Bigly Buffalo Chicken Dip
Prep
10m
Cook
25m
Total
35m
Bigly says
We need to talk about buffalo chicken dip. The Bigly buffalo chicken dip. The greatest buffalo chicken dip ever assembled in a baking dish — and let me clear something up right now, because many people get this wrong, and the wrong has gone on long enough: there is NO buffalo in this dip. None. Never has been. It is called buffalo because it was born in Buffalo, New York, the city of wings and snow and people who care more about a football team than about themselves. The dip was named after the city. The city was not named after the dip. Keep up.
I've eaten this dip in Buffalo. I've eaten it in Cleveland. I've eaten it at a Super Bowl party in a suburb of Phoenix where the host had three televisions and no chairs. I've had a version in a hut in upstate New York where an old hockey coach handed me a spoon and said nothing for twenty minutes. Best of my life was a Tuesday night, off-season, in a bar in Rochester. I won't say which one. The owner asked me not to. The dip was THAT good — once a city finds out you have the best version of a thing, you cannot get a moment of peace. Tough guys cry into this dip. They cry. I've witnessed it.
My dip? Thick. Creamy. Holds a chip like a hammock holds a person who has earned their afternoon. Stand a spoon in it and the spoon will SALUTE you — not a metaphor, I have seen it. The trick is two-fold. One: the cream cheese must come to room temperature first, completely, fully, no shortcuts, cold cream cheese is the number one cause of grainy disappointment in this country. Two: we SHRED the chicken, we do not chop it. Chopping is what cowards do. The shred carries sauce. The shred is the way. End of discussion.
Ingredients
- 16 oz (2 blocks)cream cheese, softened(actually softened, room temp, not 'still cold from the fridge but I'm impatient')
- 1/2 cupranch dressing
- 1/2 cupFrank's RedHot sauce(Frank's, accept no substitutes, the other brands are sad)
- 3 cupscooked shredded chicken(rotisserie chicken is your friend here)
- 1 cupsharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cupMonterey Jack cheese, shredded
- 1/2 cupblue cheese crumbles(optional but powerful)
- 3scallions, sliced (for garnish)
- as neededtortilla chips, celery sticks, carrot sticks (for serving)
Steps
- 1
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- 2
In a large bowl, beat the softened cream cheese with a hand mixer or sturdy spoon until completely smooth, about 1 minute.
- 3
Add the ranch and hot sauce. Mix until fully combined and a uniform pale-orange color.
- 4
Fold in the shredded chicken, half of the cheddar, and half of the Monterey Jack until evenly distributed.
- 5
Transfer to a 9-inch baking dish or pie plate and spread into an even layer.
- 6
Top with the remaining cheddar and Monterey Jack, then sprinkle the blue cheese crumbles over the top.
- 7
Bake 20-25 minutes, until the dip is bubbling vigorously around the edges and the cheese on top is melted and lightly browned in spots.
- 8
Let rest 5 minutes (it will be molten-lava hot). Garnish with sliced scallions and serve with chips and crudités.
One more thing
This is the dip that ends parties EARLY — because everyone eats their body weight, sinks into a happy little chicken-dip coma, and goes home. You will become famous in your friend group. People will start texting you on Sundays — just to check if you're 'doing the dip.' Embrace it. Lean in. You are now the Dip Person, and the Dip Person carries a quiet dignity through the world. It is a title. It is an honor. It's a beautiful thing.
★ QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS ONE? ★
Ask Bigly about Bigly Buffalo Chicken Dip.
Substitutions, what to serve it with, why other chefs are wrong about it. He's got opinions.
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