Buffalo chicken rice bowls are such a flavorful but simple meal! Great for lunch or dinner and perfect for meal prep, these spicy buffalo chicken rice bowls are so satisfying and ready in just 15 minutes! This healthy buffalo chicken and rice meal is made with simple ingredients and is dairy free and gluten free!
Why you will love this recipe
- Easy to prepare – the rice cooks in the instant pot while the chicken is quickly cooked on the skillet. This recipe is great because there are not a lot of complicated steps and you can even use your grocery store for short-cuts (like buying frozen rice and store-bought buffalo sauce).
- Simple ingredients – you likely have everything you need to make this buffalo chicken rice bowl in your fridge and pantry right now. The buffalo sauce is very simple to make and the rest of the ingredients are fridge and pantry staples.
- A healthy meal you want to make! Who doesn’t love buffalo chicken after all. Instead of deep frying chicken wings, the buffalo chicken is made on the skillet from boneless, skinless chicken (thighs, breast or tenders), making it a much healthier option.
Ingredients
- Jasmine or basmati rice – this recipe uses white jasmine rice (or white basmati rice) since it cooks so quickly in the instant pot and pairs so well with the buffalo chicken. Jasmine rice and basmati rice also reheat very well (they don’t get rock hard in the fridge), so they are great for meal prep and leftovers. Note: You could also use brown jasmine rice or brown basmati rice but the cooking time will increase from 3 minutes to 7 minutes and you will need to add more liquid.
- Celery and carrots – chopped celery and carrots are a nod to the traditional sides you get when you order buffalo wings. They add crunch to the rice buffalo chicken bowls and also add some great color. You could really add any veggies you love here (see below for ideas).
- Boneless, skinless chicken – you can use chicken thighs, breast or tenders in this recipe. The chicken gets cut into bite size pieces then cooked on the skillet so you can really use whatever you have on hand. If you are short on time, chicken tenders are the easiest and quickest option, since they are already thin and easy to cut down into small pieces.
- Hot sauce – use whatever hot sauce you have on hand for this recipe. The hot sauce you use will dictate how spicy this dish is. I like Franks Red Hot (it’s got great flavor and the ingredients are very simple). You could use Texas Pete if you want a milder hot sauce.
- Avocado oil – avocado oil helps to create the buffalo sauce. Instead of melted butter, this recipe uses avocado oil which is very neutral in flavor. If you want a more traditional buffalo chicken flavor, you can use melted ghee or butter.
- Spices: dried chives, dried parsley, garlic powder, salt, dried dill – this is my go-to ranch seasoning mix and helps to create a really delicious buffalo sauce. These spices are optional (you can just use garlic powder and salt if you want).
How to make buffalo chicken rice bowls
Start by making the rice: rinse the rice under water 3-4 times until it runs clear. Add the rice to the instant pot with fresh water and cook on high pressure for 3 minutes. Once done cooking, let the rice naturally release pressure for 5 minutes before manually releasing pressure (this should take 12-13 minutes total).
Next start a large skillet over medium heat (so that it’s preheated when the chicken is ready).
Once the rice is cooking, prep the chicken. Cut the chicken into bite size pieces (about 1-1.5 inch chunks). Try to cut the chicken into even size pieces so they cook evenly. Add the chicken to a bowl.
Make the buffalo sauce by combining the hot sauce, avocado oil and spices. Stir well and pour over the chicken in the bowl.
Mix the chicken and buffalo sauce together well then add it to the hot skillet. Flatten the chicken into a single layer then let cook 5 minutes (don’t touch it during this time). After 5 minutes, you can stir the chicken in the skillet, cooking for 4-5 more minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
While the chicken is cooking, chop the celery and carrots into small pieces.
When the chicken is ready and the rice is done cooking, assemble the buffalo chicken rice bowls by adding rice, buffalo chicken and the veggies to a bowl. Add the optional ranch dressing and serve hot.
Top tips
- Be sure to cut the chicken into similar size pieces so that they all cook at the same time.
- If you like really saucy buffalo chicken, double the buffalo sauce to pour over right before serving.
- When cooking the chicken, if you find that there is a lot of extra liquid in the pan, take the chicken out and simmer the sauce for 1-2 more minutes before adding the chicken back in to coat it.
- You can use boneless, skinless chicken thighs, breast or tenders. If you are short on time, tenders are the quickest to chop up because they are already so small. You can also chop the chicken into chunks 24 hours in advance. Be sure to store it in an airtight, covered container.
- Use chicken broth, chicken stock or vegetable broth instead of water to add more flavor to the rice. To add more protein, use bone broth.
- The veggies can be reheated with the rest of the buffalo rice bowls but the texture is best if you store the veggies separate from the chicken and rice.
- If you want to add a vegetable that can be easily reheated with the rest of the meal, I recommend broccoli or cauliflower, steamed or air fryer zucchini and squash.
Common questions
Is the buffalo sauce spicy?
Buffalo sauce is made with hot sauce so it’s spicy, but not overwhelming. If you want to cool down the spice, add ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing.
The hot sauce that you use in this recipe will also determine how hot the buffalo sauce is.
What is the best hot sauce to use to make buffalo sauce
The hot sauce you use will determine the spiciness of the buffalo chicken and also the flavor. Because of this, everyone is going to have a different preference. I prefer Franks Red Hot. I like Franks because it’s very traditional but also because it has great ingredients. It’s peppers, vinegar and spices.
Tip: You can find a Franks dupe at Aldi that is so budget friendly and has almost the exact same ingredients. The Aldi version does have some xantham gum so if you are staying away from gums, this won’t be an option for you.
You could also use Texas Pete which has more vinegar and is less spicy or whatever your favorite hot sauce is.
Can you use store bought buffalo sauce?
Yes! If you would like to use store bought buffalo sauce instead of making your own, you certainly can! Some of my favorites are Primal Kitchen and New Primal Buffalo Sauce. These are both dairy free and so delicious!
Can you use pre-cooked chicken?
Yes you can use pre-cooked chicken instead of making the chicken on the skillet fresh. Simply add the buffalo sauce to the cubed or shredded pre-cooked chicken and stir well.
What else could you use besides rice?
If you don’t have rice on hand or prefer a different grain, you could use quinoa in place of the rice. You could also use white beans, black beans or even cauliflower rice instead of rice.
How to make this low carb friendly
Instead of rice, you can substitute cauliflower rice. Cook the cauliflower rice in a large skillet over medium high heat for 6-8 minutes until cooked through. Add about 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder to the cauliflower rice to ensure it’s well seasoned.
Can you double the recipe?
Yes! You can easily double the recipe, however the rice will take longer to come up to pressure (the more liquid, the longer it will take to come up to pressure in the instant pot). Also you may want to cook the chicken in batches or in two large skillets to ensure that you don’t overcrowd the pan. You could also make buffalo chicken in the oven instead if you are making a larger batch.
What if you don’t have an instant pot?
If you don’t have a instant pot, you can cook the rice on the stove instead. Add the rinsed rice and water to the pot, bring to a boil (covered) then turn down the heat to low and simmer the rice for 15 minutes.
How to make this for meal prep
Prep the rice and chicken as indicated in this recipe. Chop the veggies and store them in a separate container.
Divide the rice and buffalo chicken into meal prep containers and store in the fridge up to 4 days.
When ready to enjoy, reheat the rice and chicken then add the chopped veggies to the side. Pour over optional ranch dressing and enjoy.
Storing leftovers
- Fridge: The leftover buffalo chicken rice bowls can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Reheat on the stove over low heat in a covered skillet or in the microwave for 1:30 – 2 minutes.
- Freezer: Freeze the buffalo chicken and rice for up to 3 months. I love to use 2 cup Soupercubes for this. You can put the base layer of rice down then add the chicken and freeze. Freeze until solid then pop the buffalo chicken rice cubes out of the Soupercube then transfer to freezer safe bag or container.
- Defrost in the fridge overnight before reheating.
Substitutions
- Rice – if you don’t have white jasmine rice or white basmati rice, you can use brown jasmine rice or brown basmati rice and increase the water and cooking time (see all the details on how to cook jasmine rice in the instant pot). You can also use quinoa or cauliflower rice in place of the rice in this recipe.
- Veggies – use whatever veggies you have on hand. You can use steamed broccoli, cauliflower or cook zucchini, summer squash, mushrooms or asparagus. These veggies can all be reheated with the chicken and rice.
- Chicken – use boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chicken or tenders. You can also use boneless, skinless turkey breast as well. You could also use chickpeas in place of the chicken.
- Hot sauce – you can also use store bought buffalo sauce in place of the hot sauce and avocado oil.
- Avocado oil – you can also use melted ghee or butter in place of the avocado oil. You could also use olive oil but it’s not as neutral tasting as avocado oil.
- Spices – If you don’t have the spices on hand, you can use your favorite ranch seasoning (about 1.5 tablespoons) or omit the spices and just use the salt and garlic powder.
If you love this recipe, you should try
Air Fryer Buffalo Chicken Thighs
Mediterranean Chicken and Rice
Buffalo Chicken Rice Bowl
Ingredients
- 1 cup jasmine rice
- 1.25 cup water
- 3 medium carrots
- 3 medium celery stalks
- 1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken
- 1/2 cup hot sauce
- 1 tbsp hot sauce
- 1 tbsp dried chives
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp dried dill
Instructions
- Make the rice: Rinse the rice until the water runs clear. Add the rinsed rice to the instant pot with 1.25 cups of water and cook on high pressure for 3 minutes. After the pressure cooker is done cooking, let the pressure naturally release 5 minutes then manually release the pressure.
- While the rice is cooking, preheat a large skillet over medium heat.
- Cut the chicken into bite size pieces 1-1.5 inch pieces. Add the chicken cubes to a bowl.
- Combine the hot sauce, avocado oil and spices in a bowl. Pour the buffalo sauce over the chicken cubes and stir well.
- Add the buffalo chicken mixture to a preheated skillet and be sure to spread into a single layer. Cook for 5 minutes before moving the chicken around in the skillet.
- After 5 minutes, stir the chicken and cook 4-5 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
- While the chicken is cooking, chop the celery and carrots.
- Once the chicken and rice is done cooking, assemble the buffalo chicken rice bowls by adding the rice, buffalo chicken and veggies to a bowl.
Notes
- Be sure to cut the chicken into similar size pieces so that they all cook at the same time.
- If you like really saucy buffalo chicken, double the buffalo sauce to pour over right before serving.
- When cooking the chicken, if you find that there is a lot of extra liquid in the pan, take the chicken out and simmer the sauce for 1-2 more minutes before adding the chicken back in to coat it.
- You can use boneless, skinless chicken thighs, breast or tenders. If you are short on time, tenders are the quickest to chop up because they are already so small. You can also chop the chicken into chunks 24 hours in advance. Be sure to store it in an airtight, covered container.
- Use chicken broth, chicken stock or vegetable broth instead of water to add more flavor to the rice. To add more protein, use bone broth.
- The veggies can be reheated with the rest of the buffalo rice bowls but the texture is best if you store the veggies separate from the chicken and rice.
- If you want to add a vegetable that can be easily reheated with the rest of the meal, I recommend broccoli or cauliflower, steamed or air fryer zucchini and squash.
- Prep the rice and chicken as indicated in this recipe. Chop the veggies and store them in a separate container.
- Divide the rice and buffalo chicken into meal prep containers and store in the fridge up to 4 days.
- When ready to enjoy, reheat the rice and chicken then add the chopped veggies to the side. Pour over optional ranch dressing and enjoy.
- Fridge: The leftover buffalo chicken rice bowls can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Reheat on the stove over low heat in a covered skillet or in the microwave for 1:30 – 2 minutes.
- Freezer: Freeze the buffalo chicken and rice for up to 3 months (without the carrots and celery). I love to use 2 cup Soupercubes for this. You can put the base layer of rice down then add the chicken and freeze. Freeze until solid then pop the buffalo chicken rice cubes out of the Soupercubes then transfer to freezer safe bag or container.
- Defrost in the fridge overnight before reheating
Natalie
Wednesday 8th of March 2023
"Add this to the rotation immediately." - hubby :-) Thank you!