Culinarily, the power of these two words, Buffalo-style, are not to be underestimated. What's for dinner? In my family, all I have to do is preface my answer with "Buffalo-style", and, everything and everyone is simpatico. Buffalo-style. These two words imply that, in some form, chicken and wing sauce will served. We eat in-the-style of Buffalo once or twice a month, and, past saying "Buffalo-style", I can't be certain they really care what specific Buffalo-Style dish I'll be serving.
What started in 1964 as late-night pub grub at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, NY, Deep-Fried Chicken Wings, is now found in many forms. In my family alone, Nacho Mama's Buffalo Chicken Sheet-Pan Nanchos, Buffalo-Style Shredded Chicken 'n Slaw Sliders, Spicy Blue-Cheesy Buffalo-Style Chicken Dip, Spicy Blue-Cheesy Buffalo-Chicken Quesadillas, Batter-Dipped Buffalo Chicken & Blue Cheese Subs, and, Sweet-and-Savory-Glazed Buffalo-Chicken Meatballs are favorite wing-night or game-day options.
Tonight it's my Buffalo-Style chicken chili I'm making:
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken tenderloins, sliced into bite-sized pieces
3-4 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons Frank's RedHot Buffalo-Ranch seasoning blend
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 1/4 cups peeled and 1/4'-sliced carrots
1 1/4 cups peeled and 1/4"-sliced celery
3/4 cup 1/4"-sliced green onions, white and light green parts only
2 14 1/2-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
2 4-ounce jars fire-roasted diced green chilis
1 cup chicken stock
1/2-3/4-1 cup Frank's RedHot Buffalo wing sauce
2 15 1/2-ounce cans cannellini beans (white kidney beans), drained and rinsed
1 cup blue cheese crumbles, for garnish
tortilla chips for accompaniment
~Step 1. Heat the vegetable oil in the bottom of a wide-bottomed 4-quart stockpot placed over medium- medium-high heat. Add the chicken, carrots, celery, green onion, Buffalo-Ranch seasoning, chili powder, cumin and salt. Sauté, using a large spoon to stir almost constantly, until chicken is just cooked through, 6-8 minutes.
~Step 2. Add and stir in the fire-roasted diced tomatoes and fire-roasted green chilis, followed by the chicken stock and 1/2 cup of the Buffalo wing sauce. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer and cook about 6-8 minutes. Take a taste of the broth. Add additional wing sauce, in small increments, at your discretion, 1/4-1/2 cup. For my taste, 1/2 cup is enough, so, I add none.
~Step 3. Stir in the cannellini beans and continue to simmer 6-8 minutes. Turn heat off and cover pot. Allow chili to steep for 30-60 minutes, to allow flavors time to marry. Ready the garnishes during this time. Gently reheat the chili, portion into bowls and serve garnished with blue cheese crumbles and a dollop of blue cheese or Ranch dressing or sour cream.
Serve each portion garnished w/a scattering of blue cheese crumbles accompanied by tortilla chips. Game on:
Got leftovers? Try my Buffalo-style chicken chili burritios:
Almost-Effortless Chunky Buffalo-Style Chicken Chili: Recipe yields 3 1/2 quarts/14 cups.
Special Equipment List: cutting board; chef's knife; vegetable peeler; small colander; wide-bottomed 4-quart stockpot w/lid; large spoon; soup ladle
Cook's Note: During the Winter months I make chili several ways. My Tex-Mex-style January White-Out Chicken 'n Corn Chili is my "other" chicken chili recipe, which is decidedly different from my Wendy's Copycat Ground-Beef Chili Con Carne, Hatch Green Chile Chili with Pork and White Beans, Steak-My-Day Texas-Style Bowl-of-Red Steak Chili, Slow-Cooker Sweet Potato and Ground-Beef Chili, and, Cincinnati-Style Chili.
"We are all in this food world together." ~ Melanie Preschutti
(Recipe, Commentary and Photos Courtesy of Melanie's Kitchen/Copyright 2020)
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