Pulled Buffalo Chicken Sandwich

A smoked, spicy, and tender pulled buffalo chicken sandwich made with smoked chicken thighs. Surprisingly it doesn't Thtake that much time to make this sandwich. The longest part of the process is smoking the chicken thighs. I use that time to whip up a batch of our homemade blue cheese dressing, which complements the spiciness of the pulled buffalo chicken.

Yes, as you can see from the photos, this pulled Buffalo chicken sandwich gets messy. But honestly, if you’re eating anything Buffalo chicken and you aren’t getting dirty, I will question it. So, make sure you have plenty of napkins around and enjoy!

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 2 hours hours

Course: Sandwich

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Buffalo chicken sandwich, smoked and pulled Buffalo chicken sandwich, smoked buffalo chicken sandwich

Servings: 5 sandwiches

Calories: 590kcal

Pulled Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

Ingredients

• 5 Chicken Thighs (Boneless and Skinless)
• 1 tbsp All-Purpose BBQ Rub (I used my AngryBBQ All Purpose Rub)
• 1 tbsp Olive oil
• 1 cup Frank’s RedHot Sauce
• 1/2 cup Butter
• 1/2 cup Blue cheese dressing (I made my homemade Blue Cheese Dressing)
• 5 Sandwich buns (Store Bought)

Equipment

• Smoker or Pellet Grill (I used my Masterbuilt Gravity Series 600 charcoal smoker & grill)
• Mixing bowl
• Sauce pan
• Spoon
• Instant Read Thermometer (I use my Thermoworks Thermapen ONE)

Instructions

• Preheat your smoker to 250°F. I personally like adding oak wood, my pick for the best wood for smoking chicken.
• Prep your chicken thighs. Add them to your mixing bowl with 1 TBSP of olive oil and 1 TBSP of All-Purpose rub. Mix together to coat the chicken thoroughly and then place the thighs on the smoker for one and a half hours.
  
• Make the homemade blue cheese dressing and store it in the fridge. Here are the instructions for the blue cheese dressing. Remember, you can always use a good store-bought dressing if you want.
  
• Make the buffalo sauce by adding one cup of Frank’s RedHot and 1/2 cup of butter to a saucepan. Place the pan on the stove over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally until the butter is fully melted and incorporated, about 10-15 minutes.
  
• Check the chicken’s internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer. It’s technically done at 165°F, but I prefer to cook my chicken thighs to at least 175°F. I find they pull apart better at this higher temperature. When done, remove the chicken thighs and place them in a mixing bowl.
  
• Add half of your butter and hot sauce mixture to the chicken thighs in the bowl and shred. You can use forks or meat claws, but I just used my hands and a pair of food-safe gloves.
  
• Serve this sandwich hot, topping it with 1-2 tbsp of blue cheese dressing and an extra drizzle of hot sauce.

  Enjoy this pulled buffalo chicken sandwich!
  

Nutrition

Calories: 590kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 31g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 168mg | Sodium: 2290mg | Potassium: 478mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 734IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 131mg | Iron: 5mg

Hot Tip

The chicken is technically done at 165°F, but I prefer taking the chicken thighs to at least 175°F. I find that the chicken thighs pulls apart better if you cook them to 175ºF.

Recipe Substitutes

• Make this a grilled Buffalo chicken sandwich by substituting boneless, skinless chicken breasts and grilling them rather than smoking them.
• To make this a pulled BBQ chicken sandwich, substitute your favorite barbecue sauce for the hot sauce.
• You can give it a Tex-Mex spin by seasoning it with Angry BBQ’s Taco Seasoning and topping it with homemade guacamole.
• You can use a store-bought blue cheese dressing rather than our homemade recipe, but unless you live in Western NY where you’ll find high-quality locally-made blue cheese, I’d still highly recommend making it at home.