30-Minute Buffalo Ranch Chicken Skillet

One pan and only 30 minutes is all you need for this Buffalo Ranch Chicken Skillet! This easy weeknight meal comes together with just a handful of ingredients like chicken breast, buffalo sauce, ranch dressing, veggies, and rice. Gluten-free with a low-carb variation!

30-minute One Pan meals for the win! We’ve reached the point of the year where only speedy dinners will suffice. Quick, healthy, flavorful, and one that makes my entire family happy!

Buffalo Chicken is one of my favorite flavors to play with. I love the tangy sauce and punch of spice. Some of our favorite family meals are my Buffalo White Chicken Chili, Buffalo Chicken Salad, or Buffalo Chicken Potato Casserole.

I really love this throw-together meal because it also ticks all of the boxes on a busy weeknight. As a nutritionist, I love creating dinners that have a healthy balance of veggies and protein but still deliver flavor. That’s exactly what we’re doing with this quick Buffalo Ranch Chicken Skillet. The sauce is a combination of ranch dressing and buffalo hot sauce, and we add some rice for bulk, and chicken and veggies for nutrients. You can top with cheese for additional protein and flavor, or omit and still have a complete meal.

Short on time? This skillet works perfectly with pre-cooked shredded chicken from the slow cooker, making dinner even faster.

How to make Buffalo Ranch Chicken Skillet

Here is what you need to make this buffalo chicken dinner:

• Chicken breast: you can also use pre-cooked chicken to make this easier, even rotisserie chicken
• Onion: a half of a large white or yellow onion
• Carrots: diced and chopped carrots
• Celery: diced celery for some texture and because it works so well with buffalo flavors!
• Garlic: to add some more depth to the veggie mix
• White rice: I also used pre-cooked white rice for this dinner. See my note below! You can also use a mix of cauliflower rice and white rice.
• Buffalo hot sauce: Frank’s Red Hot never disappoints!
• Ranch dressing: my favorite brand is Trader Joe’s Buttermilk Ranch, Primal Kitchen, Tessamae’s
• Cilantro for garnish
• Cheddar cheese (optional)

1. To make this dinner, start by heating a large skillet to medium high heat. Once hot, add in oil and the chicken. Cook until no longer pink. Remove the chicken, but keep the pan hot.
2. Toss in more oil if needed, then saute the onion, garlic, celery, and carrots. Saute for 5-6 minutes. Now toss in the rice.
3. Saute the rice and veggies for another 3-4 minutes. Add the chicken to the mixture, then stir in the buffalo sauce and ranch dressing. Mix with a wooden spoon until well incorporated!
4. Top with cheese and cilantro (if using). You can even stick under the broiler for a few minutes to let the cheese get bubbly and melted.

Tips and adaptations

As mentioned above, you can make this low carb by just using the cauliflower rice or cauliflower florets in place of rice! Cauliflower has definitely become one of my go-to swaps in the kitchen. The vegetables are also customizable. Bell pepper or squash would be another option here. If you prefer less spicy, you can start with only 1/4 cup buffalo sauce. For a dairy-free variation, also feel free to try this with my Dairy-Free Buffalo Queso! Finally, to save time, I use the frozen rice packets from Trader Joe’s or make my own rice that I’ve stored in the fridge.

Easy Rice Method!

This is my trick to make rice that I can enjoy all week. I cook it just like pasta! Buy a bag of Jasmine rice. Bring water to a boil in a medium sized saucepan (need at least 5 -6 cups of water). Dump rice in the boiling water and boil for 10 minutes. Although you don’t need to measure the rice, make sure you have at least 3 times the amount of water. So if you are cooking 2 cups rice, have at least 6 cups of water. As soon as the 10 minutes are up, drain in a colander and let sit for 5 minutes. This last step is important so that it steams properly. Serve immediately, or refrigerate and enjoy for a future recipe!

Serving and Storing

Serving: Serve hot with chopped fresh cilantro. For another kid friendly variation, you can also wrap the contents in a tortilla.

Storing: store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. This dinner is also perfect for meal prep. You can make ahead on the weekend, and enjoy throughout the week. To heat, gently re-heat in the microwave or in the oven for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Other easy dinners you will love!

Here are a few other easy, 30 minute dinners you will love:

• Coconut Milk Red Curry Shrimp
• Skillet Chicken Parmesan
• Veggie and Beef Taco Skillet