Baked Buffalo Chicken

Baked Buffalo Chicken is an easy, healthy recipe for a weeknight dinner, but tastes like a creamy, cheesy, cheater meal. Chicken breasts are dredged in tortilla chips, baked with a creamy buffalo topping, and topped with gooey cheese.

I’m such a sucker for Buffalo Chicken anything. Evidently MamaGourmand’s readers feel it too because Buffalo Chicken Chili and Buffalo Chicken Tacos are very popular recipes on the site.

That’s because you guys know what’s up. 👊

Baked Buffalo Chicken combines those classic flavors – creamy blue cheese, celery, and hot sauce, into a healthy weeknight meal all can enjoy. Plus, this recipe gets massive bonus points because kids absolutely devour it!

Isn’t that the best feeling at dinner?

How to Butterfly a Chicken Breast

Baked Buffalo Chicken uses butterflied chicken breasts to make sure they cook evenly and reduce the baking time.

For some recipes, such as Spinach Artichoke Chicken, leave the deep slit in the chicken without cutting through to make two halves.

Recipes such as this one, Grilled Parmesan Chicken and Artichoke, Sun Dried Tomato, Chicken Skillet use butterflied chicken that is cut through to make thinner cutlets.

1. First make a deep slit in the middle of the breast, lengthwise.
2. Cut all the way across until you almost reach other side, so it will open like a book.
3. If you need thinner cutlets, like for this Baked Buffalo Chicken recipe, cut down the middle of the crease. You end up with two, thinner thickness halves.

How to Make Baked Buffalo Chicken Recipe

1. Butterfly chicken breasts and separate completely so you have 2 thin-cut chicken breasts.
2. Dredge chicken breasts in flour, egg mixture, then crushed tortilla chips.
3. Mix together buffalo topping – cream cheese, celery, blue cheese, and hot sauce.
4. Top tortilla crusted buffalo chicken breasts with buffalo topping.
5. Sprinkle cheese on top and bake.

Tips / Hacks to Make Baked Buffalo Chicken Even Easier!

• To make this recipe even healthier, skip dredging the chicken breasts in flour, egg, and tortilla chips. Simply bake plain chicken breasts. Remove from oven, smother with creamy buffalo topping and cheese. Broil for 2-3 minutes.
• In a rush? Bake frozen, breaded chicken breasts halfway through, flip over, place buffalo topping and cheese on top, and finish baking.
• Looking for a party appetizer? Cut the chicken into bite-sized nuggets, dredge in flour, egg, and tortilla chips. Bake, then top with buffalo topping and cheese on. Broil for 2-3 minutes. Serve on a platter with celery and blue cheese dressing for dipping.
• Need to streamline dinner prep? Usually I dredge and coat the chicken earlier in the day and place the baking sheet in the refrigerator loosely covered with plastic wrap. It will hold for a few hours, refrigerated, until you are ready to take out and bake.

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Baked Buffalo Chicken

Baked Buffalo Chicken is an easy, healthy weeknight recipe with chicken breasts baked with creamy buffalo topping and smothered with cheese.

4.41 from 5 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 6

Author: Melissa Erdelac

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 pounds chicken breasts, butterflied and cut into cutlets
• ▢ 1 1/2 cups finely crushed tortilla chips
• ▢ 1 egg, beaten with 1 tbsp. water
• ▢ 1/4 cup all purpose flour or gluten free all purpose flour, I always use Cup 4 Cup Gluten Free Flour
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• ▢ 4 ounce light cream cheese, softened
• ▢ 3 teaspoons hot sauce, such as Frank's Red Hot Sauce
• ▢ 1-2 celery stalks, diced
• ▢ 1/2 cup reduced fat blue cheese crumbles
• ▢ 3/4 cup shredded Colby jack or cheddar cheese
• ▢ green onions, ranch or blue cheese dressing, and celery, for serving

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Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375º F and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
  
• In three separate shallow bowls place flour mixed with salt and pepper, beaten egg mixed with 1 tbsp. water, and crushed chips. Dredge both sides of chicken in flour, then dip completely in egg mixture, and finally press down into tortillas to coat both sides. Place chicken on baking sheet and repeat with rest of chicken. Spray top of chicken with more cooking spray. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or chicken reaches a temperature of 165°F.
• While chicken is baking mix together cream cheese, hot sauce, blue cheese, and celery.
• Remove from oven and preheat broiler. Divide and spread cream cheese mixture over the top of each piece of chicken. Sprinkle cheese over the top. Broil until topping is hot and bubbly, 2-3 minutes.
• Garnish with green onions and serve with additional hot sauce, ranch or blue cheese dressing, and celery, if desired.

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Recipe Notes

Tips / Hacks to Make Baked Buffalo Chicken Even Easier!

• To make this recipe even healthier, skip dredging the chicken breasts in flour, egg, and tortilla chips. Simply bake plain chicken breasts. Remove from oven, smother with creamy buffalo topping and cheese. Broil for 2-3 minutes. 
• In a rush? Bake frozen, breaded chicken breasts halfway through, flip over, place buffalo topping and cheese on top, and finish baking.
• Looking for a party appetizer? Cut the chicken into bite-sized nuggets, dredge in flour, egg, and tortilla chips. Bake, then top with buffalo topping and cheese on. Broil for 2-3 minutes. Serve on a platter with celery and blue cheese dressing for dipping.
• Need to streamline dinner prep? Usually I dredge and coat the chicken earlier in the day and place the baking sheet in the refrigerator loosely covered with plastic wrap. It will hold for a few hours, refrigerated, until you are ready to take out and bake.

Nutrition

Calories: 486kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 158mg | Sodium: 780mg | Potassium: 745mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 470IU | Vitamin C: 3.2mg | Calcium: 265mg | Iron: 1.8mg

Course: Dinner

Categories: Baking Dinners Fall Gluten Free Recipes Spring Winter

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