Monterey Chicken with Pico de Gallo {Chili’s Copycat}

The flavors in this Monterey chicken {a Chili’s copycat recipe} are out of this world delicious! Tender grilled chicken, topped with bacon, cheese and a simple homemade pico de gallo. Yum!

Everyone in my family can agree on one thing: this Monterey chicken is one of the best meals in the history of ever.

Elements to Prep Ahead

Next Steps

Once those two elements come together, this Monterey chicken comes together FAST.

1. Cook the bacon until crisp
2. Grill the chicken until internal temp reaches 165 degrees F
3. Before removing from the grill, top the chicken with shredded cheese and bacon.
4. Cover the grill and heat until the cheese melts.
5. Serve the pico de gallo on the side or spooned on top of the chicken.

Prepare to be wowed. The flavor explosion is so delicious!

A Family Favorite Meal

This is an oft-requested dinner for my family. It even makes the cut for the uber-difficult decision of what to choose for a birthday meal!

It also makes an incredible offering when serving company (they will rave, I guarantee it).

One Year Ago: Delicious No-Bake Cookie Dough Bites
Two Years Ago: Foil Packet Sweet Potato Tacos
Three Years Ago: Easy Brazilian Cheese Bread {Pao de Queijo}

Monterey Chicken with Pico de Gallo {Chili’s Copycat}

Yield: 6 Servings

Prep Time: 20 minutes mins

Cook Time: 10 minutes mins

Total Time: 30 minutes mins

4.94 stars (126 ratings)

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Ingredients

Chicken:

• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons coarse, kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• 6 thin-cut boneless skinless chicken breasts (see note)

Toppings:

• 6 strips bacon (thick cut or regular), chopped
• 1 ½ cups shredded pepper jack or Monterey jack cheese
• 1 ½ cups diced tomatoes
• ¼ cup finely diced red onion
• 2-3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 2 garlic cloves, finely minced or pressed through a garlic press
• 1 tablespoon finely minced jalapeno
• 1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

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Instructions 

• For the chicken, in a small bowl, whisk together the Dijon mustard, Worcestershire, brown sugar, salt and pepper.
• Place the chicken in a gallon-size ziploc bag or shallow dish. Coat the chicken with the marinade mixture; there isn't a ton of marinade, a thin coating is fine. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (or up to 24 hours).
• In skillet set over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp. With a slotted spoon, remove the bacon to a paper-towel lined plate to drain the grease. Set aside.
• For the pico de gallo, in a medium bowl, combine the tomatoes, onion, cilantro, garlic, jalapeño, and lime juice. Drizzle with a teaspoon or so of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper (important!). Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Preheat a grill pan or outdoor grill to medium-high. I use a pellet grill set to 375 degrees F.
• Cook the chicken for 4 to 5 minutes per side until an instant-read thermometer registers 165 degrees F at the thickest part.
• Without removing the chicken from the grill pan/grill, top each chicken breast with shredded cheese and bacon – the amounts don't have to be exact, just divide evenly on the chicken.
• Cover the grill or grill pan and heat until the cheese melts, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Serve the chicken warm with the pico de gallo spooned on top or on the side. Prepare to be wowed – so delicious!

Notes

Chicken: I prefer using thin-cut chicken breasts; however, you can use regular chicken breasts. If you want to use thinner cutlets of chicken but only have thick chicken breasts, pound them to an even thickness or slice them in half lengthwise to form thiner cutlets.

Author: Mel

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Method: Grilled

Serving: 1 Serving, Calories: 479kcal, Carbohydrates: 9g, Protein: 36g, Fat: 33g, Saturated Fat: 12g, Cholesterol: 139mg, Sodium: 1206mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 6g

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Recipe Source: adapted from Cuisine at Home April 2017 (altered basically all ingredient amounts to increase the recipe beyond two servings and changed up a few other things, like not using bacon grease in the pico de gallo)

Recipe originally posted May 2017; updated September 2024 with new photos, recipe notes, etc.

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