These buffalo chicken egg rolls are the perfect game day appetizer for any buffalo chicken fan! Fill egg rolls with creamy buffalo chicken, wrap them up, and fry to crispy perfection! We tested these over and over again to get the perfect amount of filling and the perfect ratio of sauce to chicken. We think they’re the best buffalo chicken egg rolls and hope you do too!
There’s also an air fryer version for anyone who wants air fryer buffalo chicken egg rolls! They’re not quite as crispy as the fried version, air fryer version are still delicious!
The Best Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls Recipe
One of my all-time flavor combinations is buffalo chicken. I mean there’s a reason I’ve shared a buffalo chicken dip, buffalo chicken roll-ups, and even buffalo chicken stuffed potatoes. I like buffalo chicken recipes!
There’s just something about that spicy chicken flavor combined with a creamy ranch (or blue cheese if you prefer) that is so addictive. Add that to the crispiness of egg rolls and yum!
These buffalo chicken egg rolls have a creamy buffalo chicken center and a crunchy egg roll outside, making them the perfect appetizer for a Super Bowl party or game night and a great alternative to traditional buffalo wings!
No matter the team you’re cheering for (or not) during football season, you’re going to want to try this homemade egg roll recipe!
Why you’ll love These Buffalo Chicken Rolls
- Easy to make – if you can cook and shred chicken, you can make this recipe because that’s the hardest part!
- Not too spicy – the combination of the cream cheese, ranch dressing, and buffalo chicken together has a little heat but not too much, making these perfect for most people.
- Great to make ahead – while you don’t want to fry these ahead of time, you can prep them so that they’re ready to fry right before you eat!
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Egg roll wrappers – any fresh egg roll wrappers will work, I personally prefer the Nasoya brand. Make sure they are egg roll wrappers and not spring roll wrappers.
- Chicken – you’ll want cooked, shredded chicken for these so you can cook it in any method you want and then shred. You can also use shredded rotisserie chicken as long as it’s not pre-flavored. Depending on the size of the boneless chicken breast, you’ll likely need 2-3 chicken breasts.
- Buffalo sauce – I always use Frank’s buffalo sauce (sometimes called buffalo wing sauce) because it’s a personal favorite but really any buffalo sauce you like works. You can also use hot sauce but it has a slightly different flavor.
- Ranch dressing – I typically use the traditional Hidden Valley ranch but again any ranch works as long as it’s a creamy ranch. You can also serve more ranch as a dipping sauce for the egg rolls. If you’re more of a blue cheese dressing fan, you could also use that – it’s just not my favorite.
- Shredded cheese – I used shredded Italian cheese in these because that’s what my kids like, but you could also use an Italian blend, mozzarella cheese, or even cheddar cheese.
- Cream cheese – I prefer full fat but anything works. There’s no need to soften the cream cheese since we’ll be heating it up to add to the filling!
Note!
You’ll also need oil to fry the buffalo chicken egg rolls unless you want to make them in the air fryer. Vegetable oil works best for frying these to get the nice crispy exterior but if you don’t want to use vegetable oil, avocado oil works as well. It’s just a lot more expensive to use for frying. I do not recommend using olive oil for frying.
How to make Crispy Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls
You’re going to be amazed how easy these are to make. It’s kind of like making these spinach artichoke cups but with buffalo chicken instead!
1 – Make the egg roll filling
- Start by combining the cooked chicken, cream cheese, and buffalo sauce in a microwave safe bowl. I typically use a large bowl but any size will work as long as it fits your ingredients.
- Microwave for one minute on high heat. Stir then repeat again at 30 second increments until the cream cheese is soft enough that when you stir, it mixes into the shredded chicken.
Tip!
Or if you’d prefer to not use the microwave, you can also do this in an oven safe dish and just bake the ingredients together at 350 until the cream cheese is creamy and can be mixed into the other ingredients. It will take longer but works just the same.
- Once the chicken mixture is ready, add the shredded Italian cheese and ranch dressing to the mixture and stir again to mix it all together well.
2 – Fill the Buffalo Egg Rolls
Once your buffalo chicken mixture is all mixed together, it’s time to fill your egg rolls!
- Lay an egg roll wrapper out on the counter or on a flat surface so that it looks like a diamond in front of you. Scoop 1/4 cup of the filling and place it in the middle of the wrapper.
- Now it’s time to fold. It sounds more complicated than it really is but once you’ve done one, you’ll be a pro! Start by folding the sides of your egg roll wrapper (starting with the corners) in first then next, tightly fold up the bottom corner towards the center.
- Lightly brush the top corner with water then finish it off by taking the top corner and rolling it tightly until you have an egg roll shape.
- Repeat for each egg roll until all your buffalo chicken egg rolls are ready to go! Place all of the egg rolls seam side down on either a plate or a baking sheet while you get your oil ready to fry!
3 – Fry the buffalo egg rolls
- Line a plate with paper towels so that you have somewhere to put your hot egg rolls when you remove the cooked egg rolls from the skillet.
- Heat about one inch of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan or skillet over medium low heat (you don’t want it to be too hot) until it starts to bubble slightly. You can test it by putting a corner of an egg roll wrapper in it – if it instantly bubbles, it’s ready to go. If it doesn’t, wait another minute and test again.
- Carefully place two egg rolls in the skillet and fry one side until the back is golden brown, roughly one minute. Flip the egg roll and cook until the other side is golden.
Tip!
If you want to use a large skillet and more oil, you can fry more than two egg rolls at at the same time. Just be careful not to crowd the egg rolls so they have the chance to fry evenly all the way around.
- When all edges of the wrapper are golden brown, remove them from the oil using tongs and place on the paper towel lined plate to cool. Repeat frying until all twelve egg rolls are crispy and ready to eat!
Enjoy this tasty snack fresh as soon as they are cool enough to handle! Serve with extra buffalo sauce, ranch dressing, or even blue cheese crumbles. I also love to serve them with carrot and celery sticks to take the edge off (and use the ranch dressing!)
How to make Air Fryer Egg Rolls
If you want to make these in your air fryer instead of frying them on the stove, here are instructions to make them in an air fryer basket instead!
- Spray the air fryer basket with non-stick cooking spray (to keep these from sticking).
- Place the egg rolls in a single layer in the air fryer basket then cook at 400 degrees for 6-7 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.
- Flip the egg rolls and cook for another 6-7 minutes, until the entire egg roll is golden brown.
- Remove carefully from the air fryer basket and enjoy once cooled slightly!
Tips & tricks
Prep all of the egg rolls ahead of time and fry just before you’re ready to serve. These are best enjoyed warm or at least at room temperature to get the best crunch.
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. Reheat in the air fryer at 400 degrees for a few minutes or until the inside is warm. If you don’t have an air fryer, you can also just warm them up in the oven. I don’t recommend microwaving the egg rolls or they’ll get soggy.
Make sure to put the egg rolls onto a paper towel to allow it to soak up the grease from the oil. This will give you the best crunch without being overly greasy.
Place the egg rolls seam side down while you’re heating up the oil so they don’t unwrap! The water should help this as well but just in case, lay seam side down!
Freeze egg rolls after they are fried by wrapping them individually in plastic wrap then storing in the freezer in an airtight container. Cook in the air fryer or oven directly from frozen!
Recipe FAQs
How to make egg rolls in an air fryer?
Fill the egg roll wrappers with the buffalo chicken mixture and wrap tightly. Air fry egg rolls for 12 minutes at 400 degrees, flipping the egg rolls once halfway through the cooking time.
Why are my egg rolls not crispy?
If your oil is too hot, the egg roll wrappers will brown too quickly and burn instead of getting golden brown and crispy. Lower the heat of your oil before adding more egg rolls. Letting the egg rolls soak on the paper towel will also help to keep them crispy longer.
More Game Day Appetizers
More Easy Game Day Recipes
These buffalo chicken egg rolls will likely be your new favorite appetizer but after that, you should try some of these too!
- Soft pretzel bites – the best soft pretzel bites that work well with any type of pretzel toppings! A great appetizer for kids and adults!
- Sticky Asian chicken wings – crispy, sticky, and absolutely delicious!
- Taco dip with meat – the most delicious taco dip that starts with homemade taco meat and ends with all the cheese!
- Pizza roll ups – super simple pizza rolls up using pepperoni, cheese, and crescent rolls!
- Pigs in a blanket with cheese – traditional pigs in a blanket with a cheesy twist!
Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked chicken breast, shredded 3 small breasts or 2 large ones
- 2 TBS cream cheese
- ⅓ cup buffalo sauce
- ½ cup shredded Italian cheese
- 2 TBS ranch dressing
- 12 egg roll wrappers
- vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
- Start by combining the cooked chicken, cream cheese, and buffalo sauce in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for one minute on high heat. Stir then repeat again at 30 second increments until the cream cheese is soft enough that when you stir, it mixes into the shredded chicken.3 cups cooked chicken breast, shredded, 2 TBS cream cheese, 1/3 cup buffalo sauce
- Once the chicken mixture is ready, add the shredded Italian cheese and ranch dressing to the mixture and stir again to mix it all together well.1/2 cup shredded Italian cheese, 2 TBS ranch dressing
- Lay an egg roll wrapper out on the counter or on a flat surface so that it looks like a diamond in front of you. Scoop 1/4 cup of the filling and place it in the middle of the wrapper.12 egg roll wrappers
- Start by folding the sides of your egg roll wrapper (starting with the corners) in first then next, tightly fold up the bottom corner towards the center. Lightly brush the top corner with water then finish it off by taking the top corner and rolling it tightly until you have an egg roll shape. Repeat with each of the 12 egg rolls.
- Line a plate with paper towels to drain the egg rolls on after cooking.
- Heat about one inch of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan or skillet over medium low heat (you don’t want it to be too hot) until it starts to bubble slightly.vegetable oil
- Carefully place two egg rolls in the skillet and fry one side until the back is golden brown, roughly one minute. Flip the egg roll and cook until the other side is golden. When all edges of the wrapper are golden brown, remove them from the oil using tongs and place on the paper towel lined plate to cool. Repeat frying until all twelve egg rolls are crispy and ready to eat!
- Serve with ranch dressing for dipping.
Tips & Notes:
- Egg roll wrappers – any fresh egg roll wrappers will work, I personally prefer the Nasoya brand. Make sure they are egg roll wrappers and not spring roll wrappers.
- Chicken – you’ll want cooked, shredded chicken for these so you can cook it in any method you want and then shred. You can also use shredded rotisserie chicken as long as it’s not pre-flavored. Depending on the size of the boneless chicken breast, you’ll likely need 2-3 chicken breasts.
- Buffalo sauce – I always use Frank’s buffalo sauce (sometimes called buffalo wing sauce) because it’s a personal favorite but really any buffalo sauce you like works. You can also use hot sauce but it has a slightly different flavor.
- Ranch dressing – I typically use the traditional Hidden Valley ranch but again any ranch works as long as it’s a creamy ranch. You can also serve more ranch as a dipping sauce for the egg rolls. If you’re more of a blue cheese dressing fan, you could also use that – it’s just not my favorite.
- Shredded cheese – I used shredded Italian cheese in these because that’s what my kids like, but you could also use an Italian blend, mozzarella cheese, or even cheddar cheese.
- Cream cheese – I prefer full fat but anything works. There’s no need to soften the cream cheese since we’ll be heating it up to add to the filling!
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