If you love crispy chicken sandwiches, you need to make this Buffalo Chicken Sandwich. I season and bread the chicken and then lightly coat it in buffalo sauce to add a kick. The homemade coleslaw is cool and creamy to help balance the heat, making each bite perfect!
Recipe Essentials
- 🍽️ Course: Lunch or Dinner
- ⏱️ Cooking Time: 20 minutes
- 🍴 Servings: 4
- 🧄 Flavor Profile: Spicy, tangy buffalo chicken balanced by creamy, crunchy coleslaw with a cool, slightly sweet finish.
- 🍚 Best Served With: Great with fries, potato chips, pickles, or a cold beer on the side.
- 🧊 Make Ahead?: Yes, chicken and coleslaw can be prepped ahead and assembled just before serving for the best texture.
Summarize and Save This Content On
Whether you make the buffalo chicken sandwiches for a quick weeknight dinner, to feed guests, or as a filling lunch, there's no wrong way to enjoy them. I love that it's a simple base recipe that you can put your own twist on to make it your own. Getting creative in the kitchen is half the fun!
Try my Cajun chicken sandwich or this chicken po' boy if you want more tasty chicken sandwich recipes. My chicken cordon bleu sandwich is also note worthy.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- It's ready in 30 minutes: It only takes 30 minutes to cook the chicken, prepare the slaw, and assemble the sandwiches. It's an amazing, quick, and easy meal.
- You can adjust the spice level: How spicy your buffalo chicken sandwich is depends on you! You can go mild or extra hot, whatever you prefer.
- It's crunchy without deep frying: This crispy chicken is baked, which reduces the amount of fat in this recipe. It's a much healthier way to make it.
Ingredients
The 3 main components of this buffalo chicken sandwich are listed below. You can find them at the grocery store any time you have a spicy craving.
- Coleslaw: I prepare a quick homemade coleslaw consisting of coleslaw mix, red onion, vinegar, mayo, honey, salt, and pepper. Feel free to use any coleslaw recipe or store-bought coleslaw you like.
- Chicken: I prefer chicken thighs for this recipe. They are a lot more forgiving than chicken breasts and don't dry out as easily. If you would like to use chicken breasts, that's fine!
- Buffalo sauce: Any store-bought buffalo sauce or hot sauce will work great for this recipe. If you want to try a homemade version, I recommend this vegan buffalo sauce recipe.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations
- Add ranch to the sauce: Add about ¼ cup of ranch dressing to the buffalo sauce to further tame the heat and give it a creamy consistency.
- Add honey to the sauce: Stir in 2 tablespoons of honey to turn it into a sweet and spicy sauce.
- Add cheese: Choose your favorite sliced cheese, like sharp cheddar or provolone, and melt it onto the crispy chicken.
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches
The steps needed for this buffalo sandwich recipe are listed below. Preheat your oven to 425F and prepare your ingredients for the coleslaw so you can make it while the chicken is cooking.
Step 1: Season the flour. Add all the spices to the flour and mix well.
Step 2: Coat the chicken and bake. Once your dredging station is ready, coat each thigh in flour, then egg, and finally breadcrumbs. Place them on a wire rack over a sheet pan, and bake for about 15 minutes. Flip them, then cook for another 10-15 minutes or until done.
Step 3: Prepare the coleslaw. While the chicken cooks, combine the ingredients for the coleslaw in a serving bowl and set it aside.
Step 4: Add buffalo sauce and make the sandwiches. After you take the chicken out of the oven, coat the pieces in buffalo sauce before you place them on the buns with slaw. Enjoy your crispy buffalo chicken sandwich with oven-baked sweet potato fries.
Expert Tips
- Use a wire rack to bake the chicken: A wire rack keeps the chicken from touching the bottom of the pan, so as moisture releases as it cooks, the breaded chicken isn't sitting in the juices, causing soggy breading.
- Fixing watery coleslaw: If your coleslaw is a little watery, add another 1-2 tablespoons of mayonnaise and then chill it in the fridge. This should help thicken it.
- Storage directions: Avoid saving assembled sandwiches as they become very soggy from all the wet ingredients. Store the chicken, buffalo sauce, and slaw separately in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
If you like these spicy chicken sandwiches, you'll love these buffalo ranch chicken wraps and my boneless buffalo chicken wings.
Serving Suggestions
- Turn up the spice and add more crunch with these horseradish pickles.
- Add a drizzle of buttermilk ranch dip or creamy blue cheese dip to further balance the heat.
- I love easy side dishes like this creamy cucumber salad paired with a fried buffalo chicken sandwich.
- An easy dinner deserves an easy and satisfying treat like these Dubai chocolate truffles.
Buffalo Chicken Sandwich Recipe FAQs
Yes! Cook the chicken thighs at 400° F for about 7 minutes, then flip them and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes, or until they're fully cooked and crispy.
If you want to check the doneness of the chicken, use a thermometer. It must be cooked to a minimal internal temperature of 165° F.
The only component that needs to be reheated is the chicken. This is best for the air fryer or oven, to keep the chicken from drying out or becoming soggy. It should only take around 5 minutes at 375° F.
More Delicious Sandwich Recipes
Do you like easy sandwich recipes? Here are some recipes you may also like to try.
If you try this recipe and love it please leave a star rating in the recipe card below or even better, drop a review in the comment section. I always appreciate your feedback. Be sure to follow along with me on Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube for more easy recipes!
Buffalo Chicken Sandwich
Equipment
- Baking Sheet
Ingredients
Cole Slaw Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups coleslaw
- ⅛ cup sliced red onion soaked in water
- ⅛ cup red wine vinegar
- ⅛ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoons honey
- ¼ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- teaspoon black pepper
Chicken Ingredients
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 eggs whisked
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 4 chicken thighs skinless and boneless
- Avocado oil cooking spray
- ½ cup buffalo sauce
- 4 brioche or burger buns
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- To a bowl, add the flour and dried seasonings. Mix until combined. Set aside.
- To another bowl, add the eggs. Whisk until combined. Set aside.
- To another bowl, add the panko breadcrumbs. Set aside.
- Coat the chicken in the seasoned flour. Shake off the excess flour.
- Dip the floured chicken in the eggs.
- Next, coat the chicken in the breadcrumbs. Press the breadcrumbs onto the chicken so they stick.
- Spray both sides of the chicken and the wire rack with cooking spray.
- Place the chicken on a wire rack on your baking sheet.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
- While the chicken is cooking, add the coleslaw ingredients to a bowl. Mix until combined. Place in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Flip the chicken over and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165° F.
- Remove from the oven and coat the chicken with the buffalo sauce.
- Serve on a bun and top with the coleslaw.
Video
Notes
- Always use a meat thermometer if you're unsure if the chicken is fully cooked. The thickest part of the thigh should read a minimum of 165F for food safety.
- The wire rack is crucial to keeping your chicken perfectly crispy as it cooks by lifting it out of the juices that naturally release in the oven.
- Feel free to cook your chicken thighs in the air fryer instead of the oven. Place them in the air fryer at 400° F and cook for 7 minutes, then flip them and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes, or until they're fully cooked and crispy.
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