Slow Cooker Buffalo (or Instant Pot!) Chicken Chili has the perfect amount of spice, a smooth creamy base, lots of tender chicken, and takes only 10 minutes to prepare. Be ready to win chili contests and hand out the recipe because this is the best chili you’ll ever make!
Now with Instant Pot Directions!
Buffalo Chicken Chili recipe
Once you make this slow cooker Buffalo Chicken Chili recipe you will be amazed how stupid easy it is and how damn good it tastes. PIN IT, print it, and tape it to your fridge because this a stress-free, delicious meal to make over and over again.
#1 It pretty much requires zero brain cells. If you have mastered operating a can opener and correctly using measuring spoons, it’s game on.
#2 If you are too busy to find ten minutes to make dinner, call for pizza and I won’t judge. But if you can manage ten minutes of prep and clean-up time, you will have the most delicious chili waiting for you in eight hours.
#3 Given how ridiculously easy this crock pot buffalo chicken chili recipe is to make, it’s uncanningly delicious. In fact, it is so impressive, I often make it for entertaining, tailgating, or to take to a friend.
They WILL ask you for the recipe, though, so be careful with feigning how much effort you put into making it. Awkward.
#4 Is there really nothing better than buffalo chicken ANYTHING?! Whatever classic dish is morphed into “buffalo chicken,” like Buffalo Chicken Baked Potatoes, Buffalo Chicken Tacos, Buffalo Chicken Salad, or Baked Buffalo Chicken, I am sold. You can pretty much preamble any food with “buffalo chicken” and it will merit a slow drive by me.
Can You Freeze this Chili?
There are a lot of rules for freezing soup, so you might be wondering if this chili can be frozen. Normally chili recipes freeze without an issue, but this recipe contains cream cheese, which can make it tricker.
Here are some tips for successfully freezing Buffalo Chicken Chili:
- For make-ahead freezer buffalo chicken chili complete the recipe, but leave out the cream cheese in the last step. After the chili has been thawed and re-warmed, add the softened cream cheese.
- To freeze leftover chicken chili, cool completely first so ice crystals don’t form. Transfer to a ziplock freezer bag and lay flat until frozen.
- The chili may be frozen with the cream cheese added, but it may “break” upon thawing. This means it will look slightly curdled. It is fine to eat, but might not look as appetizing.
- When reheating frozen chili containing cream cheese, low and slow is best. You can add additional cream cheese, freshly grated cheese, or a 1-2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with water to help thicken and smooth the chili.
What Should I Serve with it?
This crockpot buffalo chicken chili can be a meal in itself, or served with side dishes. Usually if we are eating the chili on its own I really load on the toppings!
Suggested Toppings:
- tortilla chips or fritos
- blue cheese crumbles
- fresh cilantro
- chopped celery
- freshly grated cheddar, pepper jack, or colby jack
- sour cream
- sliced jalapenos
Side Dishes / Accompaniments:
- quick cheese bread
- celery and ranch
- bacon cornbread
- green salad
- baked potatoes
- gluten free cornbread
Win A Chili Cook-Off with Buffalo Chicken Chili!
Check out this post for tons of tips on making an award winning chili and creating your own recipe.
How To Make Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Chili
- Combine chicken breasts, fire roasted tomatoes, corn, white beans (drained and rinsed), hot sauce, chicken broth, ranch dressing mix, celery salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and dried cilantro in the crock pot. Stir to combine.
- Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or high 4 hours.
- Take two forks to shred the chicken in the slow cooker. Alternatively, used a slotted spoon to transfer the chicken to a cutting board to cut.
- With chicken back in the slow cooker, add the cream cheese. Stir until buffalo chili is creamy and smooth. Serve with blue cheese, cilantro, and tortilla chips.
Intimidated by using an Instant Pot? Learn in minutes with this Easy Start Instant Pot Guide full of tips, hacks, and tricks.
How to Make it in an Instant Pot
- Combine chicken breasts, diced tomatoes, corn, hot sauce, chicken broth, ranch dressing mix, celery salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and dried cilantro in the pressure cooker. DO NOT ADD THE BEANS OR CREAM CHEESE YET. Stir to combine.
- Cook on HIGH PRESSURE for 15 minutes. Naturally release for 10 minutes and then quick release remaining pressure.
- Use two forks to shred chicken in instant pot or remove chicken to cutting board to cut. Add the chicken back to pot.
- Add drained and rinsed beans and cream cheese to instant pot. Stir until chicken chili is creamy and smooth.
Tips for Making the Best Buffalo-style Chili
- If you are worried about the chili being too spicy, don’t add the 1/2 cup hot sauce to the crock pot or pressure cooker. Start with adding 1/4 cup to the recipe. Serve with additional hot sauce or add more to the chili at the end.
- Boneless chicken thighs, ground chicken, or turkey may be substituted for the chicken breasts.
- To make Keto Buffalo Chicken Chili, omit the beans and corn.
- If the chili is too thick, thin it with additional broth. For chili that is too thin, check out these helpful tips for thickening chili.
THis CHILI RECIPE HAS WON…
38 chili cook-offs entered by readers! (Comment below if I should add another one to the tally!)
SAVE THIS BUFFALO CHICKEN CHILI RECIPE TO YOUR PINTEREST BOARD!
Let’s be friends on Pinterest! I’m always sharing great recipes!
Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Chili
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts
- 14.5 ounce can Great Northern beans, drained
- 14.5 ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained (can substitute regular diced tomatoes)
- 14.5 ounce can chicken broth (read label to make sure it's gluten free)
- 1/4-1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce*, I used Frank's Red Hot
- 1 package ranch dressing mix envelope (Hidden Valley brand is gluten free)
- 14.5 ounce can sweet corn kernels, drained
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dried cilantro
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 8 ounce cream cheese,** softened
- Toppings: tortilla chips, fresh cilantro, blue cheese crumbles, additional hot sauce
Instructions
Slow Cooker Directions:
- In a 5 quart slow cooker combine all the ingredients except the cream cheese and toppings.
- Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.
- Shred the chicken in the slow cooker using two forks. You can also use a slotted spoon to remove the chicken to a cutting board, shred it, and then return to the pot.
- Add the cream cheese and stir until it is incorporated. Serve with desired toppings.
Instant Pot Directions:
- Place all the ingredients in the instant pot EXCEPT beans and cream cheese. Cook on HIGH PRESSURE for 15 minutes. Naturally release for 10 minutes and then quick release remaining pressure.
- Use two forks to shred chicken in instant pot or remove chicken to cutting board to shred. Add chicken back to pot.
- Add drained beans and cream cheese to instant pot. Stir until chili is creamy and smooth. Serve with desired toppings.
❉DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?? DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE FEEDBACK AND/OR CLICK A STAR RATING ON THE RECIPE CARD!❉
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
❊SHOP THE RECIPE❊
Items used to make this recipe*:
6 quart slow cooker Instant Pot chili bowls
*contains affiliate links
Sarah says
I won at a friends chili cook off tonight with this recipe. I’ll be making it again for sure.
Melissa says
Hey Sarah! That’s incredible! I added your win and thank you so much for letting me know! Congrats!
Best,
Melissa
Anonymous says
Sooooo good! We used ground turkey and it turned out amazing! I added mushrooms and they were great in it!
Melissa says
That’s wonderful! Adding mushrooms always improves a dish in my book, as well! Thanks for writing!
Best,
Melissa
Jamie says
Do you start with frozen or thawed meat?
Melissa says
Hi Jamie, I always use fresh, but you could use frozen. Add 4 minutes more to the instant pot cooking time.
Best,
Melissa
Melanie Prentice says
I won the cook off today! Thanks for the recipe!!
Melissa says
Oh yay! Now you officially legendary status in the office. I’ll add you to the win tally board!
Melanie Prentice says
Entering a SOUPervisor cook off tomorrow using this recipe. Fingers crossed!
Melissa says
Love the name of the contest and of course I’ll send good juju your way, Melanie!
Patricia Sirwaitis says
Add another win to your list, Mama!
I wanted to try something different for our annual hospital chili cook off and this recipe was just the ticket.
It took first place over all, beating out 14 other entries. I used my Instant Pot to cook the chicken by itself with some seasoned salt, then shredded it, placing it back into the pot with the other ingredients for an extra 10 minutes before adding the creamed (low fat) cheese. Thanks for the winning idea!
Melissa says
Fantastic! I added you to the official winner’s tally! Thank you for your tips as well for how to do it a little differently in the Instant Pot. I will give it a try!
Best,
Melissa
Julie Seitz-Brummer says
I have made this several times! Always a big hit! So, my husband brought home buffalo chicken sausage. Has anyone tried using that? Seems like it would work. Not sure how to adjust the other ingredients. Any ideas would be welcome! Thanks 🙂
Melissa says
Hi Julie,
I think the buffalo chicken sausage would work great! However, you can probably skip the slow cooker and throw it together quickly on the stove top. Cook the sausage, chop, and set aside. Place all the remaining ingredients (except cream cheese) in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Add cooked sausage, cream cheese, and stir until smooth.
The only thing I’m not sure about is if you would need additional chicken broth since the liquids won’t be condensing as much as they would in a slow cooker. Hope this helps!
Best,
Melissa
Victoria says
I won my church chili cook-off tonight! Thanks for the great recipe!
Melissa says
Fantastic! Seems like this chili performs very well in church cook-offs 😉 I’ll add your big win and congrats!
Allie says
It’s true! I won my chili cook off with this recipe. I doubled the recipe and made some modifications. I didn’t double the corn but straight doubled everything else. Since I am a chili purist and require chili powder in my recipes, I added 2Tb chili powder and 1Tb cumin to the recipe. It was so good!!
Melissa says
That’s amazing! I love everyone writing in to share their wins and all their tips to make it their own. I’m definitely going to try out the chili powder and cumin with my next batch. Adding your win right now!
Jamie says
I just won my school chili cook off with this recipe!! It was so delicious. Thank you!
Melissa says
HOT DOG! I’ll add you to the winner winner chicken dinner tally. Thanks for writing!
Rebecca says
I made this after my Sister won her work chili cookoff. My husband and son loved this and I will be making it for our church chili cookoff. It would get 6 stars for taste and how easy it is to make!
Melissa says
How generous of you! 6 stars?! I’ll take it! Please check back in after your church cookoff and I’ll hopefully add your win to tally! Did your sister write in to add her win to the tally?
Brittany says
Won a chili cook off tonight with this recipe!! I used my instant pot and it was absolutely delicious!
Melissa says
Hot dog! Congrats and I’ll add your big win. I find myself using the instant pot more now to make this recipe. I love how fast it is!