← All recipes

Snacks · American

Buffalo Chicken Dip

All the wing-night flavor, none of the sticky fingers. Just grab a chip.

Hands-on
10 min
Hands-off
25 min
Oven preheat
10 min
Total
35 min
Makes
32 2-tablespoon servings (about 4 cups)
Serves
32

Oven 180 °C · 160 °C fan (350 °F)

Pan shallow 1 L baking dish (US: shallow 1-quart baking dish)

  • easy
  • game-day
  • party-food
  • dip
  • uses-leftover-chicken

Verified against at least two trusted test kitchens or food-safety guides · Last checked · What this means

Illustration of Buffalo Chicken Dip
Amount
Units
Oven

Ingredients

You need: large mixing bowl · spatula · shallow 1 L (1-quart) baking dish · oven mitts · instant-read thermometer

Contains: milk · egg

Method

  1. Heat the oven

    Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan, 350°F).

    Ready when: The oven's ready light or display shows it has reached temperature.

  2. Shred the chicken

    Pull 250 g (2 cups) cooked chicken into bite-size shreds with two forks. Rotisserie chicken shreds most easily while it is still warm.

  3. Mix everything

    In a large bowl, stir together the 250 g chicken, 227 g (8 oz) softened cream cheese, 120 ml (1/2 cup) hot sauce, 120 ml (1/2 cup) ranch and 57 g (1/2 cup) blue cheese until evenly combined. Spoon it into the baking dish.

  4. Bake, stirring once

    Bake for about 20 minutes. Halfway through, pull the rack out with oven mitts and give the dip a stir.

    Ready when: Bubbling at the edges and the cheese fully melted. The center reads 74°C (165°F) on an instant-read thermometer. It can take 20-25 minutes.

    Otto tried this firstOtto pulls it out at 15 minutes because the top looks melty. His thermometer says the middle is still lukewarm, so it goes back in until the center hits 74°C / 165°F.

  5. Top and serve

    Scatter green onions and a little extra blue cheese over the top if you like. Serve warm with chips, crackers or vegetable sticks.

Swaps

  • Instead of ranch dressing: the same amount of blue cheese dressing
  • Instead of cayenne pepper hot sauce: the same amount of ready-made Buffalo wing sauce
  • Instead of rotisserie chicken: cooked shredded chicken breast, or leftover roast or grilled chicken

Make ahead, store & reheat

Storage
Get leftovers into the fridge within 2 hours, in an airtight container, and eat them within 3 days. Our sources give 3 to 5 days; we use the shortest. Freezing is not covered by the sources we used.
Reheat
Microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring between each, or warm it in the oven. Either way, heat until the center reaches 74°C (165°F).

If something goes wrong

  • Greasy, oily top
    Too much heat or too long in the oven makes cheese dips oily. Take it out once it's bubbling and hot in the middle.
  • Edges bubbling but middle still cool
    Stir it and give it another 5 minutes; it can take 20-25 minutes in total. Check the center with a thermometer.

Good to know

  • For a party, a small slow cooker on Warm keeps it scoopable. At a party, warm dip must stay at 60°C (140°F) or hotter, or be thrown away after 2 hours at room temperature (1 hour above 32°C / 90°F). Some warmers only reach 43-49°C (110-120°F), so check yours. Swap in a fresh dish rather than topping up a half-eaten one.

Safety

  • Use chicken that is already fully cooked. If you cook your own, it must reach 74°C (165°F), and the board and knife used for the raw chicken must not touch the other ingredients.
  • Most ranch dressings contain egg. Check the label, and check the chips and crackers for allergens too.
  • Hot sauce stings eyes: wash your hands after handling it. The baking dish is very hot, so use mitts and set it on a trivet. Kids should leave the oven to an adult.
  • Don't leave it out more than 2 hours (1 hour above 32°C / 90°F).