Skip the veggie trays and take your party appetizer game up a notch with these Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Sliders!
These deliciously cheesy sandwiches are loaded up with tender shreds of flavorful buffalo smoked chicken, melty Monterey jack cheese, and a three-ingredient garlic butter glaze.
Just like our Nashville Hot Chicken Sliders, they’re made up of a few simple ingredients that create a sweet, spicy, cheesy, and delicious appetizer. The difference is these spicy sliders are made with hot buffalo sauce instead of Nashville Hot Seasoning. And they’re ready with just 10 minutes of prep.
Want more game day appetizers? Try our Italian Sliders, Steak Sliders with Beer Cheese, Pulled Beef Sliders with Steakhouse Baked Beans and Smoked Philly Cheesesteak Sliders.
Table of Contents
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Buffalo Chicken Sliders Ingredients
- This sauce is FYR!
- How to Make Buffalo Chicken Sliders
- Buffalo Chicken Sliders Tips
- How to Store Leftovers & Reheat
- More Slider Recipes
- What to serve with buffalo chicken sliders
- Recipe FAQs
- Flavor X Fire & FOOD X Fire
- Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Sliders Recipe
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This buffalo chicken slider recipe will take your appetizer recipes to the next level. With a hot buffalo chicken mixture, Hawaiian sweet rolls, and a garlic butter glaze, these bad boys will be a huge hit during football season or your next dinner party.
Buffalo Chicken Sliders Ingredients
Chicken
- Chicken Breast: We’re using 3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts for this recipe because they’re great for braising and shredding.
- Buffalo Sauce: Infuses that iconic tangy and spicy flavor, giving the chicken its signature buffalo kick. Use any spicy buffalo sauce you like.
- Chicken stock, kosher salt, black pepper and garlic powder are the buffalo sauce companions that help elevate our chicken braise so that we have a well balanced and delicious final product.
Get stoked for life
This sauce is FYR!
Born from a deep passion for food and flavor. Whether you’re grilling in the backyard or live fire cooking around the world, we have what you need to transform every meal into an adventure.
Garlic Butter Glaze
- Melted Butter: The base for our glaze.
- Garlic Paste: A more concentrated version of garlic, furthermore giving our glaze that kick of pungent flavor.
- Parmesan Cheese: Adds an umami vibe and also some texture to the glaze.
Sliders
- Sweet Slider Rolls (one pack): Any rolls will work, but Sweet Hawaiian rolls are my favorite.
- Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese: Monterey Jack melts super well, making it our top choice for these sliders. You could also use Swiss cheese, pepper jack, or mozzarella cheese if you like.
- Ranch Dressing or Blue Cheese: because you know I need a sauce for dipping
For more chicken appetizer recipes, check out my Double Fried Chicken Wings, Nacho Wings, Nashville Hot Chicken Shotgun Shells and also Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadilla.
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Sliders
Make the Chicken
First, we prep the chicken breast for our cheesy buffalo chicken sliders. The key here is a low and slow start because that’s what will guarantee an ultra-tender texture!
So, start by preheating your Oklahoma Joe’s Bronco Drum Smoker to 275-300ºF. Add a Dutch oven to the smoker, allow it to warm up for a couple of minutes, then add in the chicken, buffalo sauce, chicken broth, salt, pepper, and garlic.
Want more sandwiches and sliders? Check out my Al Pastor Pulled Pork Sandwich, Smoked Pulled Ham Sandwiches, and Smoked Sausage Chimichurri Sandwich Recipe recipes!
Cover the Dutch oven, close the lid on your smoker, and cook for 3-4 hours. I recommend checking at 3 hours and cooking longer as needed. The chicken is done when it is easily shreddable. Allow the chicken to rest for 5 minutes before shredding it. This gives the moisture and flavor time to distribute throughout the meat.
Now, we shred. I recommend doing this right in the braising liquid to keep the chicken nice and moist. I usually use two forks to pull the chicken apart, but you can get messy and use your hands. No judgment here.
MAKE THE GARLIC BUTTER GLAZE
I didn’t know that cheesy buffalo chicken sliders could get any better. But then, I added garlic butter glaze.
Folks, this three-ingredient glaze is the sauce you didn’t know these chicken sandwiches needed. And it’s ridiculously simple to make. Just melt butter in a bowl, mix it with garlic paste and parmesan cheese, and it’s ready to go.
MAKE THE BUFFALO CHICKEN SLIDERS
Next, it’s time to assemble our sliders! First, grab your Sweet Slider Rolls. Use a serrated bread knife to slice the set of rolls in half. You want the top half of the rolls to be separate from the bottom rolls, but the individual rolls in each layer should still be attached.
Place the bottom half of the rolls into an aluminum foil bin or skillet. Then, top that with a layer of Monterey jack cheese, followed by a layer of your shredded buffalo chicken…and, of course, another layer of Monterey jack cheese because you can never go wrong with more cheese. We have to live up to the “cheesy” in the recipe name. Next, set the layer of top buns onto the otherwise assembled sliders. Then, add the prepared garlic butter glaze to the tops of the rolls.
Check out these other awesome buffalo recipes: Loaded Buffalo Chicken Kettle Chips, Buffalo and Blue Cheese Crusted Ribeyes, Buffalo Chicken Quesadilla and Chipotle Garlic Buffalo Chicken Legs Recipe.
Before you cook again, increase the heat in your smoker to 350-375ºF and place the foil bin with the sliders in it onto the smoker. Next, cook them for another 10-12 minutes or until they’re nice and golden brown, slightly crispy on top.
Now, we serve! First, let the sliders cool for a couple of minutes. Then, slice and serve them up with creamy ranch or blue cheese dressing.
Lastly, eat up!
Buffalo Chicken Sliders Tips
- If the sliders start to brown too quickly, tent them with a piece of foil.
- If you don’t feel like shredding the chicken with forks, you can throw it in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Turn it to low speed and watch as your chicken perfectly shreds!
How to Store Leftovers & Reheat
Store leftover Buffalo Chicken Sliders for up to 2 days in an airtight container. Freeze for up to 2 months.
To reheat:
- Preheat your oven to 350F.
- Place leftover chicken sliders on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Bake for 10 minutes.
More Slider Recipes
What to serve with buffalo chicken sliders
The best way to serve up these sliders is with a dollop of coleslaw on top! The creamy coleslaw cuts through the spiciness, resulting in a perfectly balanced appetizer. You can also serve up some cut-up veggies on the side, like carrots and celery sticks.
If you’re making a big appetizer spread, you can serve these sliders up with some Big Mac Stuffed Bread and Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers.
Recipe FAQs
Nope! You can cook the chicken however you like, whether that’s on the stovetop, in the smoker, in the oven, or on the grill. You could also buy a rotisserie chicken, cut it up, and douse it in the buffalo sauce if you’re in a pinch.
Yep! You can make the chicken 1-3 days ahead of time and then assemble your sliders. You can also make the garlic butter glaze on the stovetop and store it for 1-3 minutes before serving. Heat it up in a small saucepan when you’re ready to serve.
Yes! Just double the recipe, and you’re good to go! You can even save one of the batches in the freezer for a later time!
Get The Cookbooks!
Flavor X Fire & FOOD X Fire
All the major tastes—salty, sour, sweet, bitter, and umami—are explored in depth, along with an investigation of other components you should consider when it comes to flavor, such as aroma, heat, and texture.
Full Length Recipe Video on YouTube!
Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Sliders
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 3-4 Chicken Breast
- 1.25 cup Buffalo Sauce
- 1 cup Chicken Stock
- 1 tbsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tbsp Black Pepper
- 2 tsp Garlic Powder
Garlic Butter Glaze:
- 4 tbsp Melted Butter
- 1 tbsp Garlic Paste
- 1 tbsp Parmesan Cheese
Sliders:
- 12 Sweet Slider Rolls one pack
- 2 cups Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
- Ranch or Blue Cheese for dipping
Instructions
- Preheat your Oklahoma Joe's Bronco Drum Smoker to 275-300F for indirect cooking. Add a dutch oven to the smoker to heat up for 2-3 minutes.
- Once the dutch oven is warm, add your chicken breast, buffalo sauce, chicken broth, salt, pepper and garlic to the pot. Cover the dutch oven and close the lid on the Smoker.
- Staying at 275-300F continuously, cook your chicken until it becomes easily shreddable (about 3-4 hours).
- When the chicken is done, pull it off and let it cool for 5 minutes, then using some forks or your hands shred the chicken in the buffalo braising sauce.
- While keeping the rolls together, slice your Sweet Roll Sliders in half so there is a top side and bottom side.
- Add the bottom side into a foil bin or cooking safe skillet.
- Add a layer of monterey jack cheese to the rolls, top that with your shredded buffalo chicken, finish with another layer of cheese and the top part of the buns.
- In a bowl, melt some butter and mix with the garlic paste and parmesan cheese. Gently spread the melted butter over the top of the rolls.
- Kick up the heat in your smoker to 350-375F, and add your sliders in the foil bin on to the smoker to cook until they are golden brown & crispy (about 10-12 minutes).
- Once done, pull the sliders off and let cool for 2-3 minutes.
- Slice your sliders apart, serve with ranch or blue cheese and enjoy!
