My husband and I met quite a few years ago when we were both done with college and working within each of our chosen careers. We grew up in completely different parts of the country – he grew up in a small farming town in a northern state, while I grew up in one of the larger cities in a southern state. We met in the town we currently live in, and the rest is history!
Over the course of our relationship, I have cooked many meals for him – from the time we were just starting to date to present day where I make most meals every night. We have always made it a priority to have dinner together – it’s something we both grew up with and it is something we both feel is important to our young, growing family. I know it might sound old-fashioned, but it really does make a difference in our lives.
Because I truly enjoy cooking, I have a pretty wide array of meals that I like to/learn to make. (I am planning to share a bunch of them with you all through this blog!) Some meals go over better than others, for sure. I have definitely learned what kinds of foods T enjoys best, too. This particular chicken recipe is one of the dishes my husband requests the most. We call it “Nacho Chicken” or “Dorito Chicken.” I have even heard of a version of it called “Relleno Chicken” too. Needless to say, a frequently requested meal that everyone likes is always a good one in my book.
While the chicken does take a little prep time, you can easily complete the prep work in the morning and then cook the chicken for dinner that night. It comes out great! I usually serve it with vegetables or a salad, but T requested it with mashed potatoes once and that was a super good pairing too!
Nacho Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 thinly-sliced chicken breasts
- ¼ cup flour
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 9.5 oz. bag Nacho Cheese Doritos
- ¼ cup diced green chilies
- ½ cup fiesta or Mexican blend shredded cheese
Instructions
- Spray a 9×13 pan (or baking sheet) with non-stick spray and preheat the oven to 425°.
- Crush the Doritos into crumbs and set aside.
- Combine the milk and beaten egg and set aside.
- Dip each chicken breast into flour to evenly coat all sides. Shake off any excess.
- Dip each flour-coated chicken breast into the milk and egg mixture.
- Finally, place the chicken breasts in the crushed Doritos, pressing the crumbs into the chicken so they will stick. The goal is to get as much of the crumbs to stick as possible.
- Set the chicken in the prepared pan in a single layer and bake uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. If the chicken is getting brown too fast, cover it with aluminum foil while baking.
- Take the pan out of the oven and spread each chicken breast with about 1 tablespoon of diced green chilies. Then, sprinkle about ⅛ cup of cheese over the chicken and chilies.
- Return the chicken to the oven and bake uncovered for an additional 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and slightly golden.
Notes
- I usually set up a dredging station with three plates, gallon freezer bags, or pie pans when I need to coat chicken.
- You can use all-purpose flour or wheat flour for this recipe – I have tried both and they both work well.
- I sometimes add a little salt and pepper to the flour before coating the chicken, but the Doritos definitely add the flavor, so be sure not to add too much if you choose to do that.
- You can coat the chicken earlier in the day, cover the pan with foil or plastic wrap, and the place it in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake it. This may change the baking time slightly, but it has always worked well for me.
- This chicken tastes great with a variety of side dishes – salad, green beans, rice, hashbrowns, etc.
