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This simple one-pot Spicy Buffalo White Chicken Chili is perfect for game day, family dinners, and any night in between. Made with a blend of herbs, buffalo sauce, poblano peppers, and shredded chicken. It’s spicy, creamy and so delicious. Top each bowl of chili with plenty of cheddar cheese, fresh cilantro, and avocado. Great on its own, but even better with a side of homemade soft pretzels!
Some recipes have the ability to turn out so, so, good. Better than I had pictured in my head. When this happens, I’m always overly excited to share. It’s not every day that a recipe ends up working perfectly and tasting even more delicious.
Backing up a little here. I’m sure many of you are familiar with my White Chicken Chili. It hasn’t even been a year since I made the recipe and it’s already the second most popular recipe I’ve ever shared. It’s crazy how many of you have made it and enjoyed it!
It is so fun to see!
Over the weekend, I really wanted to make chili. The white chili sounded perfect and I had everything I needed. But I also wondered how I could switch it up and reinvent everyone’s favorite fall/winter dish.
I mentioned a buffalo-style chili to my mom and immediately she responded back, “oh that is what you should make, make that!”. She’s not always that enthusiastic about food, so I took her advice.
I’m sure glad I listened because I think we like this white chili even more than the original. It’s similar, but then it’s also so different. The flavors are worlds apart, but both are so good in their own ways.
We just LOVE anything with some buffalo sauce around here and it’s certainly fun for game day!
The details
Start by cooking up the onion and vegetables until they smell fragrant. For the seasonings, I wanted to add a ranch element to the chili, so I used a mix of parsley, chives, and dill with a touch of paprika. These are the herbs and spices I use in my homemade ranch, so it really gives off that yummy flavor.
Pour in the broth and simply let the chicken simmer until it’s cooked through and shreds easily.
Once the chicken is cooked, pull it out, and shred it.
Next, stir the cream cheese into the chili and finish it up with that shredded chicken and some white beans.
Now comes the buffalo sauce. I used my homemade sauce, which I shared in the notes. But you can use store-bought sauce or even just your favorite hot sauce. I love Franks Red Hot.
So stir in the buffalo sauce, your favorite salsa verde, and then a bit of cheddar cheese.
The toppings
As with any other chili, the toppings are key. For this chili, I like to do a dollop of plain Greek yogurt, then cheddar cheese, cilantro, avocado, and green onions. If you enjoy blue cheese, which we do, that would be great as well!
Homemade soft pretzels or beer bread on the side are extra delicious if you have time.
A dinner the whole family really will enjoy!
Looking for other fall dinners with a little kick? Here are a few ideas:
Healthy Slow Cooker Turkey and White Bean Chili
Healthy Slow Cooker Chipotle Bean Chili
One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake
Healthy Chipotle Chicken Sweet Potato Skins
Slow Cooker Chipotle Chicken Tortilla Soup with Salty Lime Chips
Lastly, if you make this Spicy Buffalo White Chicken Chili be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Spicy Buffalo White Chicken Chili
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 552 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 2 poblano peppers, seeded and chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- 1 tablespoon dried chives
- 2 teaspoons dried dill
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- kosher salt
- black pepper
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- 4-6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 can white beans, drained
- 3/4 cup buffalo sauce
- 1/2 cup salsa verde
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- avocado, cheddar cheese, and Greek yogurt, for serving
Instructions
Stove
- 1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and poblano peppers cook until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, parsley, chives, dill, paprika, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Cook 5 minutes, until very fragrant. Add the chicken, then stir in 4 cups broth. Season with salt and pepper. Partially cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.2. Pull the chicken out and shred using 2 forks. 3. Stir in the cream cheese until smooth, slowly letting it melt into the broth. Add the shredded chicken, white beans, salsa verde, buffalo sauce, and cheddar cheese. Cook 5-10 minutes, until the cheese is melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro. If needed, thin with additional broth.4. Ladle the chili into bowls. Top, as desired, with Greek yogurt/sour cream, cheese, avocado, cilantro, and green onions. Eat and enjoy!
Crockpot
- 1. In the bowl of your crockpot, combine the onion, poblano peppers, garlic, parsley, chives, dill, and paprika. Add the chicken, then stir in 4 cups broth and cream cheese. Season with salt and pepper.2. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 4-5 hours.3. Shred the chicken using two forks. Stir in the white beans, salsa verde, buffalo sauce, cheddar, and cilantro.4. Ladle the chili into bowls. Top, as desired, with Greek yogurt/sour cream, cheese, avocado, cilantro, and green onions. Eat and enjoy!
Notes
Buffalo Sauce: Mix 1/2 cup hot sauce, 1/2 cup olive oil or melted butter, 1/2 teaspoon paprika, 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, and a 1/2 teaspoon each onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a glass jar or measuring cup. Mix together.
Made this tonight and it was phenomenal. My husband smoked the poblanos in advance for me and I used homemade chicken broth from smoked chicken. I don’t understand the commentary around the spice level, this was perfectly well balanced. I used a medium Buffalo sauce. Aired it with corn bread. Absolutely delicious and my husband is demanding it again.
Hey Vanessa,
Happy Monday!! 👻 I am so glad this recipe was tasty for you, thanks a lot for trying it out! xT
This recipe took first place in my office annual chili cook-off a couple weeks ago and two of my coworkers have requested I make it again. It was unbelievably good. One quote was “I would eat that out of an empty toilet bowl,” which is somewhat graphic, but the sentiment is there 🤣🤣
My sisters and I swear by your recipes. Thank you!
Hey Megan,
Lol wow!! Awesome, so glad to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks for making it:) xT
Hands down one of the best soups I have ever had! I topped it with some bleu cheese crumbles and it was delish.
Hey Morgan,
Happy Monday!! 👻 I am so glad this recipe was tasty for you, thanks a lot for trying it out! xT
Tieghan, your recipes are always good but this one was AMAZING. Made this tonight, so so so good! I used 1/2 cup buffalo sauce instead because I read some of the other reviews about the spice level. Toppings are definitely a MUST! I used avocado, plain greek yogurt, and cilantro. Also, so easy to make! Had a slice of jalapeno cheese bread to go with it. Pure perfection. Telling all my friends about it 🙂 This will definitely be a go-to for cold weather recipes.
Hi Erin,
Wonderful!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and truly appreciate you making it! Have a great weekend! 🍁🍂
OMG this was amazing and is definitely going into the rotation!! My family is as picky as they come and we all LOVED THIS! It was phenomenal. Spicy!! (which we like!) so you might want to sub bell peppers for poblanos or maybe add a bit less buffalo sauce if you don’t like spicy. I served this over a scoop of rice in each bowl. Cannot wait to have it again for lunch!! Also this wasn’t hard to make! WINNER!!! Thank you, T!
Hey Tracy,
Wonderful!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and truly appreciate you making it! Have a great weekend! 🍁🍂
This was SOOOO YUMMY!!! perfect for a fall night. I used half the amount of Buffalo sauce it called for just because I always use half Buffalo when I use it in recipes due to personal taste. It was perfect. And this was a very easy prep in comparison to a lot of dishes as there wasn’t too much chopping involved!
Hey Rachel,
Amazing!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Happy Friday! xx
This is probably in my top 3 of Tieghans recipes. And I’ve made a minimum of three a week for the past 3 months. A perfect balance of flavors and a MUST for cold weather. I loved it so much I wrote it down so when I’m old and forget how to use the internet, I can still make it for my husband because he loved it SO much! This will be a staple in our family for a lifetime, thank you!
Hey Alexis,
Happy Friday!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks a bunch for making it! 👻
This was amazing! Definitely a keeper for our family! Love HBH recipes!
Hey Illean,
Happy Friday!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks a bunch for making it! 👻
How to make this in an instant pot?
Hey Michelle,
I’ve not tested this recipe in the instant pot so I don’t have the instructions, but I’m sure it would work well for you! Let me know if you give the recipe a try! xT
I’m so glad it’s soup season! I love white chicken chili and buffalo sauce, and now I’m wondering why no one has put them together before now! Definitely will be making this again!
Hi Shannon,
Happy Wednesday!!👻 I truly appreciate you giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it was enjoyed:)
This was amazing and so easy! I followed the crock pot instructions and when I walked in the door after work it smelled amazing. We had Fritos from taco soup I made early in the week so we crushed those in top for some crunch. Will make this again for sure.
Hey Shelly,
Happy Wednesday!!👻 I truly appreciate you giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it was enjoyed:)
Flavorful warm dish for a fall evening! The amount of Frank’s was a bit too much in my opinion- not too spicy, but the soup tasted overwhelmingly of Frank’s- so I probably would recommend knocking that back a bit, or adding more beans/sour cream etc to help balance it out. But still ate a huge bowl of it!
Hey Clare,
Happy Wednesday!!👻 I truly appreciate you giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it was enjoyed:)
I love spicy food and me and my fiancé had to dump the whole dish because it was disgustingly spicy.
Hi there,
So sorry to hear this recipe did not workout for you! Was there anything you adjusted? What kind of buffalo sauce did you use? Please let me know how I can help! xTieghan
If you aren’t a bean lover, hominy also works great in this recipe!
Hey Danielle,
Thanks so much for sharing!! So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe:) xx
This soup was delish ! It was quick, easy and provided left overs. I used the crock pot instructions and added an extra can of beans. We like beans so it was just a personal preference to have more than called for in the soup. Totally not necessary though. This soup is perfect just as it is. Thanks for another delicious recipe Tieghan!!
Hey there,
Awesome!! Thanks so much for making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I am thrilled to hear that it was enjoyed! xx