Loaded Salsa Verde Chicken Nachos Recipe
Store-bought rotisserie chicken makes these amped-up nachos easy. Instead of red salsa, we go for green or salsa verde usually made from chili peppers, tomatillos, onion and garlic. It’s zesty and works beautifully with chicken. In addition to the chicken, we pile our nachos up with sharp, flavorful cheddar cheese, spicy pickled jalapeños, spring onions and lots of extras like thinly sliced radishes and crumbled fresh cheese. Serve these family-style, right off of the baking sheet.
Store-bought rotisserie chicken makes these amped-up nachos easy. Instead of red salsa, we go for green or salsa verde usually made from chili peppers, tomatillos, onion and garlic. It’s zesty and works beautifully with chicken. In addition to the chicken, we pile our nachos up with sharp, flavorful cheddar cheese, spicy pickled jalapeños, spring onions and lots of extras like thinly sliced radishes and crumbled fresh cheese. Serve these family-style, right off of the baking sheet.
- 1 can black beans drained and rinsed
- sliced black olives
- 1 rotisserie chicken pulled from the bone and shredded (about 4 cups)
- 1 1/2 cups salsa verde plus more for serving, try our salsa verde recipe
- 1 large (13-ounce) bag tortilla chips
- 1/2 cup pickled jalapeã±o slices
- 3 spring onions trimmed and finely chopped
- 8 ounces sharp white cheddar cheese coarsely grated (about 2 cups)
- 1/4 cup crumbled fresh cheese such as queso fresco feta cheese or goat cheese
- 3 medium radishes sliced very thin
- cilantro leaves
- red and/or green chili peppers
- 1/4 cup sour cream thinned with 2 to 3 tablespoons of water
- Carbohydrate 11.8475531714001 g
- Cholesterol 97.6493430067772 mg
- Fat 21.504985760689 g
- Fiber 3.20891120271974 g
- Protein 30.7267721897423 g
- Saturated Fat 9.3232327456586 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (196g)
- Sodium 580.165494279927 mg
- Sugar 8.63864196868034 g
- Trans Fat 2.36018362679677 g
- Calories 371 calories
Step-by-step
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a large, rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Add salsa verde to a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the chicken and cook 5 minutes until warmed through.
- Arrange a single layer of tortilla chips on the bottom of the foil-lined pan then begin building the nachos. Scatter one third of the chicken, black beans, pickled jalapeños, chopped green onion and grated cheddar cheese over chips. Repeat with additional layers of chips and toppings until they are used up. (We usually end up with three layers of chips).
- Bake the nachos until the cheese has completely melted and everything is hot, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Serve nachos family style, right on the baking sheet, with as many additional toppings scattered on top as you like — we love adding crumbled fresh cheese, extra salsa, fresh chili peppers, thinly sliced radishes, and a drizzle of thinned sour cream.
Swapping a standard red tomato salsa for a jar of tomatillo-based salsa verde completely alters the moisture profile of the dish, creating a sharper tang that requires careful management in the oven. Many home cooks build these snacks as one massive mountain, which guarantees that chips in the center steam rather than crisp, leaving behind a soggy disaster of half-melted cheese. Building multiple deliberate layers on a 13-by-18-inch rimmed baking sheet prevents moisture from pooling while ensuring every single bite receives adequate heat distribution.
Preheating the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit provides enough thermal energy to melt eight ounces of coarsely grated sharp white cheddar within 15 to 20 minutes without scorching the exposed tortilla edges. Simmering the pulled rotisserie chicken in the salsa verde for exactly five minutes beforehand drives off excess surface water before the meat ever touches the chips. Fresh toppings like thinly sliced radishes, cilantro leaves, and crumbled queso fresco should be applied strictly after baking; adding high-water vegetables to the hot pan prematurely releases steam that instantly compromises the crunch.
Using pre-shredded supermarket cheddar often results in a greasy pool due to the anti-caking cellulose powders used in commercial packaging. Grating a block of sharp white cheddar by hand yields a cleaner melt with superior stretch. While black beans provide a hearty textural contrast, canned varieties must undergo thorough rinsing and draining to eliminate excess starches that thin out the melted cheese matrix.
