These Carne Asada Nacho Fries Will Win at Any Tailgate Party

As we mentioned earlier this summer, Top Chef Home Edition is back! It's where we put your cooking skills to the test and see if you have what it takes to be a Top Chef. In addition to challenging you, we're teaming up with your favorite food writers around the web and putting them to the test, too.

Our theme for September is Chef Hacks and we've asked What's Gaby Cooking to take our Top Chef Home Edition Junk Food Challenge. Check out Gaby's delicious take on common snacks and then step up to the plate and show us your own version of this meal.

Nachos are 100% on brand for me. To say I’m obsessed would be an understatement and I’m always looking for fun ways to jazz them up… so I’m pumped to introduce you to Carne Asada Nacho Fries today!

Imagine giant wedge potato fries topped with perfectly marinated and grilled carne asada, guacamole, pico de gallo, crema, and all the cheese you could possible imagine. It sounds like exactly what you want right this second, right? Doesn’t matter if you’re reading this at breakfast, lunch or dinner — carne asada fries are always the answer.

Just remember, when in doubt, the answer is ALWAYS nachos! Speaking of which — I’m pumped to be teaming up with Bravo (my favorite network of ALL TIME) to bring you these nachos and let you in on a really fun competition that you can enter from your own kitchen! The Top Chef Home Edition is bringing you new challenges all the time that you can use in your own kitchen. Challenge yourself to get a little more creative in the kitchen and follow along using the hashtag #TopChefHome — and after you’ve created something delicious, you can reap your reward and chow down with your friends and family! So to give you a little creative spark, maybe you should make these nachos and then go to town with your own nacho creation? Have at it!

Ingredients: 

3 large yukon gold potatoes

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon paprika

½ teaspoon ground cumin

Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded pepperjack cheese

Guacamole

Sour cream

Pico de gallo

For the Carne Asada:

1 pound flank steak

4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 jalapeno, roughly chopped

1 cup cilantro, roughly chopped

2 limes, juiced

1 orange, juiced

1/2 cup olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Instructions for the Nachos:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Slice the potatoes into thick wedges. Each potato should yield about 8 wedges. Place the wedges into a plastic bag and add the seasonings and olive oil. Give the bag a gentle shake until the potatoes are coated with the seasoning.

Lay the potatoes on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and flip the potatoes over and let them bake for another 15-20 minutes until they are golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool slightly.

Place the potato wedges onto an oven safe plate. Cover with chopped carne asada and cheese and place back into the oven until the cheese is melted. Top with pico de gallo and guacamole.

For the Steak:

Place the flank steak in a large baking dish and cover with the marinade for 4-5 hours.

Heat a grill over high heat and grill the flank steak for 5 minutes on each side. Remove from the grill and let rest before slicing. Chop for the fries.