A few years ago, after hiking for a few hours at Chimney Rock State Park in North Carolina, we entered a quaint cafe in downtown Chimney Rock for a very late lunch. I cannot remember the name of the cafe (UGH), but I think it was either Medina's or Old Rock Cafe. Anyway, the most important takeaway from our lunch that day was the incredible buffalo dip that my friend ordered. Even though she ordered it as her entrée, she was kind enough to share it with the entire table. We couldn't get enough of it!
We talked about that buffalo chicken dip for weeks after our Chimney Rock adventure and determined that we would find a recipe that rivaled our love for the cafe's chicken dip. After much experimentation, we believe that we have perfected the tastiest buffalo chicken dip! We also find this recipe to be embarrassingly simple.
This is a perfect crowd-pleasing appetizer or an easy dinner entrée. We unapologetically include this dish in our weeknight dinner rotation and any leftovers taste just as good reheated the next day.
One more thing. If you're willing to skip the tortilla chips, this dish is low carb/keto friendly!
Written Tutorial
Step 1: Preheat oven (400° F) and gather all of the ingredients.
You'll need:
- 1 -2 cooked and shredded chicken breasts (I prefer to use only 1 medium-sized chicken breast. I like less chicken and a more creamy dip.)
- 1/4 cup buffalo sauce (I use Frank's RedHot Wings MILD sauce.)
- 1/2 cup ranch dressing (I love using the Hidden Valley Original Ranch Seasoning Mix. Just follow the package instructions to make the ranch dressing.)
- 8oz softened cream cheese
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I prefer medium or sharp cheddar.)
- Tortilla chips
Step 2: Combine ingredients.
- In case you missed it in step 1, preheat the oven to 400° F.
- In a large bowl, combine the shredded chicken, 1/4 cup buffalo sauce, 1/2 cup ranch dressing, 8oz softened cream cheese, and 1 cup cheddar cheese.
- Mix ingredients with a spoon or spatula until well combined. You may see a few clumps of cream cheese in the mixture. That's okay! The cream cheese will melt perfectly in the oven.
Step 3: Transfer to an oven safe dish and bake in preheated oven.
- Transfer the prepared dip into an oven safe baking dish.
- Place baking dish in a preheated 400° F oven.
- Bake dip for 30 minutes. You will want to stir the dip 1-2 times during the 30 minutes to avoid charred chicken on the top of the dish.
- Remove dish from the oven. Serve quickly while warm with tortilla chips.
Video Tutorial
