Buffalo Chicken Pinwheels

No matter the occasion, these buffalo chicken pinwheels are always a hit. I’m talking game nights, potlucks, book club, and more.

Most recently, they flew off the table at my niece’s 10th birthday party. 

She loved how spicy and “dreamily creamy” they were. I love them because they pack all the classic buffalo wing flavor into a neat, easy-to-eat package. 

With tender chicken, zesty sauce, and cool cream cheese, they’ll be a hit at your next party, too. 

Why You’ll Love These Buffalo Chicken Pinwheels

Easy to Make: You need only six easy-to-find ingredients for these pinwheels, and the recipe steps are easy to follow. Start with fully-cooked chicken breasts, and you don’t even have to cook anything!

Perfect for Gatherings: These are easy to eat on the go – no utensils or plates required! I like to stick toothpicks in the top for easy grabbing.

Convenient: Make these babies ahead of time and refrigerate or freeze them until needed. It doesn’t get much simpler than that! 

Ingredients

• Cooked Chicken: The tender, juicy base of the pinwheels. I like the added texture you get from shredded chicken, but feel free to chop it smaller.

• Buffalo Sauce: You can get it from the store or use my homemade buffalo wing sauce recipe. Either way, it’s spicy, tangy, and will give the pinwheels that signature buffalo flavor. 

• Cream Cheese: For a velvety smooth texture and to hold everything together. Set it out early to soften for easier mixing. 

• Cheddar Cheese: For a kick of sharp, cheesy flavor.

• Green Onions: For a pop of color and a hint of fresh, oniony flavor.

• Flour Tortillas: Pick up the large, burrito-size tortillas. They hold the most filling and will give you big, hearty, flavorful pinwheels. 

How to Make Buffalo Chicken Pinwheels

This recipe mainly consists of mixing, spreading, rolling, and cutting.

Let’s break it down into a bit more detail: 

1. BEAT the cream cheese until smooth and scrape the bowl to remove lumps.

2. MIX in the buffalo sauce, followed by the cheese and shredded chicken.

3. FILL the tortillas with the buffalo chicken mixture and sprinkle with extra cheddar and sliced green onions, if desired.

4. ROLL tightly to form logs, cover and chill for at least 2 hours.

5. SLICE each log into 1-inch pinwheels, serve, and enjoy!

Tips for the Best Buffalo Chicken Pinwheels

Whether you’re looking for a crowd-pleasing appetizer or a tasty snack to enjoy at home, these buffalo chicken tortilla roll-ups are sure to hit the spot.

Some tips and best practices for this recipe include: 

• Soften the cream cheese. It’ll make mixing easier. If it’s too cold, it’ll break the chicken apart as you mix.

• A tip for shredding chicken. If you make a lot of recipes with shredded chicken, I suggest investing in a chicken shredder. They’re relatively inexpensive and will save you tons of time and effort. If you don’t have one, use meat claws or two large forks. 

• Use a sauce brand you enjoy. Frank’s RedHot is my go-to, but there are other buffalo sauce brands. Or, as I mentioned above, you can make it from scratch. 

• Avoid corn tortillas. Even when soft, they’re prone to breaking, which isn’t ideal for pinwheels. Instead, use flour tortillas. 

• Warm the tortillas. Wrap them in a damp paper towel and pop them in the microwave for about 15 seconds. Warming them first makes them much more pliable.

• Don’t overfill. If you pile too much on the tortillas, they’ll be hard to roll and won’t hold together as well. Put a good amount of spread and toppings, but don’t go overboard.

• Use a serrated knife. A sharp, clean, serrated knife is the best option for slicing pinwheels. Use a gentle sawing motion to avoid squishing them while cutting.

• Heat them up. After cutting, arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover with foil, and bake for 5-10 minutes at 350°F. Uncover, add more cheese, then bake again. To keep them rolled up, add a few water-soaked toothpicks.

Variations

Want to mix the recipe up a little? Try some of these substitutions and variations: 

• Experiment with cheeses. Add some crumbled blue cheese for a tangier, more traditional buffalo flavor. Or swap the cheddar for pepper jack, mozzarella, or another favorite type of cheese.

• Add extra veggies. You can add practically anything to these pinwheels if you dice the add-ins into small pieces. Try celery, red onions, bell peppers, carrots, or jalapeños. 

• Bacon makes everything better. Mix some crumbled bacon in with the other toppings for extra crunch and flavor. Bacon bits would work, as well. 

• Use flavored tortillas. Pick up a pack of spinach- or sun-dried tomato-flavored tortillas instead of plain ones. They’re colorful and will slightly alter the taste of the pinwheels. 

• Season the chicken. If cooking the chicken yourself, season it well beforehand. Use Nashville hot seasoning or your favorite herbs and spices. 

• Try it with tuna. I’ve not tried substituting tuna in this recipe. But my mom did it last week when meal-prepping for work. She couldn’t stop raving about it. (If you try it, please let me know how it turned out!)

How to Store

These pinwheels are meant to be served chilled. So, storing any potential leftovers is super simple. 

To Store: Place the pinwheels in an airtight container. (Or wrap them tightly in plastic wrap on the serving platter.) Refrigerate for 2-3 days. 

To Freeze: Wrap the pinwheels INDIVIDUALLY in plastic wrap. Then, store them in a freezer-safe bag in the freezer for up to a month. Thaw them in the fridge overnight before serving.

More Buffalo Chicken Recipes You Have to Try

Buffalo Chicken Cheesesteak
Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
Buffalo Chicken Taquitos
Buffalo Chicken Panini