These boneless buffalo wings are cooked in the air fryer for maximum crisp with minimal effort. They’re the perfect game day appetizer next to a spread of BBQ meatballs, dry rub chicken wings, and buffalo chicken dip, but they can also be served dinner-style next to a perfectly crispy batch of air fryer sweet potato fries.
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This recipe is…
Boneless chicken wings, buffalo chicken bites – whatever it is that you call them, these spicy, crispy, little bites are the easiest to make and REALLY delicious. They’re the perfect game day party appetizer served toothpick-style alongside creamy blue cheese dip, but can easily be translated to a dinnertime staple served next to sweet potato fries (or regular french fries) and a simple arugula salad.
Also, if you don’t have an air fryer, don’t worry. We’ve left really reliable notes for modifying this recipe for oven cooking below.
Looking for more game day recipes? We’ve got more than enough to tide you over all season long! These pepperoni pizza meatballs are stuffed with mozzarella and served alongside warmed marinara sauce for a fun spin on classic pizza, this slow cooker BBQ pulled pork is delicious stuffed into regular buns or sliders, and these sheet pan quesadillas have been a reader favorite since their debut on the website.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s easy – boneless buffalo wings may sound intimidating, but this recipe is anything but. The air fryer does all of the hard work for you (you’ll have to bread the chicken, but that’s easy enough), making this recipe one that has major return for the quick, easy process.
- It’s a crowd-pleaser – who doesn’t love a boneless buffalo wing? This recipe is sure to be a total crowd-pleaser, so be sure to make a couple of batches if you’re serving it to a group!
Recipe Ingredients
Almost every ingredient on this list is a pantry staple, so though it may seem lengthy, I’d be willing to bet that you have a handful of these ingredients in your kitchen already. Find ingredient notes (including substitutions and swaps) below.
- Chicken tenders – we chose chicken tenders for this recipe, but you can absolutely use chicken breasts, if you have them on hand.
- Bread crumbs – we used gluten free panko bread crumbs, but you can use regular bread crumbs, if you have them in your pantry.
- Hot sauce – Frank’s RedHot Original is usually our hot sauce of choice, but if you have another hot sauce you love, use it!
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Recipe Variations and Modifications
- Use pre-made buffalo sauce – feel free to grab a bottle of pre-made buffalo sauce (this Primal Kitchen buffalo sauce is dairy-free and made with great ingredients + and Noble Made’s buffalo sauce is also great, if you can find it). ANY buffalo sauce will work, though!
- Make them gluten free – use gluten free flour and gluten free bread crumbs (that’s exactly what we did) to make this recipe gluten free. The buffalo chicken bites pictured in the photos are gluten free and still very, very crispy.
- Make BBQ chicken bites – swap the buffalo sauce for BBQ sauce if you’re not into either the taste or spice level of buffalo sauce.
- Serve with ranch – don’t like blue cheese? Skip it and serve your buffalo chicken bites with ranch instead! Our homemade ranch is tasty and calls for only 3 ingredients.
- Omit the spice – if you’re sensitive to spice, feel free to omit the cayenne from the breading of these buffalo chicken bites and either grab a super mild buffalo sauce or go with BBQ sauce instead.
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Bites
This recipe is EASY, y’all. In less than 25 minutes, you’ll be munching on the yummiest buffalo chicken bites. Follow along below for the full how-to.
Step 1: Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of salt over the chicken and toss to combine. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, bread crumbs, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and the remaining teaspoon of salt until fully combined. In another medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk.
Step 2: Dip the chicken in the egg mixture, making sure each piece is fully coated.
Step 3: Remove the chicken from the egg mixture, letting the excess egg drip off, then dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, making sure it’s coated on all sides.
Step 4: Place the chicken bites in the air fryer, making sure they don’t overlap. You may need to work in batches depending on the size of your air fryer. Spray or brush the chicken bites with oil, and cook at 375°F for 7 minutes.
Step 5: After 7 minutes, flip the nuggets and spay or brush them with oil again. Cook for an additional 6 minutes, until browned and crisp.
Step 6: While the chicken bites are cooking in the air fryer, add the buffalo sauce and melted butter to a large bowl and whisk until combined. Once the chicken is done, toss in the buffalo sauce until well coated.
Step 7: (Optional) if using, whisk together the sour cream, mayo, blue cheese, lemon juice, buttermilk (or milk), salt, and pepper for the blue cheese dipping sauce. If you prefer a smoother texture, blend the ingredients together.
Step 8: Serve alongside blue cheese dipping sauce, if desired, and enjoy!
Don’t have an air fryer?
No worries! Make these buffalo chicken bites in the oven instead. To do this, simply place the breaded chicken bites on a parchment paper lined sheet pan, spray or brush them with avocado oil, bake at 400°F for 8 minutes, flip, spray/brush again, and then bake for another 8 minutes.
How to Serve
Serve your boneless buffalo wings next to toothpicks or metal cocktail picks for an easy grab and go appetizer. If you are serving these as an appetizer, we recommend bringing along some sort of sauce for guests to dip their chicken in – the blue cheese dip included in this recipe is sublime, but if you don’t love blue cheese, know that you can’t go wrong with a classic ranch dipping sauce either!
If you’d like to serve these dinner-style, simply choose a starchy side and a veggie side to serve with them to really round out the meal. Potato wedges are always a great pick, and as far as a green veggie goes, roasted broccoli, roasted green beans, or arugula salad are all simple and delicious.
How to Store and Reheat
Store any leftover boneless buffalo wings in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. If you’d like a longer storage option, feel free to freeze your chicken bites in a freezer-safe bag or container for up to 3 months.
Reheat your buffalo chicken bites either in the microwave (knowing that you’ll definitely lose some of the crisp) for 1-2 minutes, in the air fryer for 5-6 minutes, or in the oven for 7-8 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Though “boneless buffalo wings” sound like they’d be, essentially, a buffalo chicken wing with the bones removed, they actually aren’t. Boneless buffalo wings are typically breaded (chicken wings usually aren’t), fried (or, in this case, air fried), and smothered in buffalo sauce.
When it comes right down to it, yes, boneless buffalo wings are basically just chicken nuggets tossed in buffalo sauce. They’re usually cuts of chicken breasts or tenders that have been breaded and then fried.
More Favorite Buffalo Chicken Recipes
If you tried this Buffalo Chicken Bites recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below!
Buffalo Chicken Bites Recipe
Ingredients
For the Buffalo Chicken Bites
- 1 pound chicken breast tenders, cut into 1-inch chunks
- 2 teaspoons salt, divided
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup bread crumbs
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons milk
- Avocado oil spray, or about 2 tablespoons of avocado oil
- ¼ cup Frank's RedHot Original, or another hot sauce of your choice
- ¼ cup melted butter
For the Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce (Optional)
- ⅔ cup sour cream
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup blue cheese crumbles
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons buttermilk or milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of salt over the chicken and toss to combine.
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, bread crumbs, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and the remaining teaspoon of salt until fully combined.
- In another medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk.
- Dip the chicken in the egg mixture, making sure each piece is fully coated.
- Remove the chicken from the egg mixture, letting the excess egg drip off, then dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, making sure it's coated on all sides.
- Place the chicken bites in the air fryer, making sure they don't overlap. You may need to work in batches depending on the size of your air fryer. Spray or brush the chicken bites with oil, and cook at 375°F for 7 minutes.
- After 7 minutes, flip the nuggets and spay or brush them with oil again. Cook for an additional 6 minutes, until browned and crisp.
- While the chicken bites are cooking in the air fryer, add the buffalo sauce and melted butter to a large bowl and whisk until combined. Once the chicken is done, toss in the buffalo sauce until well coated.
- (Optional) If using, whisk together the sour cream, mayo, blue cheese, lemon juice, buttermilk (or milk), salt, and pepper for the blue cheese dipping sauce. If you prefer a smoother texture, blend the ingredients together.
- Serve alongside blue cheese dipping sauce, if desired, and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- Use pre-made buffalo sauce – feel free to grab a bottle of pre-made buffalo sauce (this Primal Kitchen buffalo sauce is dairy-free and made with great ingredients + and Noble Made’s buffalo sauce is also great, if you can find it). ANY buffalo sauce will work, though!
- Make them gluten free – use gluten free flour and gluten free bread crumbs (that’s exactly what we did) to make this recipe gluten free. The buffalo chicken bites pictured in the photos are gluten free and still very, very crispy.
- Make BBQ chicken bites – swap the buffalo sauce for BBQ sauce if you’re not into either the taste or spice level of buffalo sauce.
- Serve with ranch – don’t like blue cheese? Skip it and serve your buffalo chicken bites with ranch instead! Our homemade ranch is tasty and calls for only 3 ingredients.
- Omit the spice – if you’re sensitive to spice, feel free to omit the cayenne from the breading of these buffalo chicken bites and either grab a super mild buffalo sauce or go with BBQ sauce instead.