Chicken Nachos

Forget politics. The Super Bowl is America’s Grand Old Party and the XLII-th contest happens February 3.

St. Louisans, we may miss the Kurt Warner glory years, but look on the bright side. The Rams’ 3 – 13 season lets us point our remote controls to the Big Game’s best plays: the television commercials, the half-time show and the party food. Go team!

GAME-DAY PRETZELS Warm 6 ounces of popcorn oil, then stir in a packet of Ranch dressing mix, 2 teaspoons of dill weed and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder. With your hands, work into 2 pounds of small traditional-shaped pretzels. Place in pans to dry. Best made 24 hours before serving.
PICKLED JALAPEÑO RINGS These homemade refrigerator pickles keep in the fridge for months. Just pack a clean glass jar with thin slices of fresh jalapeño rings, then slip in thin carrot slices and a bay leaf. Bring 1:1 volumes of water:vinegar to a boil, add half a teaspoon salt per cup of liquid. Fill the jar, let it cool, add a lid, then refrigerate for a week before serving. Delicious!
ALANNA's TIPS For a flash of color, use one green and one red pepper. One breast from a rotisserie chicken works beautifully, so does leftover roast turkey or chicken. A Mexican cheese blend adds bite. If you like, stir chopped cilantro and minced pickled jalapeño rings into the sour cream.
Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Send your favorite party recipe to e-mail.

CHICKEN NACHOS

Party food in a flash
Hands-on time: 30 minutes
Time to table: 45 minutes
Serves 4 as entrée, 8 - 12 as appetizer
  • 15 ounces canned black beans
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 bell peppers (see TIPS), sliced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • Salt & pepper to taste

  • 1/2 pound cooked chicken (see TIPS), chopped or shredded
  • Zest and juice of a lime
  • Salt & pepper to taste

    • TOPPINGS
  • 3 chopped green onions (don’t skip)
  • 1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 2 cups (8 ounces) grated cheese (see TIPS)
  • Pickled jalapeño pepper rings

  • 4 ounces tortilla chips
  • 1/2 cup sour cream (see TIPS)
  • Salsa

Preheat oven to 450F. Rinse and drain beans in a colander. In a skillet, heat oil til shimmery. Add peppers, garlic and spices; cook, stirring often, til just cooked but still colorful. Stir in beans; warm through. Meanwhile, toss chicken, lime zest and juice, salt and pepper.

In oven-safe dish, layer half the bean mixture, half the chicken mixture and half the toppings, leaving room to arrange along tortilla chips around perimeter. Repeat, then arrange chips. Bake til cheese melts, 10 – 15 minutes. Serve with sour cream and salsa. Dig in!

NUTRITION ESTIMATE Per Entrée Serving: 730 Cal; 38g Tot Fat; 18g Sat Fat; 54g Carb; 14g Fiber; 701mg Sodium; 116g Cholesterol; Weight Watchers 17 points

Rotisserie Chicken Makes for Easy Preparation

(click a photo for a recipe)
Asian Chicken Salad Chicken Veggie Quesadillas Chickpea & Chicken Salad

Save the chicken carcass to make Easy Homemade Chicken Stock!

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Your Comments:

So you don't actually have to 'can' the jalapenos? They just stay in the refrig? PS Wow, lots of calories in nachos.
Anonymous Ali on 1/25/2008
 
Ali ~ Right, that's what refrigerator pickles are, ones that stay good just by being left in the refrigerator. Some last a couple of weeks, these have been in my fridge for over a year and are still good. PS No kidding. You can reduce the calories by leaving out the chips but they're a definite indulgence. I suspect lots of people don't know, I sure didn't.
Blogger Alanna on 1/25/2008
 
In re Game Day Pretzels - doesn't that knock all the salt off? Sounds good though. BTW - Kurt started out in Des Moines as the arena bowl star. When he left arena football just died. Damn! The commercials are the only thing worth watching now. Great recipes Alanna - thanks!
Blogger Sally on 1/26/2008
 
Sally ~ If the salt came off, I didn't notice, perhaps because IF it did, like most packaged mixes, the Hidden Vally dressing mix has lots of sodium.

I REMEMBER that about Kurt Warner, here they talked about the 'former Hy-Vee bagger'. Those were fun years!
Blogger Alanna on 1/26/2008