Looking for the ultimate crowd-pleaser with an Irish twist? These loaded Irish nachos transform ordinary waffle fries into something extraordinary. Topped with tender corned beef and drizzled with herbed whiskey cheese fondue, they’re the perfect blend of comfort food and pub-inspired innovation.
Table of Contents
In this recipe:
If you’re on a diet, just stop now. Nothing about this recipe is anything less than insanely indulgent.
Forget tortilla chips, traditional nachos, and everything you think you know about bar food. What makes these nachos special is the unexpected combination of crispy waffle fries providing the perfect base for savory slices of corned beef, while the herbed whiskey cheese fondue ties everything together with its rich, complex flavor. It’s an Irish potato nachos recipe that’s familiar enough to be comforting yet unique enough to have everyone shocked by the flavors.
Irish Nachos Recipe Ingredients
FOR THE NACHOS
- Bag of frozen waffle French fries – you could also make homemade
- Corned beef – you can make smoked corned beef or use leftover corned beef for this recipe.
- Shredded cabbage
FOR THE WHISKEY SAUCE
- Whiskey – use your favorite whiskey.
- Honey – sweetens and thickens the sauce.
- Brown sugar – use dark or light brown sugar. Helps thicken and sweeten the sauce.
- Onion – adds a depth of savory flavor.
FOR THE CHEESE SAUCE
- Flour – thickens the cheese sauce.
- Herb butter – adds an earthy flavor and creamy consistency.
- Whiskey – adds a depth of flavor. Use your favorite whiskey.
- Dubliner cheese, Skellig cheese, & Smoked gouda cheese – the base for the melted cheese sauce. Adds a tangy flavor to the sauce.
- Milk – helps thin out the sauce.
- Dijon mustard – adds a vibrant kick of flavor.
- A pinch of Salt and Pepper
- Additional cheese for topping
- Freshly snipped parsley
How to Make Irish Pub Nachos
- First, get those waffle fries going by following the package instructions.
- While those are cooking, let’s whip up a tasty whiskey sauce. In a small saucepan, whisk together whiskey, honey, and brown sugar. Bring it to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer until it thickens. Toss in the sliced onions and let them get all soft and flavorful for about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Now, let’s tackle the cheese sauce. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat, stir in the flour, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Pour in the whiskey, then add the cheese bit by bit, along with the milk and Dijon. Keep stirring until it’s all melty and delicious. Keep it warm over low heat until you’re ready to use it.
- Once that’s done, mix the corned beef with the onions in the whiskey sauce and layer it all over the cooked waffle fries in an oven safe bowl or skillet. Stir any leftover sauce into the cheese sauce. Pour this creamy goodness over the fries, making sure to leave a little pool at the bottom for dipping.
- Forget everyone’s favorite nacho toppings. Shock them all by topping everything off with some pickled cabbage, sprinkle the remaining cheese, and slide it under the broiler until everything gets beautifully melted and golden brown.
- Finish it up by garnishing your nachos with fresh parsley.
Girl Carnivore Expert Recipe Tips
- Play around with your favorite toppings, such as sour cream, pico de Gallo, green onions, black beans, or anything else you like.
- Swap out the waffle fries for fresh potato chips made from thin-sliced potatoes, or use potato wedges.
- Prep this recipe ahead of time by making the corned beef a day or two ahead of time.
What to Serve With Irish Potato Nachos
Since we’ve got the protein, carbs, and fats covered, let’s introduce some veggies into the mix by serving some air fryer vegetables, roasted butternut squash, or Brussels sprouts au gratin alongside our nachos. It’s all about balance, right? If you have a sweet tooth, check out these Guinness Brownies for dessert.
Leftovers & Reheating
Leftover Irish nachos don’t reheat well all together. Store leftover corned beef separately from the fries. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. You can freeze it for up to 2-3 months.
Store the fries in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 days. Store in the freezer for up to 6 months.
When you’re ready to make your nachos, reheat your corned beef and fries.
To reheat corned beef:
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF.
- Place leftover corned beef in a baking dish and cover it with foil.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until warm.
- Assemble your nachos.
To reheat fries:
- Preheat your oven to 425ºF.
- Lay your leftover fries on a baking sheet in a single layer.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until crispy.
Don’t feel like making nachos again? Make corned beef sandwiches with your leftover corned beef!
More Nachos Recipes
These easy Irish nachos are the perfect way to take regular nachos to the next level. The smokiness from the corned beef combined with the ooey gooey whiskey cheese sauce is the ultimate combination.
Have you tried this recipe? Do us a favor and rate the recipe card with the ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ and drop a comment to help out the next reader.
Irish Nachos Recipe
Ingredients
For the nachos
- 1 bag frozen waffle fries
- 1/2 lbs corned beef cooked and shredded
- 1/2 cup shredded cabbage
For the Whiskey Sauce
- 1/4 cup whiskey
- 2 tbs honey
- 1 tbs brown sugar
- 1 onion sliced
For the cheese sauce
- 3 tbs flour
- 3 tbs herb butter
- 4 oz whiskey
- 2 oz Dubliner cheese
- 2 oz Skellig cheese
- 2 oz smoked gouda cheese
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1 tbs Dijon mustard
- Additional cheese for topping
- freshly snipped parsley
Instructions
- Prepare the waffle fries according to directions on package.
- Meanwhile, whisk the whiskey, honey, and brown sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer and allow to reduce.
- Toss in the sliced onions and allow to simmer on low until soft, 8 to 10 minutes.
Make the cheese sauce.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and flour and cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
- Stir in the whiskey. Add the cheese a little at a time, the milk, and the Dijon.
- Stir until melted. Keep heated over low until ready to use.
- Toss the corned beef with the onions in the whiskey sauce and arrange over the cooked waffle fries in layers.
- Stir any remaining sauce into the cheese sauce.
- Pour over the fries, being sure to give a little pool at the bottom for dipping.
- Top with cabbage, sprinkle with remaining cheese and toast under the broiler until everything is melted.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.
Nutrition
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Recipe FAQs
Corned beef and pastrami are similar, but they are not the same. Small wonder, though, that people get confused about which is which. To set the record straight, both corned beef and pastrami come from similar brisket cuts of beef. Both are also brined in various pickling seasonings like coriander, black peppercorns, bay leaves, and such.
However, this is where the similarity ends.
Pastrami goes the extra mile and is smoke-cured. The smokiness is what makes pastrami special. It takes the brisket and essentially makes it like beef bacon. Now you know why pastrami costs so much more than corned beef.
The good news is you can easily smoke your own corned beef to make homemade pastrami!
If you DON’T have corned beef stockpiled, let us give you some inspiration (besides these nachos) to make you run to the market right now….
The classic corned beef and cabbage (seriously, once a year, this is amazing).
Think about homemade pastrami…. yep. Homemade Pastrami.
It is easy to brine your own corned beef. Usually, you can get a piece of brisket that fits into a one-gallon zip-seal bag. Ideally, you want to use large kernels of salt, like edible rock salt. Kosher salt works. Also, you can use that pink salt curing salt but don’t feel like you have to run out to the store for it if you don’t have it.
Truth be told, any salt will do the trick.
Using about a cup of salt, rub it into the meat, then place it into the bag, add some water to cover, and throw in pickling seasonings. Let it sit for 5 to 7 days. Remove, rinse, repeat. Then, it is ready to slow cook on low heat until done. Let it cool a bit so it is easier to cut.
If you don’t have pickling spices handy, then you can put your own together pretty easily with some peppercorns, coriander seeds, bay leaves, and some dill if you want.
I may be drooling over these at 7 am…this WILL go down tonight!
These nachos look amazing! That whiskey fondue sounds awesome!!
I need to be stuffing my face with these right now!
I need to buy more corned beef!