Big Bad Chilli Nachos — a plant-based Mexican recipe by BOSH!
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Big Bad Chilli Nachos

These nachos are genuinely one of our go-to recipes when we want something that feels indulgent but is completely plant-based. We're talking crispy tortilla chips piled high with a rich, smoky mushroom chilli that's so satisfying nobody's going to miss the meat. The layers of flavour here are just incredible, and the textures, crunchy chips, soft chilli, cool toppings, make every mouthful different. We make these for big groups, movie nights, game days, honestly any excuse we can find. Trust us, once you've made these you'll be looking for reasons to do it again.

Cook: 35 min
Serves 4

Before You Start

  • Preheat oven to 180°C
  • Food processor
  • Large saucepan with lid
  • Ovenproof dish
  • Large frying pan

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp tomato purée
  • 2 tsp soy sauce
  • 400g mushrooms
  • olive oil
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp black pepper
  • 2 red onions
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 2 red chillies
  • 30g fresh coriander
  • 1 celery stick
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • 250ml red wine
  • 2 x 400g can(s) of chopped tomatoes
  • 1 x 400g can of black beans
  • 1 x 400g can of kidney beans
  • 1 ½ tsp maple syrup
  • 10g dark chocolate
  • 1 tsp balsamic vinegar good quality
  • 1 tsp chilli powder
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp dried oregano
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 x 200g bags of tortilla chips
  • 1 x 200g jar of jalapeño chillies
  • 50g plant-based cheese
  • 1 ultimate chilli
  • 1 portion of guacamole
  • 1 portion of salsa
  • handful of coriander leaves

Method

1

For the mushrooms

  • Put the mushrooms in the food processor and pulse until very finely minced (you can chop them if you prefer, but it’s quicker and better with a food processor)
  • Pour a little oil into the hot frying pan
  • Once the oil is hot, tip in the mushrooms with the salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes
  • Take the pan off the heat, transfer the mushrooms to a bowl and set aside
2

Prepping the ingredients

  • Peel and mince the red onions
  • Peel and mince the garlic
  • Rip the stems from the chillies, cut them in half lengthways and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder sauce, then chop finely
  • Remove the leaves from the coriander and set aside
  • Finely chop the stalks
  • Trim the leaves and root from the celery
  • Cut the pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds
  • Cut the celery and pepper into very small chunks
3

Start cooking

  • Add a little oil to the large saucepan
  • Once it is hot, add the minced onions and garlic, the finely chopped coriander stalks and the chillies and cook gently for 5–10 minutes, making sure you stir constantly
  • Add the chopped celery and red pepper chunks to the pan and stir
  • Add all the spice mix ingredients to the pan and stir so that the spices are well mixed and coat all the vegetables
  • Stir in the tomato purée to give a rich colour and depth of flavour
  • Pour the red wine, soy sauce and balsamic vinegar into the pan and turn up the heat to high
  • Stir constantly until the liquid has reduced by two-thirds and the alcoholic aroma has subsided
  • Tip the chopped tomatoes into the pan, stir into the chilli and simmer for 5 minutes, until the sauce is noticeably thicker 
4

Leave it to bubble away and finish

  • Drain the black beans and kidney beans and add them to the pan along with the maple syrup, dark chocolate and the minced mushrooms
  • Stir everything together really well and then reduce the heat to a very gentle simmer
  • Leave this bubbling away with the lid off, stirring occasionally until it’s reduced to the right thickness (at least 10 minutes)
  • You can leave it bubbling for longer to deepen the flavours, adding more water if needed to keep the right consistency 
  • Take the lid off the pan and remove the bay leaf
  • Stir the coriander leaves into the chilli and serve
  • Tip the tortilla chips into the ovenproof dish so that they cover the bottom
  • Slice the jalapeños and scatter them over the nachos
  • Throw in the dairy-free cheese, if using
  • Cover with the Ultimate Chilli 
  •  Put the dish in the oven and bake until the tortilla chips have started to brown and the chilli is heated through, about 10–15 minutes
5

Time to serve

  • Take the dish out of the oven 
  •  Dot random spots of guacamole and salsa over the top
  • Chop up the coriander leaves and scatter them over the nachos

Tips & Variations

  • Don't skip the food processor: We know it's tempting to just roughly chop the mushrooms but mincing them really finely is what gives the chilli that incredible texture. It takes 30 seconds in a food processor and it makes a huge difference.
  • Load them up fresh: Build your nachos right before serving so the chips stay crispy. If you're making these for a crowd, keep the chilli warm in a pan and let everyone build their own plate.
  • Make the chilli ahead: The mushroom chilli actually tastes even better the next day once the flavours have had time to develop. Make a big batch, store it in the fridge, and you've got the base ready to go whenever you need it.

Why This Works

The trick is in how you prep the mushrooms. Blitzing them in a food processor gets them really finely minced so they cook down and absorb all the spices beautifully, giving you that meaty, rich chilli texture without any actual meat. That step alone is a game changer and it's something we swear by in loads of our recipes now.