If you’re in the mood for a game day recipe, but don’t feel like making a big fuss, then you need to make this buffalo chicken meatloaf.
If you peek in your fridge, find ground turkey or chicken and/or just so happen to be craving something spicy and comforting, then you need to make this buffalo chicken meatloaf.
One more reason? It’s freaking DELICIOUS, moist, infused with buffalo sauce and then slathered with even more on top. It’s spicy, savory and best of all, stuffed with cheddar cheese. Serve with a side of mashed potatoes, a kale sweet potato salad or even a crunchy chopped ranch salad for a full meal!
What you’ll need to make buffalo chicken meatloaf
You’ll be thrilled to hear that this easy buffalo chicken meatloaf recipe requires super simple ingredients but the result is SO flavorful and delicious. Here’s everything you need:
- Ground chicken: I prefer a lean ground chicken but you can also use lean ground turkey in this recipe!
- Egg: you’ll just need one egg in the meatloaf.
- Buffalo sauce: pick your favorite buffalo sauce! Add a kick of heat with a spicy version or go mild.
- Breadcrumbs: using panko breadcrumbs will help hold the meatloaf together. Feel free to use gluten free breadcrumbs if you’d like.
- Onion & garlic: for a little boost of flavor in every bite.
- Salt & pepper: always season your meats!
- Cheddar cheese: this amazing buffalo chicken meatloaf is baked with sharp cheddar cheese right in the middle. So good. If you’re not into cheddar feel free to use whatever cheese you’d like though!
- Garnishes & sauces: I like to top the meatloaf with some fresh cilantro or green onion, and then serve with some ranch or blue cheese dressing for dipping.
Spicy lovers, this is for you
Looking for a little extra kick? Here are some great ways to make this healthy buffalo chicken meatloaf extra spicy:
- Choose a spicy buffalo sauce for the mixture and the top.
- Instead of sharp cheddar cheese try a pepper jack or a spicy cheddar! I’ve had a habanero cheddar that I love.
- Add some diced jalapeño directly to the meat mixture.
How to make buffalo chicken meatloaf from scratch
The best thing about making homemade meatloaf? It’s incredibly easy and quick to prep:
- Make the meat mixture. In a large bowl you’ll simply add all of your ingredients and mix them with a large spoon or clean hands. Reserve some of the buffalo sauce for glazing!
- Shape it. Add half of the meat mixture to your prepared baking sheet and shape it into about a 9×5 inch rectangle. It doesn’t have to be perfect.
- Cheese it. Add your cheese directly to the meat mixture and shape the other half of the meat on top – sealing the cheese inside.
- Glaze it. Brush more buffalo sauce onto the unbaked meatloaf and save the other half for glazing when it’s done. Do NOT double dip here!
- Bake it. Bake your buffalo chicken meatloaf for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, top with remaining sauce and serve!
How do you know when meatloaf is done?
Your buffalo chicken meatloaf will be done when the meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F.
What to serve with buffalo chicken meatloaf
Okay, the opportunities are endless for serving up this delicious, cheesy goodness! Here’s what I can suggest:
- Dip it in blue cheese dressing or my homemade yogurt ranch dressing
- Go hearty with a side of mashed potatoes, honey pumpkin cornbread muffins or homemade garlic bread
- Add some roasted veggies, maple glazed carrots or roasted asparagus
- Or serve with my personal fav salads like this warm brussels sprouts salad, this roasted sweet potato kale salad or this crunchy chopped ranch salad
Freezing instructions
- Freeze unbaked meatloaf: simply shape the buffalo chicken meatloaf, wrap it well with plastic wrap and a layer of tin foil and place it in the freezer for up to 3 months. To cook from frozen, let the meatloaf thaw in the refrigerator before baking as directed.
- Freeze baked meatloaf: bake as directed and let the meatloaf cool completely. Then wrap it well and freeze it for up to 3 months. To reheat it simply let it thaw in the refrigerator, remove the wrapping and then bake as directed until heated through.
More dinner recipes you’ll love
- Buffalo Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
- Mom’s Slow Cooker Beef Stew
- Oh So Good Chicken Meatballs in Pumpkin Coconut Curry Sauce
- Buffalo Mac and Cheese Stuffed Zucchini Boats
- One Pan Tandoori Chicken with Spiced Coconut Rice
Get all of my dinner recipes here!
I hope you love this amazing cheddar-stuffed buffalo chicken meatloaf recipe! If you make it be sure to leave a comment & a rating so I know how you liked it. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Cheddar-Stuffed Buffalo Chicken Meatloaf
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground chicken (or sub turkey)
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons your favorite buffalo sauce
- ⅓ cup panko breadcrumbs (or sub gluten free breadcrumbs)
- ½ white onion, very finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 3 ounces sharp cheddar cheese (or about ¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese)
- For topping:
- 1/2 cup buffalo sauce, divided
- To garnish:
- Diced green onion (green part only) or fresh chopped cilantro
- For serving:
- Ranch or blue cheese dressing
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl combine chicken, egg, buffalo sauce, panko breadcrumbs, garlic, diced white onion, salt and pepper. Use your hands or a large spoon to mix until well combined. Personally, I find that it's much easier to combine the ingredients if you use your hands.
- Place half of the meat mixture on the prepared baking sheet and shape into a 9x5 inch rectangle. Place cheddar evenly in the middle, leaving about an 1/2 inch of room on the sides. Top with the remaining meat mixture, enclosing the cheese completely and sealing the sides/edges together. You should get a nice oval shape.
- Spread half of the buffalo sauce on top of the meatloaf (1/4 cup), reserve the other half for brushing on when the meatloaf is finished baking. Remember not to double dip here!
- Bake meatloaf for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until the meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F. Top with remaining sauce and allow to cool for 5 minutes before cutting into 4 slices. Top with diced green onion and serve with your favorite ranch or blue cheese dressing!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
61 comments
This was incredibly easy to make and tasted amazing. I served it with roasted green beans and left over butternut squash Mac and cheese – will definitely be making again.
Love it! So delicious 🙂
Love it! Glad you enjoyed!
Made this for dinner and it was the easiest recipe ever! Still me didn’t read carefully and assumed since it was a meatloaf I should use a loaf pan so made mine in one. Turned out delicious but didn’t look quite as pretty! But it’s the taste that matters right? I highly recommend this recipe. It will be on repeat in our house (next time made on an actual baking sheet). I also think this could be good if you swap the buffalo sauce for BBQ sauce.
It’s definitely the taste that matters! Glad you enjoyed 🙂 and try my BBQ meatloaf next time!
Amazingly flavoursome and very simple. Delicious! I used burger sauce instead of buffalo sauce.
This was delicious! I have been wanting to try it for weeks and I am so glad I did! This is my go-to website for everything lately!!
I made this for dinner last night and it was awesome! Served with baby roasted cauliflower on the side with some ranch for dipping. I didn’t have a white onion on hand so I subbed red onion in its place and it worked great!
Loved this!!! Buffalo chicken is my fav! I added some dill to the mixture for some extra flavour!
Perfect super bowl Sunday dinner! Finally something yummy to use ground chicken it. Very easy! I added a jalapeño which was a great addition and used vegan cheese (my husband can’t eat dairy). Thanks for the great recipe!
Perfect! Love that 🙂
Great recipe! We used ground turkey and a red onion (that’s what we had on hand) and it turned out great! Very flavorful
Perfect! Such a great dinner 🙂
I have made almost every meatloaf on your site and this one is AMAZING just like the rest! So glad to have another one to add to the rotation! Delicious!
So happy to hear that!
Delicious!! My fiancé said to “add it to the rotation” after I made it tonight!!
This was delicious and easy to make! So moist(sorry to use that word) and flavorful. This will definitely be a weeknight staple in our house!
I just made this tonight and it’s delicious!!!
So glad you loved it!!
delish, easy. only regret is not doubling the recipe for more leftovers!!
The best!!
The best meatloaf ever! And so easy! Will definitely be making again
So glad you loved it!
So delicious and flavorful- I had to freeze leftovers immediately!
Perfect! Glad you enjoyed!
Made this last night and loved it! And I don’t even like Buffalo sauce that much. It’s my husband’s new favorite! I served with homemade blue cheese dressing and it was perfection
Amazing! Love that idea 🙂
My husband and I absolutely loved this. It was so easy and so good!!
So happy to hear that!
My husband loved it! I am allergic to eggs so I used vegan Mayo & a little extra breadcrumbs to replace it. The meatloaf was so tender and full of flavor. Thank you 🙂
Perfect! Glad you both enjoyed 🙂
This was a huge hit, will definitely make again!
So glad you enjoyed!
Made this yesterday and ate a delicious piece only to find out that my husband hijacked the rest to take to work lol. Needless to say, I’ll be making this again this week, only a double batch this time. We love it!
Haha it’s too good! Glad you both enjoyed 🙂
this came out so yummy. all your recipes are too the T amazing. thanks girl
So happy to hear that!
This is your 3rd meatloaf recipe that I’ve tried, and I’ve loved them all, but this one might just be my favorite! So so simple to make and such incredible flavor. I tripled the recipe and made individual mini meatloafs (12 total) to feed my family for multiple days. Freezing them worked perfectly, and I just defrosted them overnight and then baked them for just 30 mins since they are mini. Delicious! Thank you!
Love that! It might be my favorite, too 🙂 Perfect dinner meal prep!
Delicious! It was so easy to make and I love that it is high protein!
Forgot to rate it!
Thank you!! I’m so glad you loved it!
Hello again. Made the recipe as is. Delicious. Big hit in the house. Next time will add sweet peas and caramelized mushrooms.. Take care.
Yay!! So happy that you loved it, Donnie 🙂 Great idea to add peas and mushrooms!
I’ve never made meatloaf before but this was delicious and incredibly easy.
I’m officially an AK stalker. AK recipe number 4 and everyone in the house in onboard. When I let the hubs know that meatloaf was on the menu, he made a disgusted face. He changed his mind pretty quickly. I had leftover coconut rice from this blog, which was/is delicious. My 16 yo boy, my 22 yo daughter, my 66 yo mom and the husband are all devouring this meal. All the other children are out for NYE- they’ll regret missing this meatloaf. I doubled it bc the other kiddos will show up tomorrow. I only had a bag of shredded triple cheddar and I used Sweet Baby Ray’s (I am a KC girl), and everyone had at least seconds. This is going into the rotation! Happy New Year!
HAHA omg I love that 😂 I’m so glad you and the fam enjoyed this one!!
So delicious! Just like buffalo chicken dip but oh so much better! My husband and I devoured it!
Really delicious! So much flavor from so few ingredients. The cheddar keeps it really moist. I crumbled blue cheese on top when I took it out of the oven instead of dipping in dressing. Quick, easy delicious dinner that I will definitely make again.
This is so good and easy to make. Not sure if I prefer this one or the BBQ meatloaf. Tough call!
I made this lastnight and so glad I did! ! Soo delish and satisfying! Will be making again ☺️
I’m so happy you loved it, Sonia!
Absolutely delicious! Easy to make! Will be making again! Thank you!
This was delicious! Such a fun twist on a comfort food. I made this exactly as the recipe called and it turned out perfect. Served it with a simple salad and everyone loved it.
I’m so glad to hear that, Brittany! Happy everyone loved it 🙂
I’ve made this as meatloaf and as burgers, so good! And comes together pretty quick.
Love that you turn it into burgers! Great idea 🙂
This was really easy and super tasty. My husband and I both loved it! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes.
So happy to hear that! Easy and delicious ❤️
This was delicious, I showed this to my family everyone was a little skeptical till I showed them the pic. I quadrupled the recipe for next day lunches etc… it’s a keeper!!