Buffalo Chicken Dip With Greek Yogurt
This Greek Yogurt Buffalo Chicken Dip is a party food favorite that nobody has ever realized is a lighter version unless I’ve told them. It has reduced fat and calories but NOT reduced flavor.
Is Buffalo Chicken Dip A Light Option? Not Really, But We Can Improve It.
Buffalo chicken dip is one of everybody’s favorite appetizers, made with shredded chicken, cream cheese, sour cream, buffalo sauce and blue cheese. It’s so delicious, but to be honest, it’s kind of a calorie and fat bomb. So, I set out to create a lighter buffalo chicken dip recipe that is just as good as the original.
And look, I know we’ve all been there. Somebody shows up at a party with a “lightened up” dish that they insist is every bit as good as the real thing (brownies made from beans, anyone?). And it never is.
But I’ve been making this buffalo chicken dip with Greek yogurt for game day parties for YEARS, and I promise you: nobody has EVER realized it’s a lighter version unless I’ve mentioned it.
I think the key here is that buffalo sauce has such a strong, delicious flavor. It completely masks the fact that this dip is made with lower fat ingredients. Give it a try yourself and let me know what you think!
Why You Will Love This Greek Yogurt Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Focusing on protein? This dip has 15g of protein per serving!
- With just a few simple steps and a handful of ingredients, it’s really quick to put together.
- Gives you all the flavor you love with better-for-you ingredients.
Best Buffalo Chicken Dip Ingredients
- light cream cheese (Neufchatel) – this has about a third less fat than full fat cream cheese, while tasting pretty much the same in the finished dip.
- Greek yogurt – even if you use full fat (5%) Greek yogurt, this ingredient choice still has quite a bit less calories and fat than sour cream, which is traditional in buffalo dip.
- buffalo wing sauce – provides the signature buffalo flavor and spiciness.
- lemon juice – adds a brightness and acidity that balances the creamy elements.
- cooked shredded chicken – the main texture and substance of this dip.
- celery – adds a crunch and freshness to the dip.
- green onions – provide a mild onion flavor and a pop of color. You can also finish the dip with chives or parsley.
- blue cheese – an optional element to enhance the buffalo flavor.
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Dip with Greek Yogurt
1. SAUCE. In a saucepot, cook the cream cheese over medium heat until it is melted and smooth. Remove from heat, and whisk in the yogurt, buffalo sauce and lemon juice.
2. CHICKEN. Stir in the chicken and celery.
3. BAKE. Transfer the mixture to a baking dish and sprinkle with blue cheese. Bake 20 minutes or until edges are bubbly, then let stand 10 minutes to thicken.
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Dip Ahead of Time
You can make this Greek yogurt buffalo chicken dip up to 3 days in advance of baking it.
Complete the recipe through Step 1, then transfer it to a baking dish. Cover it tightly for storage in the refrigerator.
When you’re ready to serve, let the dip come to room temperature for 30 minutes, and then proceed with baking it. It might need an extra 5 to 10 minutes in the oven, so just keep an eye on it and bake until it’s bubbly!
Home Chef Tips for Buffalo Chicken Dip
- I recommend Fage Total Greek yogurt for the best buffalo chicken dip. I’ve tested this recipe with a lot of different yogurts, and this one has the best creamy texture and tangy-but-not-too-tangy flavor.
- Instead of baking, you can cook the dip in a slow cooker on low for 1 hour, then keep it warm for hours on the warm setting.
Best Buffalo Chicken Dip Variations and Substitutions
- FULLY LOADED – If you’re not interested in a lightened version, use full fat cream cheese in place of the Neufchâtel, and mayonnaise in place of the yogurt.
- TURKEY – While chicken is the traditional choice, I’ve actually made this with leftover turkey after Thanksgiving, and it turned out great!
- EXTRA CHEESY – Add shredded mozzarella cheese, Monterey Jack cheese or cheddar cheese (lowfat varieties, if you prefer) to the top before baking for more cheesy goodness.
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Choose Your Chicken Carefully
This is a touchy topic for me, because buffalo chicken dip is often made with canned chicken, and that honestly just grosses me out so much. You’ll never see canned chicken around this blog, trust me.
I’ve also seen it made with shredded rotisserie chicken quite a bit. This is an easy (and delicious!) option for this dip, but I think we’ve all realized by now that rotisserie chicken is kind of packed with fat and sodium, sadly.
So, when I make this buffalo chicken dip recipe, which calls for 2 cups of shredded cooked chicken, I usually just buy a couple of boneless, skinless chicken breasts and bake them in a 350 degree oven until they’re cooked through. Then, I let them cool and just shred them up.
The Blue Cheese is Optional for Buffalo Chicken Dip
The flavor of blue cheese is pretty polarizing. You either love it or you hate it, and I don’t blame you either way.
Personally, I love it, but I know that not everybody feels the same way. So, depending on the crowd I’ll be serving this buffalo chicken dip to, sometimes I’ll add the blue cheese, and sometimes I won’t. It’s truly delicious either way.
Or, if I want to hedge my bets, I’ll just serve a small dish of crumbled blue cheese on the side, so anybody who does want blue cheese can just add a sprinkle to their serving.
What to Serve With Greek Yogurt Buffalo Chicken Dip
- crackers – any variety of cracker you like here is great with this snack, but I think Triscuits are best with light buffalo chicken dip.
- tortilla chips – you can use baked tortilla chips, but honestly, I like the scoop-shaped ones for buffalo chicken dip.
- celery sticks – there’s a bit of celery in this buffalo chicken dip with Greek yogurt, but you probably still have more celery in the package you bought. Why not slice it up and serve it as a dipper?
- sliced peppers – I love all colors of bell peppers for dipping, but here I used red bell pepper.
- carrot chips – you can also use carrot sticks or baby carrots, but carrot chips are kind of fun for this buffalo chicken dip. Slices of cucumber are also great.
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Greek Yogurt Buffalo Chicken Dip
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Ingredients
- 1 package light cream cheese (Neufchâtel) 8 ounces
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
- ⅔ cup buffalo wing sauce plus extra for garnish, if desired
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 cups cooked shredded chicken
- 1 cup chopped celery about 2 ribs
- 2 ounces crumbled blue cheese optional
- 2 green onions thinly sliced
- Crackers, chips and/or sliced vegetables, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In medium saucepot, cook cream cheese over medium heat 3 minutes or until smooth, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; add yogurt, buffalo sauce and lemon juice and whisk until well combined (mixture will be slightly lumpy). Stir in chicken and celery.
- Transfer mixture to medium baking dish and sprinkle with blue cheese, if using. Transfer to oven and bake 20 minutes or until edges are bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes to thicken. Serve garnished with green onions and extra buffalo sauce, if desired, and serve with crackers, chips and/or sliced vegetables.
One pot dishes are my favorite to make. This looks so delicious and easy to make. I will have to give it a try this weekend.
I make my buffalo chicken dip with ranch and cheddar on top. Not bleu cheese. Any suggestions for lightening that up?
Hmmmm. If you use bottled ranch dressing, you could make an easy switch to a light ranch dressing, but I’m sure you’ve thought of that 🙂 You could also make your own ranch dressing with one of the ranch seasoning packets, and using Greek yogurt instead of mayo and sour cream.
I would also suggest buying the sharpest cheddar cheese you can find, as the flavor will be really nice, and you might be able to get away with using less cheese that way. Brands I like include Tillamook and Cabot. Hope this helps! Good luck!
Wow, this looks amazing. You’re quite a talented food photographer. I suscribe to the Naturebox snacks as well. I haven’t tried anything in a recipe yet, but you’ve inspired me!
Thanks so much, Alaiyo! I like the snacks just on their own for the most part, but sometimes it’s fun to come up with recipes for them 🙂
Lori let me take the leftovers to work … People loved the dip so much. They had no idea that is was a low fat version. That’s the trick.