Buffalo Wild Wings Buffalo Chicken Tots are crispy tater tots loaded with shredded Buffalo chicken, chili peppers, blue cheese crumbles, Buffalo sauce, and ranch or blue cheese dressing. These tasty totchos (tater tot nachos) are a great appetizer for a party and game day snack.
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Table of Contents
What Makes Buffalo Wild Wings Buffalo Chicken Tots So Delicious?
Tater tots may have been a staple of your elementary school lunches, but much like you, they have grown up. Buffalo Wild Wings Buffalo Chicken Tots are definitely not for little kids.
Ramp up the heat with this perfect party appetizer that combines well-seasoned tater tots, juicy shredded Buffalo chicken, tangy blue cheese crumble, and spicy sliced chile peppers for a more adult snack. Make a batch to share at the big game, movie night, or casual get-together.
Why You Should Try This Recipe
You love Buffalo chicken totchos, but you don’t have a Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant close by? No problem. This version isn’t difficult to throw together, and using rotisserie chicken will save a ton of time.
Sure, you could cut an additional five minutes of prep time and use bottled wing sauce like other copycat recipes, but your taste buds would be sad. Make your mouth happy with this recipe’s amazing homemade Buffalo Wild Wing sauce.
Buffalo Chicken Tot Ingredients
For Buffalo Wild Wings Buffalo Chicken Tater Tots, you’ll need:
- Frozen Tater Tots
- Olive oil
- Buffalo Seasoning (recipe below)
- Rotisserie chicken, boneless and shredded
- Buffalo Wild Wings sauce (recipe below)
- Blue Cheese Crumbles
- Ranch dressing
- Green Onion for garnish
You don’t need to go out and buy a rotisserie chicken to make this recipe. Use any leftover cooked chicken in the fridge.
For a little more spice, trade the Fresno chile peppers for jalapenos.
If you don’t care for blue cheese, you can use shredded Monterey Jack cheese or Cheddar cheese instead.
For the Buffalo Seasoning, you’ll need:
- Smoked paprika
- Cayenne
- Chili powder
- Mustard powder
- White pepper
- Salt
If you don’t have white pepper you can use black pepper instead.
For the Buffalo Wild Wings sauce, you’ll need:
- Frank’s Redhot sauce
- Salted butter
- Garlic paste
- Granulated sugar
- Cayenne
- Freshly cracked peppercorn
- Worchestchire sauce
- Egg yolk
If you don’t want to use garlic paste, you can use a garlic press or finely mince it.
To prepare the Buffalo Seasoning:
- Whisk together all the ingredients for the Buffalo Seasoning in a mixing bowl. Set aside until needed.
- Feel free to double or triple the recipe. The spice mixture will keep for weeks in an airtight container in the cupboard, and it is excellent as a dry rub for any chicken dish.
To cook the tater tots:
- Preheat the oven according to the temperature listed on the tater tot packaging.
- Toss the tater tots with the olive oil and Buffalo Seasoning. Spread the seasoned tots out on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Cook the tater tots for five minutes less than the package suggests. Don’t worry if they look soggy and pale; you will put them back into the oven later.
To cook the Buffalo Wild Wings sauce:
- Melt the salted butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
- Pour in Frank’s Redhot sauce and bring the mixture to a low simmer while whisking constantly.
- Transfer the mixture to a clean mixing bowl.
- Add the garlic paste, granulated sugar, cayenne, cracked peppercorn, and Worcestershire sauce to the bowl. Whisk until it is well combined.
- Whisk the egg yolk in a small bowl.
- Gradually add a couple of spoons of the hot mixture to the egg yolk while whisking to temper the egg.
- Pour the tempered egg yolk into the mixing bowl while constantly stirring for about two minutes.
- Cover the bowl to keep the sauce warm.
To finish making the loaded Buffalo chicken tots:
- While the tots are in the oven, shred the chicken, chop the green onions, and thinly slice the Fresno chile peppers.
- Remove the par-cooked tots from the oven.
- Spread out a layer of tater tots on the bottom of a large casserole dish or individual cast iron skillets or baking dishes.
- Toss the rotisserie chicken with a cup Buffalo Wing sauce.
- Use tongs to add a layer of the sauced Buffalo chicken on top of the tater tots.
- Sprinkle half of the blue cheese crumble and a third of the thinly sliced chili peppers on top of the chicken.
- Repeat the steps with the remaining chicken, blue cheese, and chili peppers.
- Return the tater tots to the oven and bake for about five more minutes.
- Once the cheese melts and the totchos are hot, take them out and garnish with a drizzle of ranch dressing and the remaining sliced Fresno chile peppers.
What to Serve With Buffalo Tater Tots
Feel free to add even more toppings to make this dish your own. Try guacamole, salsa, sour cream, or shredded lettuce.
Have some celery with blue cheese or ranch dressing on the side.
What’s the Best Way Reheat Totchos?
An air fryer will give you the crunchiest results:
- Preheat the air fryer to 375°F.
- Heat the Buffalo Tater Tots for about six to eight minutes.
No air fryer? Use the oven:
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Place the totchos on a baking sheet.
- Cover with aluminum foil and heat for about six minutes.
- Uncover the tots and cook until the cheese melts and the sauce is sizzling.
More Recipes with Tater Tots
Favorite Buffalo Chicken Recipes
- Arby’s Buffalo Chicken Sandwich
- Buffalo Chicken Bites
- Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
- Buffalo Chicken Pizza
- Buffalo Chicken Sliders
- Buffalo Chicken Spring Rolls
- Buffalo Chicken Thighs
- Garlic Buffalo Chicken Wings
- Grilled Buffalo Wings
Check out more of my easy appetizer recipes and the best chicken recipes on CopyKat!
Buffalo Wild Wings Buffalo Chicken Tots
Ingredients
Buffalo Seasoned Tater Tots
- 1 bag frozen tater tots
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Buffalo Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon mustard powder
- ½ teaspoon ground white pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
Buffalo Wild Wings Medium Buffalo Sauce
- 1 cup Franks red hot sauce
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 teaspoon garlic purée
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 egg yolk
Buffalo Chicken
- 1 cup homemade Buffalo Wild Wings medium Buffalo sauce
- 2 cups rotisserie chicken shredded
Buffalo Tots Assembly
- 3 Fresno chili peppers sliced thin
- 8 ounces blue cheese crumbles
- ½ cup ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing
- ¼ cup chopped green onions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F
- Toss tater tots in olive oil and buffalo seasoning. Place them on a baking sheet and place it onto the center rack of the oven. Bake 5 minutes less than package instructions.
- Meanwhile, prepare Buffalo sauce. Add butter to a saucepan and melt. Pour in the hot sauce and whisk well. Heat over medium heat until mixture starts to bubble, whisking constantly. Remove from heat and pour into a mixing bowl. Whisk in the remaining ingredients, be sure to whisk constantly for 2 minutes to cook the egg yolk but prevent it from scrambling.
- Add 1 cup of the Buffalo sauce to a bowl with the shredded chicken. Toss to coat.
- Next, add a layer of tater tots to a oven safe pan or casserole dish. Add a layer of Buffalo chicken, blue cheese crumbles, and chili peppers. Repeat a second time, then place back into the oven. Bake for 10 minutes
- Drizzle with remaining Buffalo sauce and ranch. Garnish with green onions and chili peppers and enjoy!
Scott Bell
I used a can of precooked chicken and shredded it, and mixed it with premade Buffalo sauce. Wow, this came out really good. Will make again!