Description
Hearty Buffalo Chicken Chili brings fiery southwestern comfort straight to your dinner table. Packed with tender shredded chicken, zesty buffalo sauce, and rich spices, this slow cooker marvel promises a flavor-packed meal you’ll crave again and again.
Ingredients
Scale
Protein:
- 1.5 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 can kidney beans, drained
Vegetables:
- 4 carrots, diced (about 2 cups)
- 4 celery stalks, diced (about 1.5 cups)
- 2 cups cauliflower, chopped
- 2 cups sweet potato, diced
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
Liquid and Seasoning:
- 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1/2 cup Franks Red Hot Sauce
- 1 cup water (add more for a thinner chili)
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1.5 tablespoons cumin
- 1.5 tablespoons paprika
- 1.5 teaspoons salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Instructions
- Craft the flavor foundation by blending diced tomatoes, hot sauce, honey, aromatic spices, water, and minced garlic in the slow cooker, creating a robust liquid base for the chili.
- Incorporate colorful vegetables including carrots, celery, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, and kidney beans, stirring thoroughly to ensure even ingredient distribution.
- Gently place whole chicken breasts into the vegetable mixture, ensuring they are mostly submerged in the liquid to promote even cooking and flavor absorption.
- Program the slow cooker to high temperature for 2-3 hours or low temperature for 4-6 hours, allowing ingredients to simmer and develop deep, complex flavors.
- After cooking, extract chicken and break into tender shreds using two forks, then reintegrate the meat back into the chili’s rich sauce.
- Enhance the dish’s creaminess by folding in crumbled blue cheese, which will melt and introduce a tangy, luxurious dimension to the chili.
- Serve in individual bowls, garnishing with optional toppings like diced avocado, dollops of Greek yogurt, additional blue cheese crumbles, or crunchy tortilla chips for textural contrast.
Notes
- Choose bone-in chicken breasts for extra flavor and moisture, ensuring the meat stays juicy during slow cooking.
- Swap hot sauce with mild sauce if you prefer less heat, allowing kids or spice-sensitive folks to enjoy the chili.
- Add quinoa or brown rice directly to the slow cooker during the last hour for a heartier, protein-packed meal that’s filling and nutritious.
- For a vegetarian version, replace chicken with extra firm tofu or plant-based chicken alternatives, maintaining the same cooking time and seasonings.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 3 hours
- Category: Dinner, Lunch, Snacks
- Method: Slow Cooking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
- Calories: 300
- Sugar: 5 g
- Sodium: 800 mg
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Fiber: 10 g
- Protein: 25 g
- Cholesterol: 75 mg