This paleo buffalo chicken casserole is flavorful, easy to make, and feeds a crowd. Whether you're on a Whole30, or just looking for a healthier buffalo chicken casserole recipe, look no further!
This paleo buffalo chicken casserole is not only paleo, its Whole30 compliant.
When I'm doing a Whole30, I want easy, I want fast, I want flavorful, and I want leftovers. Here they are, all of them, in one delicious casserole.
I made the test run of this recipe for my husband, and he of course told me it was delicious, because he thinks everything I make is delicious.
That's his job - to tell me how lovely I look unshowered and cooking in sweatpants all day with my hair in a bun, and to tell me how delicious all the food I make is. Otherwise he doesn't eat.
What goes in paleo buffalo chicken casserole
You'll find many versions of paleo buffalo chicken casserole out there. If you know me or you've been around here for awhile, you know that I am all about simple and shortcuts.
I don't believe in doing more work than you have to, and this paleo buffalo chicken casserole is no exception.
So, in my version, we're going to use raw veggies. Cauliflower rice, carrots, celery, and onion. You do NOT need to pre-cook any of them.
Mix those together with your cooked chicken and your sauce, and bake it. Dinner is done.
Yeahhhhhh. You read that right. No pre-cooking necessary.
You just throw all the raw veggies into that casserole dish with your shredded cooked chicken, toss that bad boy around with your Franks and your mayo, and BOOM. Paleo buffalo chicken casserole. You're done.
How to make this paleo buffalo chicken casserole
Your veggies can stay raw, but you'll need to chop them. I save time on this in a couple of ways:
- Buy pre-riced cauliflower. So much less mess, so much less work.
- Buy a bag of shredded carrots.
When it comes to the celery and onions, I usually just chop those myself. However, you may be able to find a pre-chopped "Mirepoix" at the store, which usually consists of carrots, celery and onions. Talk about a time-saver! I also use this in my paleo chicken noodle soup as a shortcut.
You'll will need to pre-cook the chicken. I prefer to do mine in the Instant Pot in large batches and just keep it on hand, because I'm lazy and I like that the Instant Pot does all the work of cooking the chicken for me without me paying any attention to it.
If you don't have an Instant Pot, you can always just bake your chicken in the oven!
And, if you're the ultimate lazy cook like me, you don't even have to chop your chicken - you can just shred it in your stand mixer like this:
What to top paleo buffalo chicken casserole with
There's lots of options when it comes to toppings for this paleo buffalo chicken casserole. For me, the toppings make or break a meal. Here are a few of my favorites:
Ranch dressing - because what goes better than ranch dressing on buffalo chicken? Arguably nothing. I prefer my homemade version. Get the recipe here.
Bacon.
Avocado.
Chives.
What else do you like to use as toppings?
Use your leftover paleo buffalo chicken casserole creatively
My favorite thing to do with these leftovers is to make an omelette for breakfast.
Take a couple of eggs, whisk them up in a bowl, pour them into a small frying pan. Once they've firmed up a bit, fill one side with a scoop of the casserole and fold it over.
Once it finishes cooking, top it with a drizzle of ranch. Just trust me on this one.
How else do you use your leftovers?
Freezing the casserole
Yes! I love this paleo buffalo chicken casserole recipe because you can freeze it either before or after cooking.
If you freeze it before cooking, you can either let it defrost before baking, or bake it from frozen. If you bake it from frozen, it will need to cook longer for sure. Depending on your oven, add time as necessary!
You can also cook it first and then freeze it. This is my preferred method. If you choose this method, expect there to be a little extra water content when it defrosts.
You can use a slotted spoon to serve or drain off any extra water from the vegetables when serving.
Whether this Whole30 paleo buffalo chicken casserole is getting you through a round, or it's just a quick and easy healthy weeknight meal, it's a family favorite, loved by adults and kids alike.
Recipe
Paleo Buffalo Chicken Casserole
This paleo buffalo chicken casserole is so easy to make! Just 7 ingredients and full of veggies, it's the perfect weeknight meal.
Ingredients
- 4 cups riced cauliflower (one medium head)
- 1 ½ cups diced or shredded carrots
- 1 ½ cups diced celery
- ½ sweet onion, diced
- 1 lb shredded cooked chicken
- 1 cup homemade mayo
- 1 cup Franks Red Hot Original sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°.
- Combine cauliflower, carrots, celery, onion, chicken, salt and pepper in a casserole dish and mix well.
- In a separate bowl, combine the mayo and hot sauce and mix well.
- Pour the sauce over the casserole and stir to combine, coating everything well. (Get in there with your hands if you're not scared!)
- Bake covered for 45 minutes, then uncover and bake 15 minutes more.
- Serve topped with homemade ranch, diced avocado, and if you feel like getting crazy, a bit of bacon. Oh yeah.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 356Total Fat: 29gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 22gCholesterol: 65mgSodium: 1387mgCarbohydrates: 9gNet Carbohydrates: 0gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gSugar Alcohols: 0gProtein: 16g
Love casseroles like I do? Check out these 3 Easy Casserole Recipes that are simple and kid-friendly!
I may earn a small commission off purchases made through affiliate links in this post from Amazon and other sellers. This helps me continue to run the blog and keep providing you fresh content. Thank you for your support!
I may earn a small commission off purchases made through affiliate links in this post from Amazon and other sellers. This helps me continue to run the blog and keep providing you fresh content. Thank you for your support!
Yvonne
This recipe is a keeper! Being allergic to eggs, I used a vegan mayonnaise. Just as good as regular. This would be a great dish to bring to a party or potluck. Thank you!
Jessica
Hi Yvonne, I'm so glad you liked it! Nice work on making the vegan mayo sub - I love when people can flex and make a recipe suit their needs. 🙂
Lauren Ruggiero
Hi! Question. When logging this recipe into MyFitnessPal how do I know how much is in each serving? 1 cup, 1/2 cup? Thanks!
Jessica
Hi Lauren - thanks for reaching out about this!
I have not measured the total "volume" of this recipe in cups. The provided nutrition information is based on 8 servings. You should be able to change the "measurement" in MFP to 1 serving, then enter the data from there. Hope that helps!
Jennifer D
So so good! I've been looking for good Paleo recipes with chicken and this is the best by far. The creaminess from the mayonnaise with the heat from the hot sauce is a perfect combination. Will be making this on repeat! Thank you!!
Jessica
Hi Jennifer, I'm so glad you liked it! It's even better as leftovers, and makes a heck of an omelette filling too. 🙂
Kasey
Hello. If I wanted to feeze a double serving I made do I need to bake it first then freeze it or can I just add the uncooked veggies cooked chicken and sauce then freeze?
Jessica
Hi Kasey,
You'll want to mix it up like you're going to bake it, with the raw veggies, but don't actually bake it - freeze it. Then, when you're ready to reheat, you can either let it defrost and bake, or you can bake from frozen and just let it cook longer!
Bond
Any suggestions for a substitute for celery? How long will this keep in the fridge?
Jessica
Hi Sarah! If you prefer it without celery, you could easily just omit it, and add more of the other veggies if you wanted to! I've heard of people mixing in any number of different veggies that they like - it really just depends on your tastes. As for keeping in the fridge, it doesn't last more than a few days in our house, so I've never tested extensively, haha! I would recommend using or freezing within a week.
Megan
Hi! If I wanted to use rice and cauliflower should I pre cook the rice first? And would that alter the time the casserole is needed in the oven?
Also, I am dairy free. Do you recommend any substitute for the Mayo?
Thanks!
Jessica
Hi Megan,
I've never used regular rice in this, but I would definitely recommend pre-cooking it if you did. As far as baking time, I would just check it starting at about 30 minutes. Since the chicken is pre-cooked it would really just be about how soft you wanted the veggies to get.
As for the mayo, there isn't any dairy in my mayo recipe (eggs are not a dairy product, as they are not made from milk). If you prefer a vegan mayo, those definitely exist! Here's one I just found with a quick search on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2O2ZFeg
Hope that helps!
Kristen
I’m having trouble duplicating your calorie and fat calculations. When I add ingredients into MFP, it’s coming out closer to 25g fat. Is this calculation including the homemade mayo?
Btw, it was very delicious!
Jessica
Hey Kristen, thanks for your note! My nutrition calculator had previous trouble with the mayo recipe. The custom saved ingredient didn't update when I corrected the mayo recipe, thus making these calculations incorrect as well. I've updated it and it should be displaying correctly now. Thanks so much for the heads up, and I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Emily
Hello! Can I use frozen riced cauliflower, or do you recommend fresh?
Jessica
Hi Emily! You can use frozen. I've had a few readers test it and they've all said it works just fine!
Alyssa
Do you think this would be freezer-friendly?
Jessica
Hi Alyssa! Yes, it freezes really well.
Kaitlin
Hi there!! How well does this freeze?
Jessica
Really well! I made a couple of batches when I was pregnant so we had them as freezer meals after the baby came, and it worked great. 🙂
Alexis Walbridge
How spicy is this? Too much for kids?
Jessica
Hi Alexis! You can adjust the level of spiciness by adjusting the amount of hot sauce you include. It does have a kick, but I know many kids that are fine with it! I'd suggest mixing the hot sauce into the mayo a bit at a time until its to the level of spice that will work for you and your little ones. 🙂
Amanda
Is there a way to make this pressure cooker friendly versus oven?
Jessica
Hey Amanda - I haven't actually tried this in my pressure cooker, but it IS on my to-do list. 🙂 I did have another reader try it out and have success with it, though, and here's what she said:
Set pot to sauté, add 1tbps of coconut oil. Sauté chopped onion for 3 mins. Turn off & set to manual, set timer as needed (25 frozen/ 15 thawed). Add all of your ingredients (except mayonnaise) to pot, including raw chicken (place on top)
Cover and ensure vent is closed. After its done manually release pressure. Remove lid, add mayo. Mix well, chicken is so tender is breaks apart right there in the pot.
Top with Avocado & Homemade Ranch. Enjoy!!
I hope that helps; if you try it let me know how it turns out!
Emily G
This was delish! Easy to throw everything together. Chopping is the hardest part. And it was so good! Hubby and I both liked it with Avocado. Thank you!
Jessica
Hi Emily,
SO GLAD you enjoyed it! The chopping can get tedious for sure. If I'm short on time, I'll buy pre-riced cauliflower and shredded carrots, and that way the onion and celery are all I have to chop! 🙂