Buffalo Chicken Sheet Pan Nachos

24 Oct Buffalo Chicken Sheet Pan Nachos

Have you ever ordered nachos where half of the tortilla chips are bare? Or dug into a messy plate of nachos with haphazard globs of cheese, canned jalapeno slices and a spoonful of sour cream and thought, “Man, this is flavorless.”  Nachos are pretty hit or miss, right?  Well, say good-bye to half-assed nachos with Buffalo Chicken Sheet Pan Nachos!

The secret to great nachos?  Make em’ and serve em’ on a sheet pan so you can evenly distribute all of the toppings. Oh, and add tons of flavor and texture.  Every. Single. Layer.  I quickly sautéed onion and garlic with muscle building, shredded rotisserie chicken and stirred in my fave thick, all natural buffalo sauce (Wing Time Buffalo Sauce can be found everywhere from Amazon to Whole Foods) for spicy flavor.  I then layered each and every nacho with sharp cheddar cheese (totally optional- these would be delish without if you’re dairy free),  buffalo chicken, an all-natural jarred salsa, sliced grape tomatoes, chopped red onion and fresh cilantro.  So easy, flavorful and a definite crowd pleaser!

You can make these nachos as healthy as you’d like simply by controlling how much cheese you add (or if you add it at all) and by avoiding extra toppings like sour cream.

Buffalo Chicken Sheet Pan Nachos

Makes about 6 to 8 servings

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 rotisserie chicken, meat pulled from skin and bones, shredded
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small white onion, chopped
• 2 large or 4 small garlic cloves, finely minced or grated on a microplane
• Squeeze of fresh lime
• Wing Time Buffalo Sauce (I buy mine at Whole Foods but its available online and some other markets)
• 1 bag of all natural, preferably organic, sturdy corn tortilla chips
• Sharp cheddar cheese or a blend of your favorite cheeses
• All natural jarred salsa (I don’t love the pico de gallo style salsas for this recipe, I like the thinner, restaurant style from the jar)
• 1 pint of grape tomatoes, chopped
• ½ red onion, finely chopped
• Can of black beans, preferably organic, rinsed and drained (optional!)
• Handful of fresh cilantro, gently rinsed, dried and chopped

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS:

• Guacamole
• Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to Low Broil.
2. Heat a large frying pan over medium high heat.  Let pan get hot. Once pan is hot, add drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Once olive oil gets hot, add onion and sauté approximately 6 minutes or until softened.
3. Stir in garlic and shredded chicken and sauté for a minute or so.
4. Pour in desired amount of Wing Time Buffalo Sauce. I like enough to coat the chicken but not so much that the mixture is really wet.  Add squeeze of fresh lime. Lower heat and cook for an additional moment or so.  Remove pan from heat and set aside.
5. On a large sheet pan, make one single layer of corn tortilla chips.  Add desired amount of cheese evenly to each chip (nothing worse than a bare chip!)  Next, using a spoon and your fingers if needed, add a little buffalo chicken mixture to the chips (you don’t want the chips too heavy so go light.)
6. Sprinkle on a little salsa with a spoon. Sprinkle on some tomatoes and onion.  Add beans if using.
7. Repeat the process above for a second layer.  Broil nachos on low for about 4 or 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
8. Top with fresh cilantro and serve!

SO, WHAT’S THE NUTRITION BALANCE?

This recipe actually has a good balance of protein, carbohydrates and fat and is a complete meal on its own.  To keep it healthy, go light on the cheese and you can skip the extra toppings like sour cream.