Bbq Chicken Nachos

These BBQ chicken nachos with shredded bbq chicken, melty cheese, ranch, and cilantro over crispy tortilla chips are a fun and easy twist on traditional nachos.

Last month I shared the recipes for my favorite BBQ shredded chicken , and my favorite meal to make with it, BBQ chicken sandwiches . Today I have another BBQ chicken recipe for you, but something a little more fun and a little less practical, BBQ chicken nachos.

This recipe makes a full half sheet pan, double-layer of homemade nachos that are perfect for sharing. They’re super easy to throw together and a very fun twist on traditional nachos.

BBQ chicken nachos with ranch and bbq sauce drizzled on. - 1

The first time I ever tried BBQ chicken nachos, I was a little hesitant about the flavor combo, but after you take the first bite, it’s surprisingly irresistible. The tangy sweetness of the bbq sauce and chicken is just so good with the crunchy, salty chips and melty cheese.

If you like some sweet with your savory, you will love these.

Ingredients

BBQ shredded chicken: I included the recipe for my favorite bbq shredded chicken in the recipe card below, but if you have leftover bbq chicken that will work just fine.
A mix of cheeses: In the recipe, I call for a mixture of Monterey, sharp cheddar, and smoked gouda cheese. I like the way Monterey melts for nachos, the sharp bite of the cheddar, and the smokey flavor of the smoked gouda is really delicious paired with the chicken. But you can use whatever melty cheese or cheese combo you’d like here. If you want to keep things simple, a Monterey cheddar blend will work great. I do not recommend using all smoked gouda as it doesn’t melt quite as prettily on nachos as the other cheeses.
Onions, tomatoes, and jalapeños: If you’re not a fan of heat, the jalapeños are optional. You can also replace the onions, tomatoes, and jalapeños with store-bought pico de gallo if you’re in a hurry.
Cilantro: Cilantro looks pretty sprinkled over the top of the nachos, but it also really helps bring all the flavors of the nachos together. Unless you don’t like cilantro, don’t skip it!

Collage photo of BBQ chicken nachos being assembled. - 2

Collage photo of BBQ chicken nachos being assembled. - 3

How to Make BBQ Chicken Nachos

Cook the BBQ shredded chicken by lightly browning chicken breasts in butter and then simmering them in BBQ sauce until cooked through. Shred the chicken and set it aside.
Assemble the nachos with two layers of chips and toppings. Do a layer of chips topped with half of the toppings and cheese followed by a second layer of chips and the remaining toppings. Layering the nachos like this means that you will get cheese and chicken in every bite instead of eating a single layer of toppings and having a bunch of dry chips underneath.
Bake until cheese is melted , watching closely as the chip edges can begin to burn if left unattended.
Add toppings: Top with cilantro, more BBQ sauce, and ranch, and enjoy!

Collage photo of BBQ chicken nachos being assembled. - 4

Collage photo of BBQ chicken nachos being assembled. - 5

Additional Toppings

You can add any toppings you’d like to these nachos like…

Guacamole
Sour cream
Black beans (warm before adding)
Corn (warm before adding)
Chopped pineapple

Tips and Tricks

Be sure you’re using warm chicken when assembling the nachos. They don’t cook long enough to reheat cold chicken. If your chicken has begun to cool by the time you’re ready to make the nachos, reheat it on the stove or if using leftover chicken, warm it in the microwave before assembling.

BBQ chicken nacho being picked up from a sheet pan. - 6

BBQ chicken nacho being picked up from a sheet pan. - 7

Can I make these nachos ahead of time?

I don’t recommend it. Nachos are always best right out of the oven. Don’t try to bake them in advance. But you can cook the BBQ chicken and cut/shred the rest of your ingredients ahead of time. Assembling the nachos takes less than 5 minutes if the rest of your ingredients are all ready to go.

Close photo of barbecue chicken nachos. - 8

Close photo of barbecue chicken nachos. - 9

Can I make these nacho fries instead of using chips?

Sure! Like my carne asada fries and carnitas fries , bbq chicken fries are totally irresistible. Use a 28-ounce bag of frozen fries and bake them according to package instructions until they are just done. Add the toppings and continue to bake until the cheese is melted, about 5 minutes.

This makes too many nachos. Can I cut the recipe in half?

Absolutely. This recipe halves with no preparation changes needed. A half batch can be baked on a quarter sheet baking pan or in a 9×13-inch casserole dish .

To change the recipe yield, hover over the serving size in the recipe card below or click if you’re on mobile, and slide the slider.

Nacho Cheese
Homemade Carnitas (or Slow Cooker Carnitas )
Country-style Pork Ribs
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

BBQ chicken nachos being picked up from a sheet pan. - 10

Ingredients

BBQ Shredded Chicken

▢ 1 cup barbecue sauce
▢ ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
▢ ¼ cup water
▢ 1½ to 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts about 4 small or 2 large*
▢ Salt and pepper
▢ 3 tablespoons ( 42g ) butter salted or unsalted is fine

Nachos

▢ 1 13 to 16-ounce bag of tortilla chips
▢ 3 cups ( 12oz ) shredded cheese I used 1 cup each of monterey jack, sharp cheddar, and smoked gouda
▢ 1 to 2 roma tomatoes chopped
▢ ½ red onion diced
▢ 1 to 2 jalapeños sliced, optional
▢ Barbecue sauce for topping
▢ Ranch dressing for topping
▢ ½ cup chopped, loosely packed cilantro for topping

Instructions

BBQ Shredded Chicken

Preheat oven to 425°F. In a medium bowl, whisk together barbecue sauce, apple cider vinegar, and water. Set aside.
Pat chicken breasts dry and lightly salt and pepper both sides. Heat a large skillet with a lid over medium-high heat and melt butter.
Add chicken breasts to the pan and cook until lightly browned. Flip the chicken breasts and pour barbecue sauce mixture over the top.
Bring sauce to a simmer and reduce heat to medium-low, keeping the sauce at just a simmer. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Flip the chicken, re-cover, and continue to cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat reads 165°F, usually around 3 to 6 minutes more.
Transfer the chicken to a cutting board, and allow it to rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Allow the sauce to continue simmering uncovered, stirring occasionally, until it thickens.
Shred chicken breasts and return shredded chicken to the pan of sauce. Stir until well-coated.

Nachos

Cover a half sheet baking tray with half of the chips followed by half each of the cheese, shredded BBQ chicken*, tomatoes, onions, and jalapeños. Layer remaining chips over the top followed by remaining chicken, tomatoes, onions, jalapeños, and finishing everything off with the last of the cheese.
Bake for 6 to 8 minutes, until cheese is melted. Drizzle additional BBQ sauce and ranch dressing over the top* and then sprinkle with cilantro. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

This easy Iced Mocha recipe is so simple to make, you’ll only need about five minutes to throw it together.

Hey, friend. As you might know, I have a ton of coffee recipes on the site, and I’ve gotten a bunch of questions about turning some of them into iced versions of themselves.

Doing that is a tiny bit more complicated than just pouring them over ice, so I went through my coffee archives and created iced versions of the most-requested drinks, because summer is coming fast, and cold coffee makes it just a little more bearable.

Today we’re covering one of my faves, a homemade Iced Mocha.

Homemade iced mocha in a mason jar. - 11

Homemade iced mocha in a mason jar. - 12

A Super Easy Iced Mocha Recipe

Like homemade mochas , iced mochas are incredibly simple to make at home. You just need milk, cocoa powder, sugar, cold coffee, and a little optional whipping cream for added richness.

If you have cold coffee on hand (more on that later if you don’t), it will take you about five minutes to throw everything together, pour over ice, and satisfy those caffeine and chocolate cravings. <3

Ingredient Notes

Milk: By default, Starbucks uses 2% milk in their coffee drinks, but you can use any milk you’d like including non-dairy milks. The higher fat your milk, the richer and creamier your drink will be.
Homemade chocolate syrup: Instead of using store-bought chocolate syrup or hot chocolate mix as many homemade recipes do, you’ll make a quick syrup of cocoa powder, sugar, and water to flavor the mocha base.
Heavy cream: Cream is optional, but a little splash adds a really delicious richness to the coffee. For leftover heavy cream, check out my post What to Do With Leftover Whipping Cream for storage tips and recipe ideas for the leftovers.

How to Make an Iced Mocha at Home

First, you’ll whisk together sugar, cocoa powder, and a little milk on the stove over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and you get a smooth chocolate syrup.
Then you just mix a bit more milk and cold coffee into the syrup , stir, and pour over ice.
Top with whipped cream if desired , and if you’d like to garnish your mocha with fudge sauce as I did in the photos, this is the fudge sauce recipe I used.

How to Quickly Chill Coffee

As mentioned above, you’ll want to use cold coffee in this recipe because pouring a warm mocha over ice is just going to water it down too much. If you can plan ahead, pop some leftover coffee in the refrigerator the night before, and you’ll be good to go come morning.

But if you need an iced mocha now and don’t have any cold coffee in the fridge, here’s what you can do:

Brew a pot of coffee at double strength and pour over a cup of ice (about 1 heaping cup of ice per 1 cup of coffee). The ice will melt, chilling the coffee while bringing it down to normal strength. Freeze any leftover coffee into ice cubes that you can use next time without worrying about watering down your coffee.
OR pour hot coffee into a large cup and place it in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes until it has cooled to at least room temperature. Don’t forget about it though! 😉

I Want a Mocha Frappuccino

And finally, if mocha frappes are more your thing, not a problem. Instead of pouring your mocha over ice, blend it with 1 1/2 cups of ice. I also recommend upping the sugar a bit. Since you are blending in ice, it’s going to be much less sweet than the over-ice version.

And pro tip: for extra goodness, swirl fudge sauce around the glass before pouring in the frappuccino. It’s beautiful AND delicious.

Can I make this in the microwave instead of on the stovetop?

Absolutely. You can make the chocolate syrup in the microwave instead of on the stove by combining 2 tablespoons of the milk, the sugar, and the cocoa powder in a microwave safe cup. Microwave until steaming, about 30 seconds, and stir until completely smooth. Then follow the rest of the recipe as written.

Can I double this recipe?

Yes! The recipe scales up with no preparation changes needed. To change the recipe yield, hover over the serving size in the recipe card below or click if you’re on mobile, and slide the slider.

Photo of iced mocha with whipped cream and chocolate drizzle. - 15

Photo of iced mocha with whipped cream and chocolate drizzle. - 16

How much caffeine is in a homemade iced mocha?

It will vary from recipe to recipe, but in this homemade version, there is 1 cup of coffee which averages about 96 grams of caffeine.

More Iced Coffee Recipes

Iced White Chocolate Mocha
Iced Caramel Macchiato
Iced Chai Latte
Iced Caramel Latte