Chicken Nachos
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These ultimate sheet pan chicken nachos start with rotisserie chicken simmered in a smoky chipotle-tomato sauce, piled with cheese, and baked until melty and crisp. Easy enough for a weeknight, fun for a party, and always a hit.
When I want a dinner that feels a little fun, I turn to these sheet pan chicken nachos. Alongside my favorite beef nachos, they’re one of the few “appetizers” I can reliably pass off as a meal. Piled high with pulled rotisserie chicken simmered in a smoky, chipotle-tomato sauce with generous layers of melty cheese, they’re insanely delicious. And everyone is happy when I say, “Nachos for dinner!”
This homemade chicken nachos recipe yields two generous sheet pans—perfect for game day spreads, movie nights, or casual family dinners. The chicken mixture is so flavorful you can repurpose it into chicken quesadillas, chicken tacos, or crispy tostadas later in the week. Serve your nachos with bowls of salsa, guacamole, sour cream, and maybe even a pitcher of margaritas if you’re feeling festive.
Whether you’re feeding a crowd or just want a no-fuss, one-pan dinner that doesn’t skimp on flavor, these baked chicken nachos hit all the right notes. Crisp chips, saucy chicken, and gooey cheese—what more could you want?
“BEST NACHOS HANDS DOWN. My husband and I are obsessed!”
How to make chicken nachos
Step 1: Make the chicken topping. Cook the onion and garlic in a large skillet with olive oil until soft and translucent. Be sure to stir frequently and make sure they don’t brown. You may need to reduce the heat if they start to brown.
Add the tomato sauce, chipotle peppers and sauce, sugar, cumin, oregano, and salt to the skillet with the onions. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil and then reduce the heat to low. Simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes to concentrate the flavor.
Add the shredded chicken and cilantro to the sauce in the skillet and mix until everything is evenly combined.
Step 2: Assemble the nachos. Arrange the tortilla chips in a single layer, overlapping slightly, on two 13 x 18-inch baking sheets. Spread the chicken evenly over the chips. Sprinkle shredded Mexican blend cheese and grated pecorino Romano cheese evenly over the chicken.
Step 3: Bake and Serve. Bake your sheet pan chicken nachos until the cheese is melted. Remove the nachos from the oven, then sprinkle with scallions and cilantro. Serve immediately with the toppings on the side.
Jenn’s Pro Tips for the Best Sheet Pan Nachos
- Don’t skimp on the cheese: I know almost 8 cups of cheese seems like a lot, but loaded chicken nachos require a generous topping of melted cheese. Plus, light-on-the-cheese nachos are just plain sad!
- Time savers: Rotisserie chicken and a quick guacamole will save you time. For a quick version of guacamole, mash some diced avocado with a little lime juice and salt to taste.
- Make ahead: Nachos are best served immediately. If you want to get ahead of things you can make the chicken up to two days in advance and store in the refrigerator. Make sure to warm it up slightly before layering your nachos.
- Layer evenly: Make sure the chips are in a single layer and you spread out the toppings to ensure every chip has toppings.
- Customize the toppings: You can swap the chicken for another protein such as shredded beef or pork or feel free to add additional toppings like jalapeños, black beans, or corn.
- Serving ideas: Turn your chicken nachos into a full meal with Mexican rice or your other favorite Mexican dishes on the side! It’s also perfect for parties or game day gatherings served with other party appetizers such as 7 layer dip, baked chicken wings, and pigs in a blanket.
More Mexican-inspired recipes to try
Sheet Pan Chicken Nachos
Nachos for dinner? Always a win. These sheet pan chicken nachos are loaded with saucy pulled chicken and plenty of melty cheese.
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 2 large cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 (8-oz) can tomato sauce
- 2 tablespoons minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, plus 1 tablespoon sauce from can
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 cups shredded cooked chicken, from 1 rotisserie chicken
- ¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro (optional)
For the Nachos
- 1 (13-oz) bag tortilla chips
- 7 cups (28 oz) shredded Mexican blend cheese
- ⅔ cup grated pecorino Romano cheese
- ¼ cup finely sliced scallions, from 2 to 3 scallions
- ¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro
For Serving (Optional)
- Guacamole
- Sour cream
- Limes wedges
Instructions
For the Chicken
- Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Do not brown; reduce the heat if necessary.
- Add the tomato sauce, chipotle peppers and sauce, sugar, cumin, oregano, and salt. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes. Stir in the chicken and cilantro.
For the Nachos
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and set two racks in the center of the oven.
- Arrange the tortilla chips in a single layer, overlapping slightly, on two 13 x 18-inch baking sheets. Spread the chicken evenly over the chips, followed by the cheeses.
- Bake until the cheese is melted, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove the nachos from the oven, then sprinkle with scallions and cilantro. Serve immediately, passing the guacamole, sour cream, and lime wedges separately.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: The chicken mixture can be made in advance and refrigerated up to 2 days ahead of time. Warm the chicken to room temperature in the microwave before assembling the nachos.
- Note: The nutritional information does not include the optional ingredients for serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (10 appetizer-sized servings)
- Calories: 624
- Fat: 42 g
- Saturated fat: 18 g
- Carbohydrates: 29 g
- Sugar: 3 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 32 g
- Sodium: 677 mg
- Cholesterol: 115 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Comments
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If my family doesn’t like spicy but I’d like to try this what do you recommend?
Hi Allison, Unfortunately, there’s not a perfect non-spicy substitute for chipotles in adobo. You might try about 3 tablespoons of a not-sweet barbecue sauce. Please LMK how the nachos turn out if you try it!
Awesome! Loved this recipe. Super easy and delicious.
“Winner, winner, chicken din … nachos!” The outcome from this recipe is delicious!
As usual with Jenn’s recipes I trusted it without testing it. Had to make an app with very short notice. I had everything except the canned adobe. So as Jenn suggested I substituted that with smoked paprika and Wow! These nachos are so good…the smoky flavor and addition of the Pecorino Romano cheese added something different and amazing. It took regular nachos and kicked it up several notches. Thank you for another reliable delicious recipe! xoxo
Hi Jenn,
Do you think I could use regular Romano cheese instead of the Pecorino – it was all I could find at the store. I have Asiago and Parmesan also.
Sure, Colleen, that should work. Hope you enjoy!
these were fantastic, I make nachos all the time, I tried this and it was a game changer, they were fantastic
These are so ridiculously simple compared to the complicated chicken nachos I used to make! The complicated version — with marinated, then sauteed chicken that is then simmered in a sauce — is indeed very tasty… BUT so is this recipe and it’s ten times easier using the store-bought rotisserie chicken!
Thank you ten times over for this recipe, Jenn! We love chicken nachos, and this recipe really nips the craving without so much effort.
Pro tip for anyone else reading (maybe Jenn mentioned it in the recipe write-up, I can’t remember!) — I don’t know if I’ve *ever* used a whole can of chipotles in Adobo sauce, and I hate to waste, so whatever remains from a can I put in my mini food processor and blitz til it’s smooth. Then I put it in a tiny tupperware and it lives on the door of the freezer for a few months. When I want chipotle flavor, I use a teaspoon to scrape as much of the frozen paste as I want, instead of using the powdered spice. Also fab to simply mix in to sour cream with a little lime for a wicked chip dip.
Love that tip! Very important to find ways not to waste food. Thanks!
I do the same thing with leftover chipotle in adobo, but no need to freeze it. I keep it in the fridge door in a glass jar. It also keeps for a few months this way!
Thank you for that tip!!!!! Great idea (I hate wasting food also).
Thank you again Tina
Lisa
These were great! I paired these with the Stacked Beef Enchiladas from Once Upon a Chef.
BEST CHICKEN NACHOSI EVER MADE!!! As a kid we used to beg to go to the local Mexican place to get this yummy appetizer, and this brought me back to 1975!!
Incredible and makes a ton! You don’t need a lot of these to get full! Love anything I can use rotessiere chicken with after a long day at the office.
Thank you for a delicious way to use up leftover chicken and make a delicious meal. Your recipes (and your cookbook) continue to inspire us to get into the kitchen and make something yummy!!!