa person—but Allrecipes Editorial Operations Director Victoria Heydt, who’s also a big microwave nachos fan, likes black beans, pickled jalapeños, salsa, Greek yogurt, Tajin, and hot sauce.

To each their own—after all, as Heydt says, “nachos are a vehicle for all the toppings” anyway.

Can I thank my mom’s nachos for getting me into football? Probably not, but they sure are a delicious excuse to watch a game.

Read the original article on All Recipes.