8 Buffalo Chicken Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What makes it buffalo chicken? ›

A Buffalo wing in American cuisine is an unbreaded chicken wing section (flat or drumette) that is generally deep-fried, then coated or dipped in a sauce consisting of a vinegar-based cayenne pepper hot sauce and melted butter prior to serving.

The best side dishes to serve with buffalo chicken are blooming onion, crispy green beans, celery and carrot sticks, coleslaw, loaded potato skins, macaroni and cheese, cornbread, French fries, blue cheese stuffed mushrooms, grilled vegetables, sweet potato fries, and green salad.

How Long Can You Keep Cooked Chicken in the Fridge? The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) says that cooked chicken can last three to four days in the refrigerator, if stored at 40°F or less. 1 And that goes for any type of cooked chicken—store-bought, homemade, or restaurant leftovers.

In its simplest form, buffalo wing sauce is a just a combination of cayenne pepper hot sauce and butter. My recipe calls for a few additional ingredients to help balance the flavors, but it's still very straightforward. If you keep a bottle of Frank's RedHot in your fridge, you can whip it up anytime!

The original buffalo wing sauce contained melted butter, hot sauce, and cayenne pepper. This differentiates it from other hot sauces like Tabasco, which is made mainly with peppers and vinegar. Buffalo sauce isn't short on the heat though, which is why it's never far from cooling agents.

Most oven-baked chicken wings are tossed in sauce after they have been cooked, which means that the skin needs to be perfectly crisp to soak up all the sauce.

Buffalo Chicken Wing History

But the concept of cooking wings in peppery hot sauce was born in 1964 at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, when co-owner Teressa Bellissimo cooked leftover wings in hot sauce as a late-night snack for her son and his friends.

Store leftover buffalo chicken dip in the fridge for up to 3 days in an airtight container. Make sure it has fully cooled first. To reheat, place in the oven at a low temperature (around 300F) for about 20 minutes.

The dipping sauce mashup that KFC debuted in late 2022 combines a smooth and creamy ranch sauce with the sour heat of cayenne pepper sauce.

What chips go best with buffalo chicken dip? ›

Tortilla chips – I recommend a thick, hearty chip that can stand up to these cheesy chicken dip. You could also spoon the dip over the tortilla chip “scoops”. Corn chips – Frito scoops are perfect for dipping up this buffalo chicken dip! Crackers – I recommend a thick cracker, like Wheat Thins or Triscuits.

Making and storing buffalo chicken dip

Since the dip has numerous ingredients, it might open the door for questions about how long you should keep leftovers in the fridge. You can store leftover dip in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days, according to The Kitchn.

USDA recommends using cooked chicken within three to four days, kept refrigerated (40°F or less). Refrigeration slows but does not stop bacterial growth. USDA recommends using cooked leftovers within three to four days.

Based on the ingredients, the mixture should keep in the refrigerator for at least a few days. The dip can be served cold or, if preferred, baked till hot in a shallow casserole dish. For dipping, offer corn chips, ideally with low salt.

Flavor and Sauce

Buffalo chicken wings are mildly spicy, unbreaded chicken drums and flats. These chicken pieces retain their skin. They are deep fried and then tossed and coated in a cayenne-based hot sauce like Frank's RedHot. These orange-hued wings are served with cooling blue cheese dipping sauce and celery.

Generally, chicken wings are characterized as being smaller wings with not that much meat on them. They are then lightly breaded and fried and served with various sauces and sides. They are often sold as appetizers. Buffalo wings, on the other hand, are generally larger and will have much more meat.

If you're trying to choose based on flavor profile, Nashville hot chicken tends to be spicier (Buffalo chicken has more of an acidic tang to it), but be warned that because there are a lot of different recipes out there, both types can vary in terms of heat.

Hot wings are typically coated in a fiery chile pepper-based sauce not a cayenne-based sauce like Buffalo Wings. Hot Wings are not served with dipping sauce. Buffalo Wings are served with cooling blue cheese and celery sticks.