I’ve been kicking around the idea of making some vegan keto nachos for a while, but for some reason kept putting it off. Well, I finally got myself in gear this afternoon and made myself some nachos. I’ve really been wanting nachos for a while, and it seemed like as good a time as any to make this dream come true. Full disclosure – these low carb nachos are delicious. I ate the entire batch pretty much immediately after photographing them, and didn’t even bother cleaning up my mess in the kitchen first.

I played around with a few different chip recipes before realizing that plan old flax crackers really are the way to go. I did try to lighten things up by adding some coconut flour into the mix, but it just made the chips soggy once any sort of topping was on them for more than 5 minutes. For the queso, I just used a variation of the hemp cheese sauce that I’ve used a few times on here before. I LOVE hemp seeds because they’re high in omega-3 fatty acids, super low in carbs and also contain a hefty dose of protein – complete protein at that! They’re basically a low carb vegan’s best friend, and if you aren’t currently eating hemp seeds, I suggest you buy a bag now!

Now, you may notice that I’m actually using a meat substitute here, which is something I don’t think I’ve done before in a recipe, but I think it’s totally necessary here. This is keto junk food, and is meant to be a treat. You might as well go nuts and enjoy it! Speaking of nuts, this recipe is nut free and can be soy free, depending on what substitute you use. And, like all of my recipes, it’s gluten free.

Notes on making Low Carb Vegan Nachos Con Queso

• The tortilla chips here are just flax crackers. That’s it, nothing too fancy. So, if you want to take a huge shortcut, you can just buy the flax crackers and go from there.
• The Beyond Meat Feisty Crumbles are absolutely perfect for this (and zero net carbs!), but if you don’t have them available near you, you can obviously use whatever meat substitute you’d like.
• I used the Trader Joe’s organic tomatillo salsa here, Bob’s Red Mill flax, Bob’s Red Mill coconut flour, Frontier nutritional yeast, Manitoba Harvest hemp hearts and Pearl black olives.
• All nutritional info is calculated from the above ingredients, so your counts may vary if you use different ingredients.
• You can top your nachos however you want. The ingredients I used are just a suggestion!
• If you want to make this even easier on yourself, you could use a dairy free cheese like Daiya and just sprinkle it on top, but keep in mind that it’s going to have far more carbs than the hemp cheese sauce!
• If you want warm queso, feel free to heat it up in a saucepan for a few minutes before serving.

Low Carb Vegan Nachos Con Queso

Print Recipe

These low carb vegan keto nachos are surprisingly easy to make, high in fiber and omega-3 fatty acids and the perfect game day snack!

Course Snack

Cuisine Vegan

Servings 2

Calories 377

Ingredients

For the Tortilla Chips

• 60 g about 1 cup ground flax seed
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup water

For the Queso (makes 4 servings)

• 1 cup 160g hemp hearts (hulled hemp seeds)
• 3/4 - 1 cup water depending on how thick you want this
• 4 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1/2 tsp cayenne powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp salt

Nacho Toppings

• 2 servings 1 cup/110g Beyond Meat Feisty Crumbles
• 1 ounce black olives sliced
• 2 tbsp salsa of choice
• 1 tbsp sliced green onions

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
• In a mixing bowl, combine tortilla chip ingredients, stirring until thoroughly incorporated. Let this sit for a few minutes so the water is absorbed, and the flax has a chance to gel up a bit.
• Spread the flax mixture out evenly on a the parchment paper/baking mat in a thin layer. You'll want them to be a little thicker than real tortilla chips, but not too much.
• Bake for about 30 minutes.
• While the chips are baking, heat your crumbles according to the package directions and set aside.
• To make the queso, combine all ingredients in a blender and add in about half the water. Start blending. Continue adding water very slowly until the desired consistency is achieved.
• Check the flax chips for doneness. If they're still pliable, keep baking them until they are stiff and break apart easily.
• Once the chips are done, remove them from the oven and plate your nachos by layering the chips with the beef crumbles and olives, and then topping everything with the salsa, green onions and 1/4 cup of the queso.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 377kcal | Carbohydrates: 5.8g | Protein: 26.4g | Fat: 22.3g | Fiber: 11.7g