Keto Buffalo Chicken Casserole (w/ Cauliflower)
This Keto Buffalo Chicken Casserole recipe is everything you love about those saucy buffalo chicken wings but CHEESIER (and a bit healthier)! I add riced cauliflower to the casserole which is smothered in a creamy buffalo sauce and ranch dressing mixture that you’ll love for an easy weeknight dinner.
Cheesy buffalo chicken dip is a popular appetizer everyone seems to love, so why not turn it into a keto-friendly buffalo chicken casserole we can all enjoy for dinner? This recipe is made with a mixture of shredded chicken, riced cauliflower, and a mixture of cheeses, making it high in fat, full of fiber, and most importantly, low in carbs!
The good thing about this buffalo chicken keto casserole is that you can control the heat! If someone doesn’t like spicy food, you can dial it down by choosing the right sauce and not using too much of it! A win-win for all! Read more about that below. The best part of this casserole is the sauce. I added ranch dressing because it goes so well with buffalo sauce, but you can add in blue cheese if you prefer!
If you LOVE buffalo wings, make sure to check out my keto wing recipe! Also, make sure to check out my Instant Pot Keto Buffalo Chicken Soup recipe for a fun change of pace.
Step-by-step instructions:
Step 1: First, preheat the oven. Then, prepare your shredded chicken first and set it aside.
Step 2: Sauté one stalk of chopped celery, red pepper, the white part of green onions, and steamed riced cauliflower in butter, in a skillet, over medium heat.
Step 3: Add the softened cream cheese and stir until thoroughly melted.
Step 4: Add buffalo sauce, ranch salad dressing, chicken broth, garlic powder, pepper, half of the cheddar cheese, and half of the Monterey Jack cheese to the cream cheese mixture and stir until melted and thoroughly combined.
Step 5: Add in the shredded chicken and stir again.
Step 6: Pour your buffalo chicken mixture into a greased 9″ x 13″ casserole dish. Top with remaining cheeses and bake at 400 degrees F for 15-18 minutes, or until the top gets hot and bubbly.
Step 7: Garnish with parsley and more green onions. Serve hot with ranch dressing, blue cheese dressing, blue cheese crumbles or extra buffalo sauce over the top!
Your shredded chicken
Shredded chicken is a staple in buffalo chicken casseroles and is very easy to make. Plus, it is super cost-efficient! I like to add boneless chicken thighs or breasts to my crock pot and boil it for a few hours. You can also cook it in a saucepan. Check out exactly how I make shredded chicken using my slow cooker. You can make a large batch at once, shred it all up and portion it out for future keto casseroles!
If you DON’T have much time on your hands, pick up a rotisserie chicken from the store and remove the legs, thighs, and breasts. Take out the bones and shred using two forks. You can also use a knife to chop up the chicken if it’s too tough to shred properly.
How to make your buffalo sauce more/less spicy
I have a go-to brand of buffalo sauce I like to use, so choose whichever sauce you like BEST. Some hot sauces may still be a bit too spicy for you, so to dial down the heat, simply use less buffalo sauce. I recommend replacing the amount of sauce you removed with more melted butter.
If you LOVE spicy foods, you can always add more buffalo sauce. (about 1/4 to 1/2 cup more). With that said, too much sauce may make your casserole runny. So another option is to use a spicier sauce from the get-go.
Yum! This Keto Buffalo Chicken Casserole was a nice change of pace. My hubby and big kids loved it. Since they enjoy hot foods, it was right up their alley.
Why use riced cauliflower?
Riced cauliflower in this recipe adds nutrients, fiber and is what separates buffalo chicken DIP from buffalo chicken CASSEROLE. It turns it into a hearty meal, so I don’t recommend leaving it out. Without it, your casserole would be flat, dense, and not very “casserole-like.”
Tips for cooking and ricing cauliflower:
Cauliflower can be purchased frozen or fresh.
FRESHLY riced cauliflower
If you purchase a whole head of cauliflower, all you need to do is cut it down into small florets. Then you have the option to boil it or steam it.
If you boil your florets, whether on the stove or in your microwave, it is important to make sure you let your cauliflower FULLY COOL before adding it to the buffalo sauce. You don’t want a watery sauce.
The best way to cool your cauliflower is to lay the boiled cauliflower out on a sheet pan. Then allow the steam to evaporate fully. Once it’s cooled and the steam is gone, you can continue with the recipe.
FROZEN riced cauliflower
I love how almost every grocery store these days has pre-riced cauliflower pre-packaged in bags. You can find them in the frozen foods aisle where the veggies are. If your store has it, get the steam-able bags that allow you to steam cauliflower straight in the microwave, in the bag, in no time without making a mess!
Other keto chicken casseroles you will love:
Don’t miss out!
If you aren’t already following my easy keto/low carb recipe page on Facebook, where I post all my new recipes, I’d love for you to join us! Also, make sure to follow me on Pinterest.
If you are just getting started following a keto diet and would like more information, there are tons of fantastic resources. Amazon has several great books you may want to check out here.
Keto Buffalo Chicken Casserole (w/ Cauliflower)
Ingredients
- 2 lbs shredded chicken breasts
- 2 TB butter
- ½ cup green onions, chopped
- ¼ cup green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 celery stalk, chopped
- 10 oz bag of frozen riced cauliflower
- 1 cup buffalo sauce
- ¼ cup ranch salad dressing
- 2 TB chicken broth
- 6 oz cream cheese, softened
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 4 oz cheddar cheese shredded
- 6 oz Monterey jack cheese shredded
- ½ cup mozzarella cheese shredded
- Parsley for garnish
- Green onions-save the green ends for garnish
Instructions
- Cook 2 lbs of chicken breasts in the slow cooker. *If you prefer to boil the chicken on the stove there is instructions in the notes at the bottom of this recipe card.
- Cover chicken breast with water or chicken broth and salt and pepper.
- Cook on low for 4-5 hours or high 2-3 hours.
- When the chicken is done done, remove from the slow cooker and shred into pieces (not too small).
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and grease a 9 X 13 casserole dish.
- Steam the cauliflower rice in the microwave. Sauté 1 stalk celery chopped, green pepper, and white part of green onions, in 2 Tb butter, in a skillet for 4 min on medium heat while cauliflower rice is steaming in the microwave.
- Once the cauliflower rice is done, add it to the skillet and sauté for 3 min with the onions and celery.
- Add the softened cream cheese and stir until melted.
- Add buffalo sauce, ranch salad dressing, chicken broth, garlic powder, pepper, half of the cheddar cheese and half of the Monterey Jack Cheese.If you prefer to make homemade ranch salad dressing here is a keto ranch dressing recipe.
- Stir until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined then cook all of the ingredients for 1-2 minutes so that the mixture is nice and hot.
- Add the shredded chicken and stir again.
- Pour everything into a greased 9 X 13 casserole dish and top with the remaining cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese, then top with Mozzarella cheese.
- Bake at 400°F for 15-18 min, then move to the top shelf and bake another 3 minutes.
- If needed, turn the oven to broil for a minute so that the cheese gets nice and bubbly.
- Garnish with parsley and the green chopped ends of the green onion
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Oh. My. Stars. This was heavenly. Usually when I make a keto casserole, I’m dishing servings to my non-keto family members but I’m perfectly fine keeping all 9 servings of this to myself!
Great!!! So glad you loved it.
This looks amazing. I forgot the cream cheese at the grocery store… Can I leave it out or are there good substitutes?? Thanks so much!
I haven’t tried making it without cream cheese. I think it is a necessary agreement.
What Buffalo sauce do you use?
We always have a selection of wing sauces. My hubby and 2 older kids love it. For this dish, a very traditional buffalo sauce is ideal. Sweet Baby Ray’s is a great option here because it is very traditional in flavor. I will say I have used whatever is in the fridge before too. So, I would suggest a solid traditional sauce. Nothing fancy.
Delicious. Wish I could post a picture!
Glad you enjoyed it.
I despise cauliflower so I chopped up a zucchini and sautéed with the vegetables and it was a great substitute.
Great thinking Katie! Glad you enjoyed it, and really glad you shared that here. Maybe someone else like you would prefer zucchini over cauliflower. Thanks!
High saturated fat ,high fat ,high cholesterol, extremely high sodium. How can this be good for you ??
Hey Jay, thanks for the question. There is a ton of data online about the benefits of a keto lifestyle. It may or may not be for you. This is where it comes down to each person’s research to decide what works best for them. Good luck with whatever you try!