Healthy Buffalo Chicken Dip combines the flavors of your favorite classic buffalo dip and turns it into a skinny version! This dip is made with cream cheese and Greek yogurt, yet still low in calories. It is gluten free, easy and healthy!
What's a football game without buffalo chicken dip? This dip is so tasty, you don't even need a special occasion to make it! I love making a big batch of this dip on the weekends and eating it over the next few days. It's so good that I don't mind leftovers, even if it's for a couple days in a row.
As a Registered Dietitian, I'm always looking for ways to make foods healthy, yet still taste good. This is a recipe that I developed with the goal of having a flavorful dip that was light and healthy, yet tastes just like the normal version.
I have made this recipe for years and years and have proudly brought it to football watch parties, dinners, gatherings, and more! It is always a favorite!
Looking for more healthy appetizers? Check out my skinny spinach artichoke dip, healthy cowboy caviar or homemade salsa!
What Makes This Buffalo Chicken Dip Healthy?
This skinny buffalo chicken dip is low in fat, carbs and calories. Several ingredients have been swapped out for lower calorie, lower fat alternatives. The dip still tastes just as good! This skinny buffalo dip is made with cream cheese and is still considered healthy-can you believe it?!
Low Fat Cream Cheese: Regular cream cheese is substituted with low-fat cream cheese which saves on calories and fat. Either low-fat cream cheese or ⅓ less fat cream cheese can be used. I do not recommend fat free cream cheese because it changes the texture.
Greek Yogurt: This dip uses non-fat, plain Greek yogurt to add creaminess. The yogurt allows us to cut back the amount of cream cheese used. Another benefit of yogurt is that it adds extra protein to the dip.
Ranch Dressing Mix: The dry ranch dressing mix replaces regular ranch dressing in the recipe. When the dry mix is combined with Greek yogurt, it creates a much healthier product, similar to ranch dressing.
Ingredients Needed
Greek yogurt: use the non-fat version for a low-calorie / low-fat option.
Cream cheese- select a low-fat option. I personally think the fat-free cream cheese does not have a good texture when cooked, so I try to avoid that.
Shredded cheese- you can use a low-fat or a cheese made with 2% milk to lower calories.
Chicken- you can use canned chicken breast or rotisserie chicken as a substitution.
See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: Cook the chicken. The chicken can be prepared in the crockpot, oven or instant pot.
Step 2: Combine the ranch and Greek yogurt in a bowl. Mix well. (Image 1)
Step 3: Add the cream cheese, hot sauce, and shredded cheese to the Greek yogurt mixture. Mix well. (Image 2)
Step 4: Shred the chicken. (Image 3) Add too the hot sauce mixture.
Step 5: Spread into a greased pan.(Image 4) Bake in the oven until warm. Garnish with more shredded cheese during the last 5 minutes of baking if desired!
Alternative Cooking Methods
Buffalo chicken dip can be prepared via crockpot, stove top or oven. The preferred method of cooking is largely dependent upon the amount of time you have to prep this recipe.
Crock Pot: This recipe can easily be made in the crockpot! Spray the bottom of the crockpot well to prevent any sticking. Combine all ingredients and place in a small crockpot. Cook over low for 2-3 hours or until cheese is melted. Stir every hour. Do not over cook or it will burn easily!
Stove Top: Combine all ingredients in a medium-sized cooking pan. (Cook and shred the chicken first). Cook over medium heat stirring every 2-3 minutes to prevent the dip from burning. Continue to cook for about 15 minutes, or until all ingredients are combined and cheese is melted. The mixture will start to bubble when done.
Oven: Grease an 8x8 baking dish. Combine all ingredients together (make sure the chicken is cooked first!). Spread the buffalo mixture evenly into the bottom of the pan. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until the dip is melted and starts to bubble.
Microwave: Combine all ingredients of the dip together in a large bowl (make sure you use cooked chicken!). Spread the dip evenly in a microwave-safe casserole dish. Cook for 2-5 minutes or until hot.
Leftovers
Refrigerator: store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Place it in an airtight container and refrigerate it within 2 hours of cooking. Do not eat dip that has sat out for an extended time period! (More on food safety here!)
Freezer: Store the buffalo chicken dip in an airtight container, such as a freezer-safe zip lock bag. Seal shut and freeze for up to 3-4 months.
Reheating Leftovers: The leftovers can be microwaved, heated in the oven or reheated in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir frequently and always reheat to 165F to ensure the food is safe to eat!
Serving Suggestions
Here's a list of healthy foods that you can serve with buffalo chicken dip:
- Serve as a dip and use cut-up veggies such as carrots, celery, or cucumber slices.
- Serve with crackers, tortilla chips, pita bread, or pretzels
- Have Leftovers? Turn it into a quinoa bowl. Combine quinoa, chicken dip, and some carrots for a tasty meal.
- Spread it on tortillas and make some buffalo chicken wraps!
- Serve with other classic game day foods such as wings! Here's my favorite honey chipotle wings and an easy recipe for chicken wing brine!
- Serve with a side of air fryer pizza or cottage cheese pizza. What's better than pizza and buffalo dip?
Expert Tips
- Make this buffalo chicken dip up to two days in advance. Simply mix all ingredients of the dip together. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two days. Top with cheese and bake right before serving.
- Batch cook this recipe by making a double or triple batch. Freeze it in small bags and then thaw out when ready to eat!
- Short on time and don't have chicken on hand? Use a rotisserie chicken or canned chicken!
Nutrition Information
Here is a comparison of the healthy buffalo chicken dip to the normal buffalo chicken dip recipe. The "Normal Dip" is the recipe that is posted on Frank's Red Hot website.
LESS CALORIES
This recipe contains 124 calories. Traditional dip contains 175 calories/per serving. This saves about 60 calories which means you can totally have seconds!
HIGHER PROTEIN
The skinny dip has 15 grams of protein. This is 2.5 times the amount as the normal dip. The increased protein comes from the greek yogurt.
LESS FAT
This recipe contains 5 grams total fat and 2 grams saturated fat. The normal dip has 8 grams of saturated fat.
OVERALL
The biggest factor in the health of this recipe is dependent on what food items you choose to consume this dip with and how much of the dip is eaten in one serving. Healthy options for dipping are to use carrots, celery, or a serving of a whole grain cracker.
Recipe FAQs
There are many ways to eat buffalo chicken dip without chips! Use cut up veggies such as carrots, celery, broccoli, or grape tomatoes. Another option is to dip with crackers or pretzels. The dip can also be spread on a tortilla and eaten as a wrap.
Buffalo chicken dip can be calorie-dense due to its creamy base and cheese. A typical serving can range from 150 to 250 calories or more, depending on the recipe and portion size, so it's essential to be mindful of your serving size if you're watching your calorie intake.
This buffalo chicken dip has 124 calories per serving. It has been made lighter by using low fat cream cheese and greek yogurt.
Other Related Healthy Appetizers
If you tried this Healthy Buffalo Chicken recipe or any other recipe on my website, please please leave a star rating and let me know how you like it in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Healthy Buffalo Chicken Dip
Ingredients
- 1 cup nonfat plain greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons ranch dressing dry seasoning mix
- 2.5 cups cooked shredded chicken breast
- 4 oz low-fat cream cheese softened
- ½ cup Frank's red hot sauce (any brand will work)
- ½ cup low fat shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Combine greek yogurt and dry ranch seasoning mix in medium mixing bowl. Mix well.
- Add shredded chicken, cream cheese, hot sauce and cheddar cheese. Mix well.
- Spread mixture evenly into an 8x8 greased pan or casserole dish.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until mixture is melted and bubbly at top.
- Garnish with blue cheese if desired.
- Serve warm. Enjoy!
Notes
- Make this buffalo chicken dip up to two days in advance. Simply mix all ingredients of the dip together. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two days. Top with cheese and bake right before serving.
- Short on time and don't have chicken on hand? Use a rotisserie chicken or canned chicken!
- Optional: Garnish with ¼ cup blue cheese crumbles, feta cheese crumbles or green onions.
- Optional: Add an additional ¼ cup of shredded cheese on top of the casserole once it has baked for 20 minutes. Bake for another 5 minutes until the cheese is melted.
Eliana Ingram says
I have made this dip multiple times and can say it tastes amazing! Everyone says they had no idea it was 'healthy'.
Ashlee Welter says
So glad you enjoyed it!
Joan says
I made this last weekend and loved it. I added to the recipe and turned out good. Blue cheese crumbs mixed in, green onions on top, feta cheese on top.
Anne says
This is my favorite dip! I've made it so many times and always add blue cheese to the top!
Michael says
Hello!
I read in the article that a serving is 105 calories instead of 175. However, I couldn’t find the actual serving size? Preferably in cups or ounces. Thank you!