Homemade Monterey Chicken Recipe

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This Homemade Monterey Chicken Recipe is an easy weekday meal that's fancy enough for company too.  This grilled chicken recipe is juicy chicken, crispy bacon and sweet barbecue sauce.  Your family will ask for this again and again. 

Jump to:

• What is Monterey Chicken?
• What To Serve With Smothered Chicken
• Ingredients In Monterey Chicken
• How to Make Homemade Bacon Bits
• How to Make Monterey Chicken
• Easy Monterey Chicken--Copycat Chili's Monterey Chicken Recipe
• Best Chicken Recipes: 

What is Monterey Chicken?

Chicken Monterey is a classic Clilli's recipe.  This copycat version of Chili's famous smothered chicken features a grilled chicken breast, smothered with barbeque sauce, pepper jack cheese (a spicer version of Monterey Jack Cheese), and bacon bits. It a restaurant-quality recipe you can make at home in 30 minutes or less.

What To Serve With Smothered Chicken

• The Best Steakhouse Style Baked Potatoes-  The best-baked potatoes you can load up any way you like. 
• Garlic Pull-Apart Bread-  If you're looking for a great garlic bread alternative.  This one is pretty and oh, so delicious!
• Scalloped Potatoes with Bacon and Cheese-  Of course, cheesy, and creamy and delicious comfort food. 
• Broccoli Salad-  It's a great vegetable salad with bits of bacon. 
• Frog Eye Pasta Salad-  A fun pasta and fruit salad the entire family will love. 
• Garlic and Herb Roasted Potatoes-- Probably one of the best ways to cook potatoes, crispy, chewy, and loaded with flavor.
• Cilantro Lime Rice- A very flavorful rice recipe.  A perfect side dish.
• Roasted Broccoli-  This really is a great recipe for roasting broccoli.  You're gonna love the combo of garlic and lemon. YUm
• Roasted Green Beans-  This is a classic and a healthy side dish you're gonna love.

Ingredients In Monterey Chicken

• Chicken-  Boneless skinless chicken breast works great.  You can also use chicken thighs for this recipe.
• Salt and Pepper- Season before you bake
• BBQ Sauce-- Use your favorite.  We love Sweet Baby Rays and Jack Daniels
• Cheese- Monterey Jack Cheese is typically what is used in a Chili's Copycat version but we love to use Pepper Jack Cheese.  If your family loves a little spice, it's the perfect addition to this amazing smothered chicken recipe. 
• Bacon Bits- You can use homemade bacon bits or buy bacon bits.  If you plan to buy bacon bits, the precooked bacon bits work great.  You can add them when you add the cheese and they will crisp up great when broiling the cheese. 
• Green Onions- Thinly sliced green onions are a fresh and delicious addition to this recipe.  
• Tomatoes- Tomatoes are traditionally used for the copycat recipe.  You can even have them available on the side for anyone who loves fresh tomatoes.  

How to Make Homemade Bacon Bits

1. Take the bacon out of the packaging and cut into ¼? slices.

2. In a large saucepan, on the stove, saute the bacon bits for 3-5 minutes on medium heat until the bacon bits turn a light golden color and are just a little crispy.

3. Drain the bacon bits on a plate lined with paper towels to soak up the grease.

How to Make Monterey Chicken

1. It's best to use boneless skinless chicken breasts.  You can also use chicken thighs for this recipe.  
2. Tenderize your chicken by covering your chicken breast with some plastic wrap and giving it a few good whacks with the bottom of a jar or heavy glass cup.  This will flatten out the thickest part of the chicken breast and also break up the tissue just a little to make it more tender and moist. 
3. Salt and Pepper the chicken
4. Grill or bake the chicken breast.  
5. Use a digital thermometer and take off the heat when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. 
6. Place in a 9 by 13 " baking dish.
7. Smother with your favorite BBQ sauce
8. Add shredded cheese and bacon bits.
9. Broil in the oven for about 5 minutes or until the cheese is golden and crispy
10. Add thinly sliced green onions and tomatoes. (optional)

Best Chicken Recipes: 

• Rosemary Garlic Chicken Breasts Marinade
• Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
• Creamy Garlic Parmesan Chicken
• Parmesan Ranch Chicken
• Simple Oven Baked Chicken Breast
• Grilled Chicken Teriyaki
• Flamin Hot Cheeto Chicken Tenders
• Crockpot Chicken Teriyaki
• Crockpot Salsa Chicken
• Cornflake Chicken
• 3 Citrus Chicken Marinade
• Honey Mustard Grilled Chicken
• Garlic and Herb Drumsticks
• Grilled Apricot Chicken
• Classic Chicken Parmesan

This Monterey Chicken recipe is an easy weekday meal that's fancy enough for company too.  This grilled chicken recipe is juicy chicken, crispy bacon and sweet barbecue sauce, what's there not to love!?!