Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites

These Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites are the ultimate party appetizer for anyone who loves bold flavor. Juicy chicken is tossed in buffalo sauce, wrapped in bacon, and baked until crispy, creating an easy bite-sized snack that’s perfect for game day, holidays, and casual entertaining. They’re simple to make, full of flavor, and always one of the first things to disappear.

Why This Recipe for Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites?

If you love bacon and buffalo chicken, then you probably already have everything you need to make these appetizers! These little appetizers are a great combination of the currently popular taste of buffalo chicken with the classically popular taste of bacon.

The best part? When you’re already super busy getting ready for the holidays or game day, these bacon-wrapped buffalo chicken bites won’t add much to your to-do list because they’re super easy to make. They are also among the first appetizers to disappear at any party I host because they’re so packed with flavor.

Equipment You’ll Need to Make Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites

You won’t need much equipment to make these bite-sized appetizers. In fact, you probably have it all in your kitchen already.

• Medium Mixing Bowl
• Mixing Spoon (Doesn’t have to be your biggest or sturdiest one)
• Cookie Sheet
• Toothpicks
• Kitchen Knife
• Scissors (preferably kitchen scissors)
• Plate for Serving

Ingredients for Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites

The ingredients for bacon-wrapped buffalo chicken bites are simpler than you’d think! All you need is:

• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2-3 breasts)
• Buffalo sauce
• Parsley
• Salt and pepper
• Bacon

About These Ingredients for Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites

Sounds suspiciously easy, doesn’t it? Here’s what these ingredients bring to the table

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

1 pound chicken breasts

2-3 chicken breasts ought to do it here. Of course, chicken is the meaty base of the whole thing, and gives the buffalo flavor somewhere to go.

Buffalo Sauce

Enough buffalo sauce to coat the chicken. Usually doesn’t take much more than 1/4 cup.

What makes buffalo sauce buffalo? Actually, it originated in the city of Buffalo, New York! If you want to make sure your buffalo sauce is authentic, look at the list of ingredients. It should list cayenne peppers and butter to bring the spicy richness of buffalo sauce to your appetizers.

I’ll use the Frank’s RedHot Buffalo Wings brand a lot because I know it’s authentic!

Parsley

1/2 teaspoon of dried parsley

Parsley typically adds a bit of color to a recipe. Here, we can focus on the mild herbal flavor that balances the spiciness of buffalo sauce, since any parsley on the chicken will likely be wrapped in the bacon anyway.

Salt and Pepper

Salt and pepper to taste

I don’t like to overdo it with the salt and pepper because I don’t want to overwhelm the chicken bites with saltiness. A dash of salt can help tenderize the meat, though. The pepper also adds a mild, earthy, woody spice.

Bacon

12 slices of bacon

Bacon brings a quite versatile, classic flavor to appetizers. You may have to decide how thick you like your bacon slices when making bacon-wrapped appetizers like buffalo chicken bites. I don’t like it to be too thin because thin-sliced bacon tears more easily while working with it. Neither do I like thick-cut bacon slices because bacon slices that are too thick won’t cook evenly with the chicken.

Regular-cut bacon usually works well.

You could try buying an unsliced chunk of smoked bacon and slicing your own if you don’t mind adding a smoky flavor to your appetizers. This gives you great control over the thickness of your bacon slices versus buying pre-sliced bacon.

Method for Making Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites

It really is super easy! These appetizers just take a bit of patience because they need time to marinate.

Step One: Cut Chicken Into Bite-Sized Cubes

Cut the chicken into 24 bite-sized pieces. If you want them to be a bit more flavorful, prick each piece with a fork before going on to the next step.

Step Two: Season and Marinate Chicken

Season the chicken cubes with parsley, salt, and pepper. Put them in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Pour buffalo sauce over the chicken and stir well to coat. Put them in the refrigerator to marinate for at least 20 minutes.

Step Three: Preheat Oven

When the chicken is nearly done marinating, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (176 degrees Celsius)

Step Four: Cut Bacon Slices in Half Widthwise

Use the kitchen scissors to cut your bacon slices in half widthwise.

Quick note: Make sure the scissors are clean first! I like to use the dedicated kitchen scissors because I know they haven’t been used for anything but cutting food.

Step Five: Wrap Chicken Cubes

Roll each chicken cube in bacon. Secure them with toothpicks.

Step Six: Place Wrapped Chicken Cubes on Metal Cookie Sheet

Baking anything with bacon on a metal cookie sheet is the secret to getting the bacon crispy in the oven. (Don’t worry about putting cooking spray on the cookie sheet – bacon grease will do the job!)

Step Seven: Bake Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites

Place the cookie sheet with bacon-wrapped chicken bites in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes until the bacon is crispy and the chicken’s internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit (74 degrees Celsius).

Step Eight: Serve Warm

You’ll want to serve these while they’re still warm for the best results!

See how easy that was? They tend to get eaten quickly whenever I have guests over, unless something weird happens and I have to cancel the party. (It’s rare for them to dislike the taste, though of course everybody has their favorites when it comes to appetizers!)

Nutrition Information for Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites

Nutrition information is based on the recipe as shown and can vary depending on the exact ingredients and amounts used. We get our nutrition information from VeryWell Fit’s nutrition calculator. If you would like to explore nutrition information for individual ingredients, please visit the USDA’s FoodData Central database.

• Servings: 24 appetizers
• Calories: 291
• Total Fat: 21.4 grams
• Saturated Fat: 7 grams
• Cholesterol: 59 milligrams
• Sodium: 1,167 milligrams
• Total Carbohydrates: 3.7 grams
• Dietary Fiber: 1.3 grams
• Total Sugar: 0.1 grams
• Protein: 20.3 grams
• Calcium: 30 milligrams (2% recommended daily value)
• Iron: 2 milligrams (12% recommended daily value)
• Potassium: 368 milligrams (8% recommended daily value)

Substitutions for This Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites Recipe

You could try using chicken thighs, but keep in mind they’re a little fattier than chicken breasts, which means the bites will come out juicier. The “juicy” component may also affect the bacon’s ability to get crispy.

You can choose “mild” or “hot” buffalo sauce, depending on how much spice you like in these bites. You can also try making your own buffalo sauce, which gives you greater control over the ingredients and the amount of spice you like.

Can you substitute the bacon? Well, you can try turkey bacon if you want a healthier version. Just keep in mind that it will affect the flavor and texture, since turkey bacon tends to have less fat than pork bacon.

Don’t like buffalo sauce? You might prefer this recipe for bacon-wrapped chili chicken bites with asparagus. In fact, we have a ton of appetizers that include bacon you can try.

FAQs About Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken Bites

Of course, we get questions about these bacon-wrapped buffalo chicken bites! I did my best to answer the most common ones below. If you have any questions that aren’t answered here, feel free to ask in the comments section, and we’ll try to answer them.

Can I make these ahead?

I wouldn’t recommend baking them in advance and reheating them because the texture of the chicken can come out strange. However, you can cube the chicken, mix it with the marinade, and store it in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap for up to 24 hours.

Will I always need toothpicks to hold the bacon-wrapped chicken bites together?

If the bacon can stay snugly wrapped around the bites while you’re working with them, you won’t! I’ll just use toothpicks to make sure they stay wrapped. Besides, long enough toothpicks let guests pick these bites up with their fingers if they want to.

I want a few dipping sauces in my spread. Which ones go well with these bites?

I think ranch and blue cheese dips go best with these bites. Honey mustard and creamy garlic dips also work well. (I have seen guests dipping them into my buffalo dipping sauce to make them extra spicy before.)

Can I store leftovers?

While I think it’s best to eat them on the day you make them, you can store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Be sure to heat them thoroughly before eating.

Is it easy to double or triple this recipe?

It sure is! Just make sure you have enough bacon, chicken, and buffalo sauce on hand. You may also need two or three more baking sheets.

Can I make them in the air fryer?

It’s doable. Just be sure to arrange the bites in a single layer in the air fryer so the bacon crisps nicely, and follow the air fryer’s instructions.

How Were They?

Did you try making these bacon-wrapped buffalo chicken bites? Did your guests gobble them up? Do you have any questions? Have any questions? If so, let us know in the comments section!