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This crispy Whole30 Buffalo Chicken recipe is gluten free, dairy free, and Paleo friendly. The combination of almond flour and tapioca flour give this chicken the most perfect crisp to go with a nice tangy Whole30 buffalo sauce.
Who doesn't love fried chicken and buffalo sauce? I have a big love affair with buffalo sauce and find myself coming up with buffalo chicken recipes a lot. After making my Whole30 buffalo chicken jalapeno poppers and my Whole30 dairy free buffalo chicken dip, I was on a mission to find a way to make a healthier crispy buffalo chicken and this recipe is a home run.
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Ingredients
Substitutions
Almond flour- I have not tested this recipe with anything other than almond flour. I wouldn't recommend substituting it for another gluten free flour.
Tapioca flour- Arrowroot flour can be substituted for the tapioca flour
Chicken- I use boneless skinless chicken breasts but you can use boneless skinless chicken thighs
Hot sauce- I use either Frank's Original Hot Sauce or Crystals Louisiana Hot Sauce but you could also use a Whole30 friendly buffalo sauce of your choice
Frequently asked questions
This crispy buffalo chicken goes great on salads, in wraps, or topped with ranch and served with a side of fries.
This gluten free buffalo chicken gets its crispy crust from a combination of almond flour and tapioca flour.
Step by Step
- Cut the chicken breast in half long ways to making 4 total chicken breasts
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk the egg and then add the chicken breast and make sure they are coated well
- Add the almond flour, tapioca flour, and seasonings to a large plate and mix it till its combined
- Add avocado oil to a large pan and head to medium heat
- One at a time, place a chicken breast onto the plate with the almond flour mixture. Use a fork or tongs to make sure both sides are coated.
- Gently place the chicken in the hot pan
- Cook for 5-6 minutes a side. Use tongs or a fork to flip the chicken being careful so the coating doesn't fall off. Only flip the chicken once so the coating doesn't start to come off
- While the chicken is cooking, add the hot sauce, ghee, and garlic powder to a medium sized sauce pan and turn the heat to low
- When the chicken is done cooking, using tongs, carefully pick up the chicken breast one at a time and place it the saucepan, and coat both sides with sauce
- Optional- cover a cookie sheet in foil and place a cooling rack on top. Add the cooked and sauced chicken on top of the cooling rack and broil in the oven on high for 5 minutes. Be sure to watch it to make sure it doesn't burn
Air fryer
- Cut the chicken breast in half long ways making 4 total chicken breasts
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk the egg and then add the chicken breast and make sure they are coated well
- Add the almond flour, tapioca flour, and seasonings to a large plate and mix it till its combined
- One at a time, place a chicken breast onto the plate with the almond flour mixture. Use a fork or tongs to make sure both sides are coated.
- Spray the tray of your air fryer with avocado oil and place the chicken breast in a single layer on the tray. You may have to do this in batches
- Turn your air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and cook for 12 minutes flipping once halfway through
- While the chicken is cooking, add the hot sauce, ghee, and garlic powder to a medium sized sauce pan and turn the heat to low
- When the chicken is done cooking, using tongs, carefully pick up the chicken breast one at a time and place it the saucepan, and coat both sides with sauce
- Optional- cover a cookie sheet in foil and place a cooling rack on top. Add the cooked and sauced chicken on top of the cooling rack and broil in the oven on high for 5 minutes. Be sure to watch it to make sure it doesn't burn
What to pair with
Here are some great ideas of what all you can do with this crispy buffalo chicken recipe.
- Top a salad with the buffalo chicken and your favorite Whole30 ranch
- Cut into smaller strips to make super buffalo chicken tenders and serve with ranch and veggies or oven roasted fries
- Wrap in bib lettuce with some coleslaw for a great lettuce wrap
- If you aren't doing Whole30 or trying to keep it Paleo, toast up some gluten free buns, add some pickles, coleslaw, and ranch for an awesome crispy buffalo chicken sandwich
Tips & notes
The almond flour and tapioca flour coating can be a little fragile so be sure to only flip your chicken breasts one time to make sure the coating stays on. Also, when dunking the chicken in the buffalo sauce, make sure to be gentle so you don't lose a lot of the breading.
Storing and reheating
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You can reheat the chicken in the microwave, but to get the best texture, I recommend reheating them in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-15 minutes. Optional- you can broil on high for the last few minutes to get it crispier.
Recipe
Whole30 Buffalo Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- ¼ cup almond flour
- 2 tablespoons tapioca flour
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon dry parsley
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
For the sauce
- ½ cup Franks Hot Sauce or Crystals Hot Sauce
- ½ teaspoon ghee
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts in half long ways making 4 total chicken breasts
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk the egg
- Add the chicken to the bowl with the egg and stir to coat the chicken in the egg
- Heat the avocado oil to medium heat in a large pan
- On a large plate, combine the amlond flour, tapioca flour, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, salt, and pepper
- Using a fork, pick up one chicken breast at a time and place it on the plate with the almond flour mixture and flip the chicken to coat both sides
- Place the coated chicken in the pan and cook 5-6 minutes a side making sure to only flip the chicken once
- While the chicken is cooking, add the sauce ingredients to a medium sized saucepan and heat on low
- Once the chicken is cooked, use a fork to pick up the chicken one at a time and place it into the saucepan to coat with the sauce. Be gentle so the coating doesn't fall off
- Optional- after coating the chicken with the sauce, place the chicken on top of a cooling rack that is on top of a foil lined cookie sheet (see the picture in the post above) and place it under the broiler for 4-5 minutes. Be sure to keep an eye on them so they don't burn
Air Fryer
- Cut the chicken breast in half long ways making 4 total chicken breasts
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk the egg and then add the chicken breast to the bowl and make sure they are coated well
- Add the almond flour, tapioca flour, and seasonings to a large plate and mix it till its combined
- One at a time, place a chicken breast onto the plate with the almond flour mixture. Use a fork or tongs to flip it and make sure both sides are coated.
- Spray the tray of your air fryer with avocado oil and place the chicken breast in a single layer on the tray. You may have to do this in batches
- Turn your air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and cook for 12 minutes flipping once halfway through
- While the chicken is cooking, add the hot sauce, ghee, and garlic powder to a medium sized saucepan and turn the heat to low
- When the chicken is done cooking, using tongs, carefully pick up the chicken breast one at a time and place it in the saucepan, and coat both sides with the sauce
- Optional- cover a cookie sheet in foil and place a cooling rack on top. Add the cooked and sauced chicken on top of the cooling rack and broil in the oven on high for 5 minutes. Be sure to watch it to make sure it doesn't burn
Notes
- Almond flour- I have not tested this recipe with anything other than almond flour. I wouldn't recommend substituting it for another gluten free flour.
- Tapioca flour- Arrowroot flour can be substituted for the tapioca flour
- Chicken- I use boneless skinless chicken breasts but you can use boneless skinless chicken thighs
- Hot sauce- I use either Frank's Original Hot Sauce or Crystals Louisiana Hot Sauce but you could also use a Whole30 friendly buffalo sauce of your choice
- Top a salad with the buffalo chicken and your favorite Whole30 ranch
- Cut into smaller strips to make super buffalo chicken tenders and serve with ranch and vegies or oven roasted fries
- Wrap in bib lettuce with some coleslaw for a great lettuce wrap
- If you aren't doing Whole30, toast up some gluten free buns, add some pickles, coleslaw, and ranch for an awesome crispy buffalo chicken sandwich
Ellie
I made this and was soooo impressed! The recipe is very simple and straight forward, but so stinking good!