Buffalo Chicken Soup puts hot wing flavors in a bowl: chicken breasts simmered in a ranch-seasoned broth with hot sauce, onion, celery and carrots, then made creamy with a block of cream cheese. Top it with blue cheese crumbles and scallions, and it tastes like wings and all the extras. It serves 6 and takes about 35 minutes.
How to make it: Soften the cream cheese first. Cook the onion, celery and carrots in oil and butter, stir in flour and ranch seasoning, then add the broth and hot sauce. Simmer whole chicken breasts in the soup for 12 minutes, take them out, melt the cream cheese into the pot, then return the cut-up chicken and simmer until it reaches 165°F.
Why You’ll Love It
- Wing night in a soup: hot sauce, celery, carrots, ranch and blue cheese, the same things that come with a plate of hot wings.
- Raw chicken is fine: the breasts cook right in the broth, so there’s no need for leftover chicken.
- Creamy without cream: one block of cream cheese thickens and smooths the broth.
- Heat you control: start with 1/4 cup of hot sauce and add more at the end.
Ingredient Notes
Chicken breasts: 1 1/2 pounds of boneless skinless breasts, about two large ones, left whole. Boneless skinless thighs work too; use about 6 small thighs and simmer them 15 minutes instead of 12.
Cream cheese: one 8-ounce block, very soft. Soft cream cheese melts into the soup; cold cream cheese forms chunks that don’t melt.
Hot sauce: 1/4 cup gives the soup a little kick, and the cream cheese and ranch balance the heat. Buffalo wing sauce also works. Buffalo sauce is a mix of hot sauce, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, butter and seasonings, so it tastes a little richer.
Ranch seasoning mix: one 1-ounce packet adds herbs, garlic and tang.
Vegetables: half a medium onion, 2 stalks of celery and 2 medium carrots, all chopped small so they soften in about 7 minutes.
Flour: 1 tablespoon, cooked with the vegetables, gives the broth some body.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/2 medium onion, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, chopped small
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped small
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 packet (1 ounce) ranch seasoning mix
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1/4 cup hot sauce (or Buffalo wing sauce), plus more to taste
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, uncooked, left whole
- 8 ounces cream cheese (1 block), very soft
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Blue cheese, crumbled, for topping (optional)
- Scallions, chopped, for topping (optional)
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Soup
1. Soften the cream cheese. Take the cream cheese out of the fridge before you start. If it is still firm, microwave it in 20 to 30 second intervals until it is very soft.
2. Cook the vegetables. Heat the olive oil and butter in a pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery and carrots and cook for about 7 minutes.
3. Build the broth. Stir in the flour and ranch seasoning, then the chicken broth and hot sauce.
4. Simmer the chicken. Add the whole chicken breasts. Turn the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat so it simmers. Cover with the lid slightly open and cook for 12 minutes. If the chicken is not fully covered by the soup, flip it over halfway through.
5. Melt in the cream cheese. Take the chicken out of the pot and put it on a cutting board. Add the cream cheese to the soup and stir until it melts, helping it along with the spoon. While it melts, cut up the chicken.
6. Finish the soup. Once the cream cheese is fully stirred in, add the cut-up chicken. Simmer a few more minutes, until the chicken reads 165°F on a food thermometer.
7. Season and serve. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls and top with crumbled blue cheese and chopped scallions if you like.
How to Keep the Cream Cheese Smooth
Cream cheese can leave little lumps in the broth. These steps keep the soup smooth:
- Start soft. Take the block out of the fridge before you begin. If it’s still firm, microwave it in short 20 to 30 second bursts until it’s very soft.
- Take the chicken out first. With the breasts on the cutting board, there’s room to stir the cream cheese in properly.
- Keep the heat gentle. Stir or whisk the cream cheese in over medium-low heat until smooth.
- Blend if lumps stay. Ladle about 1 cup of the soup liquid, without chicken, into a blender with the cream cheese, blend until smooth and stir it back into the pot.
How Spicy Is It?
With 1/4 cup of hot sauce, the soup has a little kick, not a burn. The cream cheese and ranch soften the heat, and a quarter cup of wing sauce is mild enough for most kids.
- Milder: use 2 or 3 tablespoons of hot sauce and pass the bottle at the table.
- Hotter: stir in more hot sauce at the end, a spoonful at a time, and taste as you go.
Thicker or Thinner
For a thicker soup, simmer it a few minutes longer with the lid off. For a thinner one, stir in more chicken broth until it’s the way you like it.
Variations
- Chicken thighs: use about 6 small boneless skinless thighs and simmer them 15 minutes.
- Cooked chicken: skip the simmering step and stir in about 2 cups of cooked shredded chicken, such as rotisserie, after the cream cheese; heat until the soup reaches 165°F.
- Extra creamy: stir in 1/2 cup of half and half or heavy cream with the cream cheese.
- Cheesy: melt in a cup or so of shredded cheddar you grate yourself; freshly shredded cheese melts better.
- Toppings: blue cheese crumbles, scallions, a drizzle of ranch or blue cheese dressing, or crumbled bacon.
Storage & Reheating
Refrigerator: Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow covered containers. They keep 3 to 4 days.
Freezer: You can freeze it for 3 to 4 months, but cream cheese soups don’t freeze well and the texture may turn a little grainy. Thaw in the refrigerator.
Reheating: Reheat covered on the stove, bringing the soup to a rolling boil, or until it reaches 165°F. Don’t reheat leftovers in a slow cooker.
What to Serve With It
Something to dip is a must: homemade cheesy garlic breadsticks, a loaf of bread in 10 minutes or warm butter biscuits. A green salad with ranch dressing or a Caesar salad keeps it light.
For more creamy chicken soups, try creamy chicken noodle soup, crack chicken soup with bacon, cheddar and pasta, or million dollar soup with gnocchi.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is buffalo chicken soup made of?
Chicken breasts, chicken broth, hot sauce and cream cheese, with onion, celery and carrots, a little flour and a packet of ranch seasoning.
How do I keep the cream cheese from clumping?
Use very soft cream cheese, add it after the chicken comes out, and stir over gentle heat. If lumps stay, blend it with a cup of the soup liquid.
Can I make it milder or hotter?
Yes. Use 2 or 3 tablespoons of hot sauce for a milder soup, or stir in more at the end for extra heat.
Can I use cooked chicken?
Yes. Stir about 2 cups of cooked shredded chicken into the finished soup and heat it to 165°F.
Can I freeze buffalo chicken soup?
You can, for 3 to 4 months, but the cream cheese may turn a little grainy after thawing.
Final Notes
Soften the cream cheese, cook the chicken to 165°F and set the heat to your taste, and you’ll have a creamy bowl of hot wing flavor in about 35 minutes. If you top yours with something other than blue cheese, tell me in the comments what you used.
Buffalo Chicken Soup
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 2 stalks celery chopped small
- 2 medium carrots peeled and chopped small
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 packet ranch seasoning mix 1 ounce
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1/4 cup hot sauce Buffalo wing sauce also works; add more at the end for extra heat
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts uncooked, about two large breasts, left whole
- 8 ounces cream cheese 1 block, very soft
- salt and pepper to taste
- blue cheese crumbled, optional garnish
- scallions chopped, optional garnish
Instructions
- Take the cream cheese out of the fridge before you start. If it is still firm, microwave it in 20 to 30 second intervals until it is very soft.
- Heat the olive oil and butter in a pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery and carrots and cook for about 7 minutes.
- Stir in the flour and ranch seasoning, then the chicken broth and hot sauce.
- Add the whole chicken breasts. Turn the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat so it simmers. Cover with the lid slightly open and cook for 12 minutes. If the chicken is not fully covered by the soup, flip it over halfway through.
- Take the chicken out of the pot and put it on a cutting board. Add the cream cheese to the soup and stir until it melts, helping it along with the spoon. While it melts, cut up the chicken.
- Once the cream cheese is fully stirred in, add the cut-up chicken. Simmer a few more minutes, until the chicken reads 165°F on a food thermometer.
- Season with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls and top with crumbled blue cheese and chopped scallions if you like.
