Buffalo Chicken Sliders with Celery-Ranch Slaw

Buffalo Chicken Sliders

Soft slider rolls hold a generous pile of warm, saucy shredded chicken and a crisp celery-and-red-onion slaw. A little ranch makes the topping creamy without hiding the vegetables or weighing down the rolls.

Cooked rotisserie chicken makes the filling quick to prepare: warm it gently with Buffalo sauce just until hot and evenly coated. Keep the chicken and slaw off the rolls until serving so the bread stays soft rather than soggy. These are individually assembled sliders, with no baking or cheese layer needed.

Ingredients for Buffalo Chicken Sliders

• 3 cups cooked shredded chicken, such as rotisserie chicken (about 12 ounces or 340g)
• 1/2 cup Buffalo wing sauce, plus up to 1 tablespoon for the slaw
• 12 small, soft slider rolls
• 1 cup thinly sliced celery (about 100g)
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion (about 35g)
• 1/4 cup ranch dressing (about 60g), plus more for serving if desired

How to Make Buffalo Chicken Sliders

1. Make the slaw: Toss the celery and red onion with the ranch and up to 1 tablespoon of Buffalo sauce. Use less Buffalo sauce if you want a milder topping. The vegetables should be lightly coated, not swimming in dressing. Keep chilled until assembly.
2. Warm the chicken: If using rotisserie chicken, remove the skin and bones before shredding. Put the chicken and most of the 1/2 cup Buffalo sauce in a medium saucepan or skillet with enough room to stir. Warm uncovered over medium-low heat for 5–8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Start checking after 5 minutes; stop when the chicken is steaming hot throughout and reaches 165°F (75°C). Stir in the remaining sauce as needed. The shreds should be evenly coated and moist enough to mound, not sitting in liquid.
3. Split the rolls: Separate the rolls into tops and bottoms, leaving them soft and untoasted.
4. Fill and serve: Spoon a generous mound of warm chicken onto each bottom roll. Add a little slaw on top, leaving the celery and red onion visible. Set each top bun slightly askew so the filling shows. Serve immediately, with extra ranch or blue cheese dressing on the side if desired.

How to Keep the Rolls from Getting Soggy

Keep the warm chicken, chilled slaw, and rolls separate until just before serving. If liquid collects around the chicken, portion it with a slotted spoon. Drain any excess dressing from the slaw before adding it to the sliders.

Buffalo Chicken Slider Variations

For a sharper slaw, replace the ranch with blue cheese dressing or add a few blue cheese crumbles at serving.

For a cheese-forward version, add provolone, cheddar, or mozzarella to the chicken-filled rolls and briefly bake until the cheese melts. Add the celery-red-onion slaw after baking. This makes a different slider from the soft, loosely assembled version above.

Raw chicken can also be cooked in a slow cooker for a make-ahead filling. Follow a dependable slow-cooker method, then shred the chicken when it is cooked through and tender. Cooking times vary with the chicken and appliance, so the brief stovetop warming time above does not apply to raw chicken.

How to Store and Reheat

Refrigerate leftover Buffalo chicken in an airtight container for 3–4 days. Store the slaw separately and keep the rolls at room temperature; assembled sliders soften as they sit.

To make ahead, refrigerate the chicken and slaw separately. Reheat the chicken gently in a saucepan or microwave until steaming hot, then assemble the sliders. Cooked Buffalo chicken can be frozen separately; thaw it safely and reheat until hot throughout. Assembled sliders with dressed slaw may not retain their texture after freezing.

Nutrition

Approximate nutrition per serving, based on 2 sliders (1/6 of the recipe): 340 calories, 22g protein, 13g fat, and 35g carbohydrates. Per 100g: about 215 calories, 14g protein, 8g fat, and 22g carbohydrates. Values vary with the rolls, Buffalo sauce, and ranch dressing used.