These Reuben-Style Irish Nachos are perfect for St. Patrick’s Day: crispy waffle fries topped with corned beef, sauerkraut, lots of cheese and drizzled with Thousand Island!
So, reubens. One of my favorite foods. If I see a reuben sandwich on a menu, I have a really hard time saying no.
I’m not usually huge on beef, but corned beef is amazing. And I love saurkraut. And the sweet and salty combo with the Thousand Island dressing… Alright, I’m drooling now. Let’s just agree that reubens are the best sandwiches ever.
So I took a reuben sandwich, ditched the bread, and dumped it on top of a pile of hot waffle fries. Because the Irish love their potatoes, so why not? Guys, oh my gosh. This was the best idea. And such a perfect Irish St. Patrick’s Day meal.
I cooked a corned beef from scratch, but you could easily use corned beef from the deli. For the sauerkraut, make sure you get as much moisture out as possible. I wring it out in a clean kitchen towel. Swiss is the traditional cheese in a reuben, but it’s not always as melty as you want nachos to be, so I mixed half swiss (for flavor) with half white cheddar (for meltiness) and it was just perfect.
- 22 oz package frozen waffle fries
- 1 cup shredded swiss cheese
- 1 cup shredded white cheddar cheese
- 1 cup roughly chopped corned beef
- ½ cup sauerkraut, drained and squeezed dry
- Thousand Island dressing, for drizzling
- Chopped chives, for garnish
- Cook the waffle fries according to package directions.
- In a bowl, toss together swiss and cheddar.
- On a baking sheet or in a large cast iron skillet, spread half the waffle fries in an even layer. Top with half the cheese mixture, half the sauerkraut and half the corned beef. Repeat a second layer on top.
- Preheat the broiler.
- Broil the nachos until cheese is bubbling, about 5 minutes.
- Drizzle Thousand Island over top and garnish with chives.
- Serve immediately.

If you want to try a different spin on these flavors, check out this Hot Reuben Dip.
Hope your St. Patty’s Day is filled with lots of green beer and luck!
oh my gosh what a creative and yummy idea! This would be a hit in my house, pinning can’t wait to try this!
Oh my gosh, Jess — these nachos look so good! These would be way better than a Reuben sandwich — this is such a creative idea!
Thanks, Marcie! They were pretty freaking phenomenal! 😀
These look amazing! Love that you used waffle fries to hold it all together! My hubby would really enjoy these!
Thanks, Amber!! Definitely a man’s dream nacho!! 😉
Oh my goodness, these nachos are BRILLIANT! What a perfect combination of flavors and textures. So perfect for St. Patrick’s Day! (or really any time of the year) =)
These look so great Jess! And I love the flavor combo here, especially for St. Patrick’s Day coming up. I’m craving these!
How fun that you used waffle fries in these Irish nachos! What a creative St. Patrick’s Day meal! You’re making me hungry! 🙂
Okay I am obsessed with waffle fries! These look amazing Jess! Pinned!
These look like the ultimate nachos, Jess! I am so loving your creativity. And your pictures are gorgeous, too! What a perfect dish for St. Patrick’s Day!
These look amazing, Jess! I love that you used waffle fries! So creative and delicious!
Made these last night for St. Patty’s Day. Erin and I loved them. Only problem is I bought fat free thousand island dressing by accident which was a bummer. Definitely need the real deal when it comes to the dressing!
Woohoo! So yummy! I definitely made these while Nick was out of town and ate the whole thing by myself in like, 2 days. Whoops.
Ok, this is amazing Jess! These are my kind of nachos! Plus, you don’t have to worry about the fries getting soggy like you do with tortilla chips.