Pulled Pork Nachos

Are nachos and tortilla chips the same?

Nachos and tortilla chips are related but aren’t the same. The crispy round or triangular tortilla chips are simply the base ingredients for nachos, which is the name that refers to the entire dish with chips covered with toppings like cheese, sauce, and meat.

❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe

This nacho recipe highlights the taste of savory pulled pork and the gooey goodness of melted cheese held together by crunchy chips. But these aren’t the only reasons to fall in love with this dish.

• This recipe is customizable. Feel free to add your favorite toppings like green onions, pickles, avocado, or guacamole. Creativity is key, so feel free to get a lil crazy with customizing the snack.
• This is a quick and easy recipe. Anyone can whip up this nacho recipe even on busy days, as the cooking time takes less than 10 minutes.
• It is a feast for the eyes. With its colorful topping, this snack is not only delicious but also an incredible picturesque snack.

If you love the savory yet cheesy flavor of bbq pulled pork nachos, you should also try these instant pot Philly cheesesteak sliders!

If you’re looking for more nachos, give these steak fajita nachos a try.

🥘 Ingredients

Add these ingredients to your grocery list and make pulled pork nachos for your next gathering! 

• Pulled pork: I love using smoked pulled pork, but other pulled pork recipes and store-bought ones will also work.
• Restaurant-style tortilla chips: These corn tortilla chips will be the base of the nachos. Their neutral flavor will act as a canvas for the different toppings, and they’ll provide that satisfying crunch. 
• Shredded cheese: I used Mexican-style cheese, but feel free to use cheddar cheese and other types.
• Jalapeño peppers: The seeded and sliced jalapeños add vibrant color and a slight kick to the nachos. 
• Black olives: The briny flavor and earthy element of sliced black olives pair well with the other toppings. They elevate the dish and give it a hint of saltiness and a burst of umami flavor. 
• Barbeque sauce: A drizzle of bbq sauce enhances the pulled pork’s flavor. It also infuses the nachos with a bit of tangy flavor, smokiness, and a hint of sweetness.
• Sour cream: This adds a smoother texture to the nachos. At the same time, its creamy and cooling element balances out the heat from the jalapenos and the richness of the other ingredients. 
• Tomato: Chopped tomatoes add juicy freshness to the nachos, creating a refreshing contrast to the smoky and savory flavors of the other ingredients. 
• Fresh Cilantro leaves: Their bright green color and other vibrant elements add complexity to the nachos.

See recipe card for quantities.

🔀 Substitutions

Pulled pork: You can substitute shredded chicken or beef for pulled pork or use this Crockpot Carnitas Recipe. These meats also have that savory flavor and can be an alternative protein source for the nachos.

Restaurant-style tortilla chips: If you’re up for a challenge, you can make your own homemade tortilla chips.

Sour cream: If you don’t want to use sour cream, you can use Greek yogurt, which also offers a creamy texture and tangy flavor.

🌈 Variations / Options / Add-Ins

Adding pulled pork is one way to elevate your nachos recipe, but aside from that, there’s still so much more that you can do to ensure that everyone enjoys a plate of nachos!

• Kid-friendly Cheesy Nachos: To ensure that even the kids can enjoy eating nachos, you can use mild cheese, omit the jalapenos from this recipe, and serve the dish with mild salsa. 
• Breakfast Brunch Nachos: You can also turn this recipe into something well-suited for breakfast. Just add scrambled eggs, crumbled breakfast sausage, sauteed bell peppers, and a drizzle of salsa. 
• Loaded BBQ Nachos: Elevate these pulled pork nachos further by adding bbq-style toppings like caramelized onions, sauteed mushrooms, and crispy bacon. 

If you’re craving more Mexican food, try making some Chicken Slow Cooker Enchiladas, a dish that will surely have you asking for a second serving.

🥄 Equipment Needed / Helpful Tools

This easy pulled pork nachos recipe only requires a few tools that will help you make it quickly!

• Baking sheet: This is necessary to provide an even surface for baking the tortilla chips.
• Chopping board: You’ll need to do quite a lot of chopping for this recipe.

🔪 How to Make Pulled Pork Nachos

Making pulled pork nachos that everyone will surely devour in minutes requires very simple steps. Let me walk you through them!

Step 1: Prepare the oven

Preheat the oven to 375° F.

Step 2: Lay out the tortilla chips

Lay out the tortilla chips into an even layer in a baking pan. 

Step 3: Add the base toppings

After laying out the tortilla chips, take half of the shredded cheese and sprinkle it on the chips. 

Make sure that the cheese covers as many tortilla chips as possible. Then evenly distribute the pulled pork all over the nachos, and sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese over the pulled pork. 

Step 4: Add the veggie toppings

Once you’ve sprinkled the 2nd layer of cheese, you can top off the nachos with black olives, jalapeno peppers, and other optional toppings that you like. 

Step 5: Bake the nachos

Bake the nachos for 5 to 8 minutes in the oven until the cheese has melted. 

Step 6: Add the sauce and other garnishes

After baking, drizzle bbq sauce and sour cream on top of the nachos. Then, add the chopped tomatoes and cilantro to complete the dish.

Step 7: Serve and enjoy

Immediately serve the nachos and enjoy the goodness of the combination of pulled pork and melty cheese!

👩‍🍳 Pro Tips

• Feel free to swap out the vegetables recommended in the recipe with your preferred toppings. 
• Make sure to add the meat and melted cheese on top of the tortilla chips first so that the wet toppings won’t make the chips soggy.

❓ Recipe FAQs

🙏 Pairing

These are my favorite dishes to serve with pulled pork nachos: