Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Sliders
It’s that time of year again in America – Super Bowl time! I’ve been doing this blog for a while now and this is a not just a big football event, it’s a big FOOD event. I usually see a big surge of views from folks looking for good and easy party foods. And although I don’t follow football all that much, I do love to have fun with the food. So this year, I thought I’d make a little twist on the usual Buffalo Chicken Wings. I wanted to have all the flavor of the favorite chicken wing, but maybe turn it into something a little more filling and a bit more cost effective.
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Serve it up – easy!
If you’ve ever bought a pack of chicken wings, then you know what I’m talking about. They can get pretty pricey when feeding a group of people. So, if you are making chicken wings, try to buy frozen and maybe get the larger packs that you can sometimes find at places like Sam’s Club or Costco. Those will be cheaper and then all you will have to do is just thaw them in the fridge about a day or two before you need to make them. Or, maybe try making these fun sliders. You can always double this recipe if you have lots of folks coming over and they are a bit easier to make so you can spend more time hanging out with your friends during the big game!
Ingredients:4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 (12 oz.) bottle Buffalo wing sauce (I like Frank’s Red Hot)
2 celery ribs, ends and tops cut off and thinly sliced
1 tbsp. thinly sliced red onion
1/3 cup ranch or blue cheese dressing
1 package (12) dinner rolls
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I try to use frozen chicken breasts (when I can) for slow cooker recipes. They are usually cheaper than their raw counterpart and they cook up really nicely in most crock pot meals. Some do tend to be on the smaller side though. So if yours are small, you may want to add an extra one into the pot.
Directions:
Set aside two tablespoons of the Buffalo wing sauce. You are going to use this later for the dressing (celery slaw).
Spray your slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray or add a slow cooker liner. Then add in chicken breasts. Season breasts with a little salt and pepper. Then pour in the rest of the bottle of Buffalo Wing Sauce.
You are going to use the whole bottle of sauce except for the 2 tbsp. you set aside. (See my Cook’s Notes below)
Cover and cook on low for about 3-4 hours.
When ready, put the breasts onto a plate and shred with two forks. Set aside a generous 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid that is left in the slow cooker (you can toss the rest). The chicken should be very tender and easy to shred at this point. Or you can use your stand mixer to shred. See my Creamy Chicken Enchilada post for details on how to do that.
Transfer chicken to a medium bowl. Pour in 1/2 cup of the leftover cooking liquid over the shredded chicken and stir well.
At this point you can put the shredded chicken back into your slow cooker (after you have disgarded leftover cooking juices), cover and keep it on the warm setting until ready to serve. Now it’s time to make a quick little slaw to put on top. In a bowl, combine ranch or blue cheese dressing with 2 tbsp. buffalo wing sauce, sliced onions and celery. I’m using my Homemade Ranch Dressing for this but you can use your favorite bottled dressing. I just happened to have some made up when I made this. Also, if you prefer blue cheese dressing then please use that instead.
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Serve shredded chicken on rolls and spoon some of the celery slaw on top. Or if it is easier, you can just combine this slaw with the shredded chicken just before serving and serve it up that way.
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You can also serve this on full size hamburger buns. You would probably be able to get about 6 sandwiches if you served it that way.
Cook’s Notes: For those that may ask about the spiciniess of this dish, it is not overly hot or spicy at all. It is no more spicy than the average mild Buffalo chicken wing. I have acid reflux, so I can’t have things that are too spicy and hot or I’ll have troubles later! The chicken only cooks in all that sauce but it only imparts the flavor of the hot sauce – not the heat. You are only adding a little extra heat with what you add to the slaw dressing on top.
Enjoy!
Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Sliders with Ranch Celery Slaw
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
4 hrs
Total Time
4 hrs 10 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6
Calories: 243 kcal
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 12 oz bottle Buffalo wing sauce
- 2 celery ribs ends and tops cut off and thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp thinly sliced red onion
- 1/3 cup ranch or blue cheese dressing
- 1 12 oz package dinner rolls
Instructions
Set aside two tablespoons of the Buffalo wing sauce. You are going to use this later for the dressing (celery slaw).
Spray your slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray or add a slow cooker liner. Add in chicken breasts. Season breasts with a little salt and pepper.
- Then pour in the rest of the bottle of Buffalo Wing Sauce. (use the whole bottle of sauce except for the 2 tbsp. you set aside.)
- Cover and cook on low for about 3-4 hours.
- When ready, put the breasts onto a plate and shred using two forks.
- Set aside a generous 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid that is left in the slow cooker
- Transfer chicken to a medium bowl.
- Pour in 1/2 cup of the leftover cooking liquid over the shredded chicken and stir well.
- At this point you can put the shredded chicken back into your slow cooker (after you have disgarded leftover cooking juices), cover and keep it on the warm setting until ready to serve.
Recipe Notes
To make celery slaw to put on top- In a bowl, combine ranch dressing with 2 tbsp. buffalo wing sauce, celery and onions.
Serve shredded chicken on rolls and spoon some of the celery slaw on top.
Or if it is easier, you can just combine this slaw with the shredded chicken just before serving and serve it up that way.
Nutrition Facts
Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Sliders with Ranch Celery Slaw
Amount Per Serving
Calories 243 Calories from Fat 45
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 5g 8%
Saturated Fat 1g 5%
Cholesterol 48mg 16%
Sodium 2133mg 89%
Potassium 378mg 11%
Total Carbohydrates 26g 9%
Dietary Fiber 2g 8%
Sugars 1g
Protein 20g 40%
Vitamin A 1.6%
Vitamin C 1.6%
Calcium 10.9%
Iron 12.7%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
These look good. I know you said they are not that spicy but in my book it's hard to be too spicy!!!! Love spicy food…..
These look great! You are right – this changed my mind – I love little sliders.
Yummy!!
I make buffalo chicken slidders but I use butter with the Frank's to cut the hot sauce. Plus I melt crumbled blue cheese it because we love the blue cheese!! They look yummy and I have never made them in the crock pot so I just might have to try with some frozen chicken tenders that I have 🙂 Thanks for the great recipe!!
Are the breasts frozen when you put them in the crock pot?
These little fellas are the perfect party food. While these look delectable, I especially love that you added celery into the sandwich for some crispy texture!
Brandie…I took your Buffalo Chicken Slider recipe to another level:
I followed the recipe and cooked the chicken in the the hot sauce and shredded it then I threw in:
1 can cream of chicken soup
3/4 cup milk
1 packet of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing (the dry mix)
4oz. of cubed velveeta
16oz cooked wide egg noodles
It was spicy delish!!!!
Had to share.
Kelly
My boyfriend and I made these this weekend. We never took the chicken out of the crock pot, we just shredded it right in there and also left all the juice. We served it on buttermilk biscuits. One on biscuit, we put the chicken and lots of honey (the sweet & sour combo is one we learned from a Brookly restaurant called Pies & Thighs). On the other biscuit (we each ate two), we served it with blue cheese coleslaw, which was just a bag of cut up cabbage and carrots that we tossed in blue cheese dressing. Both were yummy and we each decided we didn't have a favorite of the two, we loved them both! Thanks so much for this great and VERY EASY recipe!
Such great flavor for so little effort I was delicious! I shredded the chicken in the crock pot and served on dinner rolls with a little honey as Karyn suggested, mixed bag cole slaw with blue cheese and some corn and it was amazing. Thank you for the delicious recipe!
Lisa
made it loved it! not at all too spicy, i added more franks from the bottle(i had a bigger bottle of the buffalo sauce) to my slider to give it more kick. i also broiled some buns lightly, minus the coleslaw, but plus some part skim mozza. mmmmmm soo good!
I'm going to make this but instead of ranch or blue cheese I'm going to put guacamole on it
These were easy and tasty. I like the celery slaw topping. Great for munching during a game (on TV).
Is there a time adjustment to cook on high?