Cheesy Chicken Pepper Nachos are quick and easy, spicy, and healthy because they use sweet peppers instead of tortilla chips, and are topped with couscous, black beans, Mexican spiced chicken, pico de gallo salsa, and shredded Sargento® Off the Block 4 Cheese Mexican.
In today’s post, not only am I sharing a quick and easy, yummy recipe made with Sargento cheese.
After work, I love sitting on the couch and turning on the TV to watch The Food Network. One of my favorite shows is Chopped. The premise is 4 restaurant chefs come together to compete against each other. Each chef is given a basket with the same ingredients. Then they have to create, cook, and plate an original recipe, featuring the specified ingredients, within a certain time limit. Appetizers are 20 minutes, Main Dishes are 30 minutes, etc. It is fun to see how creative these chefs can get with often some unique ingredients.
Given that I am such a fan of the show, I was beyond ecstatic when I was contacted to participate in the #ChoppedatHome campaign, and create a recipe using the ingredients they specified. Thankfully, in this home version of Chopped, while there is a deadline, we do not have the strict time limits that those for the restaurant chefs. Secondly, the ingredients included in our “virtual basket” are ones that I use and love. These included:
Sargento® Off the Block 4 Cheese Mexican
Sargento® Off the Block 4 Cheese Mexican shredded cheese is a brand I buy regularly. The fine cut of this blend of shredded cheeses, including Monterey Jack, Mild Cheddar, Queso Quesadilla, and Asadero cheeses, melts quickly and provides a deliciously creamy and smooth Mexican flavor.
Boneless chicken tenders
These are boneless, skinless chicken breasts that cut into smaller strips.
Couscous
A staple of North Africa, couscous is a tiny pasta made of wheat or barley. In North America, “instant” or quick-cooking wheat couscous is the most widely available version. Since couscous doesn’t have a lot of flavor on its own, it works well as a base for vegetable or meat dishes, or even in salads. It can be flavored with herbs and provides a very neutral base for all sorts of dishes.
Salsa
Although commonly used in Mexican cuisines, in North America many variations of salsa exist from red and green salsas to fruit salsas, such as mango salsa, or black bean and corn salsas. For this recipe, I used my own recipe for pico de gallo salsa, made with tomatoes, onions, garlic, and jalapeños to use in this recipe.
Other ingredients I used in this recipe include Black Beans, Cilantro, Green Bell Peppers, and Red, Yellow, and Orange Mini Sweet Peppers.
With two ingredients commonly used in Mexican cuisine, and one in Middle Eastern cuisine, I debated on which cuisine to focus on. Ultimately, I decided to make Cheesy Chicken Pepper Nachos because, while typically a Mexican dish, I can include spices commonly found in both Mexican and Middle Eastern cuisines.
Let’s get cooking! First, I made the couscous per the package directions, by adding it to boiling water, then removing it from the heat and letting it sit for about 5 minutes. Then I fluffed the couscous with a fork and added black beans and cilantro. This will be placed on top of our nachos, as well as be served as a side dish.
Then I sliced the mini sweet peppers in half and removed the seeds. I also sliced a bell pepper into about the same size slices as the mini sweet peppers. These will be our “tortilla chips.”
Then I spooned the couscous mixture over the sweet bell pepper slices and set aside.
Next, I mixed together with salt, black pepper, cumin, oregano, and cayenne to season the chicken. The lemon and garlic will be used when I cook the chicken.
I cut the chicken tenders into bite-size pieces and then sprinkled them with the spice mix.
Then I sautéed the chicken in a skillet over medium high heat for about 2 to 3 minutes on each side.
Then add the cooked chicken pieces on top of the nachos.
Sprinkle generously with Sargento® Off the Block 4 Cheese Mexican, and bake for about 5 to 7 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Top with Pico De Gallo Salsa.
Your Cheesy Chicken Pepper Nachos are ready to serve! Feel free to add additional toppings such as sour cream or guacamole.
These nachos are flavorful, spicy, colorful, and delicious. What really takes them over the top is the Sargento® Off the Block 4 Cheese Mexican. Its fine shreds of Monterey Jack, Mild Cheddar, Queso Quesadilla, and Asadero cheeses add a creamy, smooth flavor to these nachos. I like knowing that Sargento® Shredded Cheese is always cut from blocks of 100% real, natural cheese. For more inspiration, visit Sargento.com for more information.
I’m so excited that Sargento® gives you a chance to create your best recipe using the selected basket ingredients, including Sargento Shredded Cheese.
What recipe will you submit to the Chopped At Home contest featuring Sargento cheese?
Cheesy Chicken Pepper Nachos
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
- 6 mini bell peppers (red, green, yellow, orange)
- 1 (16-ounce) package couscous
- 1 (15-ounce) can black beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast tenders (cut into about 1" cubes)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne optional
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1-1/2 cups Sargento® Off the Block 4 Cheese Mexican
- 1 cup pico de gallo salsa
- Garnish with sour cream guacamole, chopped green onions or chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Slice mini bell peppers in half.
- Spray a baking pan with cooking spray.
- Spread the mini bell pepper slices evenly on the baking pan. Drizzle with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
- Bake the mini bell pepper slices in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until just slightly soft.
- Prepare couscous according to package directions. Drain. Add drained and rinsed black beans and chopped cilantro to the couscous. Set aside.
- Season chicken with salt, pepper, cumin, oregano, and cayenne.
- In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, add oil. Add minced garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Add cubed chicken and cook for about 3 minutes. Turn chicken and cook for another 3 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.
- Spoon couscous mixture on top of the sweet bell peppers.
- Spoon the chicken on top of the mini bell pepper slices. Sprinkle with shredded Sargento Off the Blog 4-Cheese Mexican on top.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and everything is heated through.
- Top with Pico de Gallo salsa.
Nutrition
Available in 30 versatile varieties, unique blends and distinct cuts, Sargento Shredded Cheese is always cut from blocks of 100% real, natural cheese. For more inspiration, visit Sargento.com for more information. The Chopped at Home Challenge gives viewers a chance to create their best recipe using the selected basket ingredients, including Sargento Shredded Cheese, for a chance to win $10,000!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Sargento. The opinions and text are all mine.
Available in 30 versatile varieties, unique blends, and distinct cuts, Sargento Shredded Cheese is always cut from blocks of 100% real, natural cheese. For more inspiration, visit Sargento.com for more information. The Chopped at Home Challenge gives viewers a chance to create their best recipe using the selected basket ingredients, including Sargento Shredded Cheese, for a chance to win $10,000!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Sargento. The opinions and text are all mine.
