These shredded chicken nachos are loaded with two types of cheese, beans, avocado, and all the toppings for the perfect pick-and-eat nachos for a crowd. The chicken is mixed with your favorite enchilada sauce to add a saucy layer of protein that makes these nachos more than just an appetizer!
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“I made these yesterday they were DELISH!” -Lisa, FoodieCrush reader
Baking Nachos on a Sheet Pan Makes for Easy Cleanup
When I was a kid, my dad was the nacho maker. He started with every chip perfectly aligned on a sheet tray like soldiers in formation. Precise with his toppings, he gave each tortilla chip the perfect schmear of refried beans, a square of cheddar cheese, and a pickled jalapeño slice.
These shredded chicken nachos are not those. This version is a scattering of layers where picking out the cheesiest chip — my special talent — is made even more satisfying with layered bites of enchilada-sauced chicken, black beans, puckery pickled jalapeño, scoops of salsa, chunks of avocado, and black olives.
Like my Texas Trash Dip, it’s a cheesy chip union cementing each topping to another like teenage BFFs clinging to each other on the first day of high school.
Enjoy!
Ingredient Notes
The full recipe, with amounts, can be found in the recipe card below.
- Cooked chicken — I typically use either shredded rotisserie chicken or baked chicken breasts. I like the white meat of the chicken for these nachos because it’s easier to shred.
- Enchilada sauce — Use your favorite grocery store brand or make your own. I use red enchilada sauce but green would be good too.
- Yellow or white onion — Diced onion cooked in a bit of oil is added to the enchilada sauce for more depth of flavor.
- Tortilla chips — I like my chips made from white corn and I like them salty!
- Black beans — Thoroughly rinse the canned beans and drain well so they don’t leave dark streaks.
- Shredded Mexican cheese — I don’t usually use pre-shredded cheese but a good quality shredded cheese can come in clutch when you want to make these quick. If shredding your own, choose a cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese.
- Avocados — Here’s how to ripen avocados perfectly.
- Cotija cheese —This dry, crumbly cheese adds a tangy touch to the nacho bite.
- Black olives — I buy sliced black olives to save time, but halved olives work too.
- Green onion — A sprinkling of green onion adds a freshness to the baked nachos.
- Sour cream — Add a few dollops or thin the sour cream with a little water for drizzling.
How to Make Chicken Nachos in the Oven
- Cook the onion until softened, then add the shredded chicken and enchilada sauce. Cooking the onion adds a caramelized depth to the saucy chicken mixture.
- Use a sheet pan or oven-safe platter as your base for the nacho ingredients. If light cleanup is your thing, line the sheet pan with foil or parchment paper.
- Layer ⅓ of the tortilla chips in an even layer on the sheet pan and sprinkle ⅓ each of the black beans, chicken mixture, and shredded cheese. Repeat the layers two more times. Layering your nacho toppings ensures that each bite is fully loaded and that none of the chips turn super soggy under the weight of all that saucy chicken.
- Bake in a 400°F oven until the cheese is melted and the chips are lightly browned along the edges. Be watchful of burning the chips!
- Remove from the oven and add the toppings. Sprinkle the melty chips with avocado, cotija cheese, black olives, green onion, and pickled jalapeno. Drizzle with sour cream and serve immediately with salsa on the side.
More Topping Ideas
- Instead of chopped avocado, dollop chunky guacamole on top
- Substitute creamy homemade queso for the shredded Mexican cheese
- Instead of chicken, use leftover shredded Mexican pot roast, ground beef taco meat, braised salsa verde pork, or cilantro lime chicken
- Use pinto beans or refried beans instead of black beans
- Finish with chopped cilantro and serve with corn salsa or avocado salsa verde
- Add water, milk, or lime juice to the sour cream to make a thinner drizzle over the chips
- Replace the pickled jalapeño with quick pickled onions for a pickled bite with less spice
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating on this recipe below and leave a comment, take a photo and tag me on Instagram with #foodiecrusheats.
Shredded Chicken Nachos Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 small white onion , chopped
- 2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
- 1 cup enchilada sauce
- ½ bag white tortilla chips
- 1 (15-ounce) can black beans , drained and rinsed
- 10 ounces shredded Mexican cheese
- 2 avocados , skinned, pitted and chopped
- 4 ounces cotija cheese
- 1 (4-ounce) can sliced black olives
- ¼ cup green onion , chopped
- pickled jalapeños
- sour cream or Mexican crema
- restaurant-style salsa
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Make the saucy chicken. Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3-4 minutes or until the onion is softened. Add the shredded chicken and enchilada sauce, stir, and cook until warmed through.1 tablespoon vegetable oil, 1 small white onion, 2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken, 1 cup enchilada sauce
- Assemble the nachos. On a sheet pan or an oven-safe platter, add ⅓ of the tortilla chips in an even layer then top with ⅓ of the black beans, ⅓ of the chicken mixture, and ⅓ of the shredded cheese. Repeat the layers two more times.½ bag white tortilla chips, 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, 10 ounces shredded Mexican cheese
- Bake. Place the baking sheet in the oven and cook for 10-12 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the chips are lightly browned along the edges.
- Load on the toppings. Remove from the oven and top with avocado, cotija cheese, black olives, green onion, and pickled jalapeno. Drizzle with sour cream and serve immediately with salsa on the side.2 avocados, 4 ounces cotija cheese, 1 (4-ounce) can sliced black olives, ¼ cup green onion, pickled jalapeños, sour cream or Mexican crema , restaurant-style salsa
Notes
Nutrition
More Easy Mexican Appetizers
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The Healthy Apple
Love this Heidi! We made these on Sunday night and everyone was RAVING over them. Fabulous recipe. xoxo
Lisa@CreoleContessa
Update: I made these yesterday they were DELISH! I was not planning on making Nachos but my husband said he could not focus on the game without Nachos, LOL. I used smoked chicken instead of roasted because that is what I had cooked, but I followed the recipe exactly. So yummy, thank you for posting.
I’m so glad you liked them, I made them again for the Superbowl too and I think they may have made the lights in the stadium go out.
Bev @ Bev Cooks
This is the most fun my eyeballs have ever had.
OTEADOR DE LOS MERCADOS
A delicious recipe to taste a good avocado.
Kevin (Closet Cooking)
Now those are some fully loaded and tasty looking nachos!
Coming from the king of loaded nachos, thank you!
Miss @ Miss in the Kitchen
Love this and the addition of the enchilada sauce is nothing short of brilliant!
K-Fo
And the heavens opened up . . . these are calling my name!!
Michelle
These look delicious – think I will have to make them!
Sharla
I’ve always been a hue fan of nachos for dinner and love to switch up toppings. These look sooo good! Thanks for sharing.
Laura (Tutti Dolci)
These look mouthwatering, Heidi!
Karly
These look SO good! I love your photos!
Thanks so much Karly, it’s an ever evolving process.
Sarah | The Cyclist's Wife
I love the addition of enchilada sauce, these look really good! Your photos are beautiful too, thanks for the inspiration. :) Enjoy the Superbowl!
Sarah, thanks for the comment. The enchilada sauce certainly gives them a little kick, and juices them up too. I was home alone when I shot this and I ate almost the entire plate once I was done. So good.
Lisa@CreoleContessa
My all time favorite food to eat and make, especially on a busy night. It looks yummy!
Anna @ Crunchy Creamy Sweet
Love avocados with chicken! My Hubs will love these nachos!