Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

I love Buffalo Chicken! Every year for the family Christmas Eve get-together, my sister-in-law makes an amazing Buffalo Chicken Dip, and I always eat way too much of it. Appetizer parties like that are my downfall. I always have to walk away from the food or else I'll keep helping myself to "just a little more." Dear readers, please tell me some of you can relate!
But I digress. When a friend of mine recently shared a recipe for Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches on a crock pot Facebook page, I knew they had to have a spot on the menu!

I didn't have Buffalo wing sauce, so I decided to try making my own version using the ingredients I had on hand. I looked up a popular brand of buffalo wing sauce to get an idea of how I could make it myself. The first few ingredients - vinegar, cayenne pepper, and salt - were the same found in hot sauce. Then there were the added natural flavors, preservatives, oil, thickeners (xantham gum), and "Natural Butter Type Flavor."  I decided to go with the hot sauce I already had and see how it went. At the end I added butter and a little bit of cream cheese to thicken the sauce, and I'm quite pleased with how this dish turned out!

Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches
click here for printable version

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp dry minced onions
• 1 Tablespoon dried dill
• 1 Tablespoon dried parsley
• 1/4 cup -1/2 cup hot sauce, to your preferred level of spice
  (you can always add more at the end) 
• 1-2 Tablespoons water
• 1 ounce cream cheese
• 1-2 Tablespoons butter
• 6 sandwich buns

Instructions:

1. Place the chicken breasts on the bottom of the crock pot. Sprinkle with spices, and pour hot sauce and water over the top.
   When adding the hot sauce, add as much or as little as you prefer. Since I'm feeding a toddler I usually add closer to 1/4 cup and a little more water.
2. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours. (This would be a great time to make your own ranch dressing, if you want.)
3. Remove the chicken from the crock pot to a plate or cutting board. Add the butter and cream cheese (cut into 4 or 5 pieces) to the sauce in the crock and whisk until dissolved. Don't worry if there are still small pieces of cream cheese in the sauce - they will finish dissolving when you stir in the chicken.
4. Shred the chicken using two forks. Return to the crock pot and stir to coat.
5. Serve on sandwich buns, with some ranch dressing and extra hot sauce, if desired. 

Homemade Ranch Dressing 

Adapted from Foodess

Ingredients:

• 6 oz. container of plain yogurt
• ⅓ cup mayonnaise
• 1/8 tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp dried parsley
• ½ tsp dried dill
• pinch of salt
• pepper, to taste

Instructions:
Whisk all ingredients together. This ranch will keep in a sealed container (I use a pint mason jar) for about a week.

I've made this twice in the last 3 weeks, and it was a hit both times.  Based on how much Hubby and I like it, and how easy it is to make, I'm sure it will make many more appearances on our table!
Are you a fan of Buffalo chicken? What's your favorite Buffalo-inspired dish?