Italian Nachos

These Italian nachos are one of my favorite game day appetizers. Loaded with chicken breast, these baked nachos are quick to make and are perfect for feeding a crowd.

Delicious and cheesy, they need to make an appearance at your next event!

I’m not sure why, but I can’t stop recreating my favorites that are no longer accessible. I’ve been obsessing over Addison’s Italian nachos for over 12 years. Addison’s is one of my favorite restaurants in Columbia, Missouri, where Chris claims to have taken me on a date years ago.

If only I had realized it was a date. Oops. Years later, we laughed about it and frequented it together. Now I try to time our trips between St. Louis and Kansas City so that we have to stop for lunch or dinner in Columbia.

Why You’ll Love these Italian Nachos

It’s difficult to find really great nachos. I never knew I was a nacho connoisseur, but I have had a lot of bad nachos since we moved to St. Louis. Seriously.

Either the cheese sauce disappoints or the chicken is too dry, but I’ve yet to find a great plate of nachos. So instead, we make them at home – like these chicken nachos or Doritos nachos.

This is my absolute favorite way to prepare chicken – it’s always cooked through, but moist. I think you’re going to love it!

Ingredients

• Chicken Breast, Oil and Pepper – Bake the chicken breasts and then cube it to put on the nachos. 
• Pasta Chips – Italian nachos are amazing with pasta chips but tortilla chips work well, too!
• Heavy Cream – To make a thick, creamy cheese sauce.
• Butter – Salted or unsalted, either work well.
• Asiago – An Italian cows milk cheese. It is similar to parmesan but it is nuttier and creamier.
• Monterey Jack – Use shredded Monterey jack to top the nachos for an extra cheesy bite.
• Banana Pepper – Banana Peppers pair so well with these nachos adding amazing flavor, color and texture.
• Tomato – Diced.
• Green Onion – For flavor and to garnish.
• Olives – (not shown)…truly the options are endless! Top to your preference.

Nachos are all about texture for me, so these nachos are topped with crunchy banana pepper and green onion and soft diced tomato. They bring freshness to the rich cheese sauce as well as a beautiful tri color appearance.

How To Make Italian Nachos

1. Prep – Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Bake Chicken Breast – Brush chicken breast with olive oil and crack fresh pepper onto both sides. Place it in a baking dish and bake 20 minutes. Remove and allow to rest for 10 minutes before cutting it into cubes.
3. Make the Asiago Cream Sauce – In a saucepan over medium, add cream and butter. Bring to a light boil and whisk in asiago until almost smooth.
4. Assemble – Spoon sauce over chips onto individual plates or a large casserole dish (depending on how you’re serving). Add shredded cheese, pepper, tomato, green onion and cubed chicken.
5. Bake 4 minutes.

Can You Make Italian Nachos Ahead Of Time?

These nachos are best served straight out of the oven so that the cheese is wonderfully melty. Because they have a cheese sauce, they’re best assembled and served fresh out of the oven.

However, you can make the chicken and sauce ahead of time and prep all ingredients and put these together just before you’re ready to serve.

Tips

• I prefer to cube chicken for these nachos, but you can shred it with two forks if you prefer.
• If you can’t find asiago cheese, you can substitute it with parmesan.
• To save on time, you can use rotisserie chicken or packaged chicken.
• This makes one of the best Italian Side Dishes!