Spicy Buffalo chicken lettuce wraps have all the flavor of your favorite wings with none of the mess!

I’ve been really into lettuce wraps lately. I’ve been wrapping everything from burgers to ground turkey with Thai seasonings. They’re cool and refreshing, making them a great way to beat the August heat. I also love that lettuce wraps really let the flavor of your fillings shine since it doesn’t have to compete with a bready bun.

I had already been toying with the idea of making Buffalo chicken lettuce wraps, so when Shawn told me he was craving spicy chicken I knew it was a done deal. I loaded lettuce leaves with shredded Buffalo chicken, crumbled blue cheese, and celery-carrot slaw dressed with Greek yogurt. They had all the flavor of classic Buffalo wings minus the mess.

These wraps were so good! We loved the contrast of the spicy chicken against the crisp, cool vegetables. I made ours super spicy, but I’ll show you how to make a milder version, too.

Ingredients to make Buffalo chicken lettuce wraps

How do you make Buffalo chicken lettuce wraps?

For this lettuce wraps recipe, start by poaching chicken breasts in broth. Then shred the chicken and toss it with a ton of Franks buffalo sauce. I use my stand mixer to shred the chicken – it’s one of my favorite kitchen hacks. Depending on how spicy you like things, you can use straight wing sauce or dilute it with some of the poaching liquid.

While the chicken cooks, make a quick slaw by combining shredded carrots, thinly sliced celery, red onion, and fat-free Greek yogurt. You could also drizzle them with homemade jalapeno ranch!

To serve, stuff the shredded Buffalo chicken into individual lettuce leaves. Top with the celery-carrot slaw, crumbled blue cheese, and fresh cilantro.

What kind of lettuce is best for lettuce wraps?

I love using butter lettuce for lettuce wraps. Butter lettuce is really tender and flexible, so it’s not as prone to cracking when you wrap it around your fillings. There’s nothing worse than your lettuce leaf cracking and leaving a pile of chicken behind on our plate!

Unfortunately, butter lettuce isn’t always available or the only heads that are available are super small. In that case, I usually grab romaine or iceberg. Iceberg is the crispest of your lettuce options which adds tons of texture to your meal, but it’s also the most prone to cracking.

To cut a head of iceberg lettuce for wraps, start by using a sharp knife to remove the stem and core. Set the lettuce on your cutting board and slice it in half vertically through the section where the core had been. Carefully coax the leaves apart. If you want, you can use your knife or a pair of kitchen shears to trim each leaf into a rounder shape.

How do you poach chicken?

Once you’ve tried it a few times, poaching chicken is really easy! It comes out super juicy and is perfect for shredding or for making chicken salads.

Add boneless, skinless chicken breasts to a saucepan, then pour in enough chicken broth to cover them by about 1 inch. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce the heat to low and cover the pan. Let the chicken breasts simmer for 12-14 minutes until cooked through.

Remove the cooked chicken from the poaching liquid and use it for anything you’d like. It will keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. For the best results, keep the chicken breasts whole then shred or dice them immediately before serving.