Grilled Buffalo Chicken is the the perfect solution - super easy grilled chicken recipe that is fast AND flavorful! It takes less than 30 minutes to grill up the buffalo chicken breasts.

grilled buffalo chicken breasts with ranch

One of the best parts about this grilled chicken recipe? No marinating time is needed! Just season the chicken, brush with buffalo, and grill! Doesn't get any quicker and easier than that.

Serve the buffalo grilled chicken breasts along with your favorite veggies or potatoes. Some favorites are air fryer baked potatoes, crispy air fryer potatoes, and air fryer garlic broccoli. I also love chopping up these chicken breasts and serving in a salad! It's also great in a sandwich or wrap.

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Ingredients You'll Need:
How to Grill Chicken Breasts
Direct vs Indirect Heat
Recipe Tips!
Related Recipes
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Reviews

Ingredients You'll Need:

You just need some staple spices and a buffalo sauce to season the chicken breasts. Here's what you need:

Chicken Breasts - Use boneless, skinless breasts. It's up to you on the size - you can even use thin sliced breasts.
Buffalo Sauce - this is not the same as hot sauce. You can buy it at the store or make your own. You can use leftover buffalo sauce for these Buffalo Chicken Bowls or Firecracker Ground Chicken.
Spices - Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Salt, and Pepper
Ranch or Blue Cheese Dressing - for serving
Sliced Green Onions - for serving

chicken breasts brushed with buffalo sauce

How to Grill Chicken Breasts

To grill chicken breasts, after you have seasoned or marinated your chicken get your grill preheating. Get your grill set up for direct heat cooking (direct heat means the food goes over the flames). Heat your grill to medium-high (450-500 degrees F). Once the grill is preheated, add your chicken breasts, close the lid, and cook for 4-5 minutes per side.

The cook time will vary greatly depending on how thick or thin your breasts are. You'll know the chicken is ready to flip when it releases easily. If it’s sticking to the grill, that means the chicken doesn’t have a good sear and isn’t ready to flip. The goal is to only flip the chicken once - this gives you the best grill marks!

I recommend letting grilled chicken rest for about 5 minutes before slicing. This results in juicy and moist chicken breasts as the juices have time to redistribute.

Grilled chicken breast with buffalo sauce

Direct vs Indirect Heat

What does it mean when a grilling recipe says "direct heat" or "indirect heat"? When a recipe says to set up your grill for 'zone grilling' that means you should have both a direct and indirect heat zone.

Direct Heat - This means the the cooking is done directly over the flame. Direct heat is best when you want good grill marks and a nice char. It's higher heat than indirect
Indirect Heat - This means that the cooking is done next to the flame. Indirect heat is best for cooking food lower and slower. For chicken, it's a good option if your chicken is well browned on the outside from the direct heat, but not cooked yet in the middle (this happens with really thick chicken breasts). You can move the seared chicken to the indirect side of the grill to finish cooking without burning the outside.

grilled buffalo chicken breasts drizzled with ranch dressing

Recipe Tips!

Making Grilled Buffalo Chicken is super easy, but check out my tips for the best results!

Pat Chicken Dry - Pat the chicken dry before seasoning. Drying meat is important in order to get a good sear vs steaming the chicken.
Pound the Chicken - No matter how big your chicken breasts, I recommend pounding the chicken with a meat mallet (or a rolling pin) so that the breasts are an even thickness. I like to place the chicken on a cutting board and then laying a piece of plastic wrap over to keep the chicken juices from flying everywhere.
Substitute Chicken Thighs - You can swap in boneless, skinless chicken thighs for the breasts. The cook time may vary, so use the internal temperature (165 degrees F) to gauge when the chicken is cooked.

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