Vegetarian Irish Nachos

These vegetarian Irish nachos are made with crispy, thinly sliced russet potatoes, and layered with melted cheese, diced veggies and jalapeños. Serve with sour cream or Greek yogurt for dipping!

If you’re looking to do something different with your homemade nachos, or you’re looking for delicious yet healthy appetizer recipes, this dietitian has got you covered!

I’ve seen recipes for all sorts of different nachos around these days. Sweet Potato Nachos, Loaded Veggie Nachos with Avocado Crema, Cauliflower Nachos, and more. This recipe for Irish Potato Nachos is another variety of ‘different nachos’ that isn’t the traditional tortilla chip, cheese, and meat kind.

And not only are they nutritious, they’re delicious!

The Inspiration Behind this Irish Nachos Recipe:

When I lived in Toronto for my dietetic internship, there was a small Irish pub just down the street from my apartment. Many Saturday nights when we didn’t feel like cooking, Pat and I would order the loaded Irish Potato Nachos. They were the best.

This recipe features crisp on the outside, soft on the inside baked potato nacho “chips” that are surprisingly simple to make at home. I like to top mine with cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes, jalapeños, chives, and greek yogurt (a simple, higher protein alternative to sour cream), but feel free to get creative with your toppings!

What are Irish Nachos?

Irish Nachos are a pub-favourite twist on traditional nachos. They’re called Irish Nachos because Instead of using tortilla chips, Irish Nachos are made with thinly sliced potatoes. They are usually topped with bacon, tomatoes, jalapeños, and sour cream.

Potatoes are famously known to Ireland as a result of the Irish Potato Famine in the mid-1800s. Back then, the Irish relied heavily upon potatoes as nutritious, calorie-dense, easy to grow food source. Therefore, when a destructive plant disease spread across the country in 1845, it ruined over half of farmers’ potato crops for that year, and three quarters of their crops for the next seven years.

Because potatoes were such a staple food source in Ireland, this contributed greatly to the catastrophic famine throughout the country (over one million people died as a result of starvation and related causes) for several years.

Irish Potato Nachos Recipe Ingredients:

To make these potato nachos, you’ll need:

• Russet potatoes
• Oil for cooking
• Garlic powder
• Paprika
• Salt & pepper
• Cheddar cheese
• Roma tomatoes
• Chives or green onion
• Jalapeno peppers
• Sour cream or plain greek yogurt

This recipe is naturally gluten-free. While I kept my recipe vegetarian, traditionally an Irish nachos recipe would also include bacon. Feel free to add this if you like, or get creative with additional toppings!

Nutrition Benefits of Potatoes:

As a Registered Dietitian, one of my favourite things to do is to bust nutrition myths.

A common nutrition myth out there is that you shouldn’t eat potatoes. Some say that they’re too high in carbohydrates, or not nutrient-dense. And that, my friends, is totally untrue.

In reality, potatoes offer a variety of nutrition benefits. Yes, they’re a source of carbohydrates (which are not bad for us, by the way), but potatoes are also a good source of:

• fibre, which is important for feeling full after eating, digestive heath, and blood sugar management.
• potassium, an electrolyte that plays a role in blood pressure regulation and heart health.
• vitamin C, which we know plays a key role in immune function.
• and other micronutrients!

How to Make these Vegetarian Irish Nachos:

Step 1: Make the Baked Potato “Chips”

Start by preheating the oven to 400F then wash and slice the potatoes into thin rounds. The thinner the slices, the crisper the potato “chips” will be. Toss the potato rounds in a large mixing bowl with oil and spices. Grease a baking sheet with non-stick spray and arrange potatoes evenly so there is space between each round. Bake potatoes in the preheated oven for 35 minutes, flipping them after 20 minutes has passed.

Step 2: Layer with Cheese & Toppings

While potatoes are in the oven, prep topping ingredients by grating the cheese, dicing the tomato and jalapeño, and chopping the chives. Then toss half of the chives together with the grated cheese. After 35 minutes of baking, potatoes should be golden brown and crisp. Remove from the oven and build your nachos. On the baking sheet, layer potatoes with cheese/chive mixture, tomatoes, and jalapeños, and any other toppings.

Step 3: Bake Nachos

Place the potatoes layered with cheese and toppings back into the oven at 400F for 5-6 minutes until cheese is melted. Remove from the oven, top with sour cream/greek yogurt and remaining chives, serve and enjoy!

Ingredient Substitutions & Suggestions:

• While I kept my Irish nachos vegetarian, you can definitely add bacon if you like.
• Instead of sour cream, I like to dip my nachos in plain greek yogurt as it tastes the same but adds a little boost of protein.
• Feel free to use different potatoes for your nachos, like sweet potatoes!
• If you have leftovers, I suggest removing the Greek yogurt and storing them in an airtight container in the fridge. They should keep for 3-4 days. Then, reheat for about 2 minutes in the microwave and serve with additional Greek yogurt (or sour cream) and toppings.

Connect with Hannah Magee, RD!

I hope you love this recipe as much as I do. If you try it, let me know what you think by leaving a rating and a review in the comments below. Oh, and be sure to take a photo and tag me at @hannahmagee_rd so I can re-share on my stories!

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More Potato Recipes You’ll Love:

• Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos
• Garlic Parmesan Roasted Potatoes
• Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Connect with Hannah Magee, RD!

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