This Buffalo chicken lasagna recipe is one of those decadent chicken pasta recipes that leave you wanting to lick your plate clean wondering why you haven’t made one of these lasagna recipes before!
Buffalo chicken lasagna is chunks of succulent chicken swimming in buffalo-inspired sauce nestled between tender lasagna noodles and held together with plenty of gooey melted cheese. Think buffalo chicken pizza on steroids. Can chicken recipes get any better?
If you’re looking for more delicious lasagna varieties I hope you’ll try my chicken lasagna (it’s layered in a luscious garlic cream sauce that’s TDF!), ravioli lasagna, taco lasagna, and crockpot lasagna next!
Let’s make this lasagna!
What I Love About This Recipe
I absolutely love that this buffalo chicken lasagna recipe combines the deliciousness of buffalo chicken wings and the savory satisfaction of lasagna.
This decadent dish allows people to experience the combination of buffalo chicken and lasagna in a sensational new way!
Here are some fantastic reasons to love it.
- Delicious and nutritious
- Preparation like traditional lasagna
- Kiddos can help
- Variable recipe
- Diverse applications
Buffalo Chicken Lasagna Ingredients
- Chicken: If you prefer the texture of shredded chicken, you can definitely substitute it in this dish. Leftovers or a store-bought rotisserie chicken will work great, or you can certainly bake or boil your own. You’ll just need about 4 cups to use in the recipe.
- Onions
- Celery
- Sauce: You can choose to make this buffalo chicken lasagna recipe with or without the bechamel cheese. This rich and creamy cheese filling is the perfect balance to the slightly spicy buffalo-style sauce, but I understand that it’s just not for everyone.
- Cheese: Gorgonzola – Different qualities and brands of blue cheese have different characteristics. I use a fairly mild, moderately priced blue cheese in this recipe, something like a Danish Blue or Gorgonzola.
- If you’re using a particularly strong variety, I would suggest reducing the amount of blue cheese. You can always sprinkle more on top if it doesn’t quite have the blue cheese “oomph” you’re looking for.
- If that’s the case, feel free to make up the difference with additional shredded mozzarella. After all, it’s not really the savory lasagna we all know and love without cheese overload!
- Spiciness: We also need to talk about the hot sauce. I prefer to use Frank’s Hot Sauce, but your favorite buffalo wing sauce will work just fine. The recipe calls for ¾ cup of hot sauce and the chicken lasagna does have a little kick, but it won’t make your eyes water.
- However, you may want to cut back on the hot sauce a bit if the kiddos will be eating. The full-flavored buffalo chicken lasagna may be a little too much for their delicate palate, as delicious as it is.
Tips
- Salt Your Water: While you want to prepare the lasagna noodles according to the package instructions, here are a couple of important tips. First and foremost, please salt your pasta with water. I use 2-4 tablespoons for every 4 quarts of water, depending on the type of salt. (Also recommended by Marcella Hazan) This will help flavor your pasta from the inside out which will enhance your buffalo chicken lasagna recipe.
- Al Dente: Cook your lasagna noodles al dente, which is still a little firm in the middle. This will help prevent them from going soggy in the oven.
- Assembly: Lastly, to ensure a nice thick buffalo chicken lasagna recipe that serves nicely and tastes amazing make sure to follow the rule of thumb for assembly. You want to use sauce, noodles, filling – repeat.
- Rest It: Letting your lasagna rest about 15 minutes after it has been baked will help you avoid that soupy mess when you cut it.
Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead
- Storing: It stores best in an airtight container with a secure lid to prevent air from reaching it.
- I like to store mine in single-serve portions that are easy to pull out after school or whenever someone needs a snack. When the kiddos were little it made it easier to make them a quick nutritious dinner on those busy weeknights when my husband worked late.
- How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge? This will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days. If you are serving this at a family get-together or potluck dinner, you’ll want to observe the 2-hour rule for food safety.
- Can You Freeze This? Oh yes, you can freeze it! This Buffalo chicken lasagna recipe freezes well. You can slow thaw it in the fridge overnight or put it directly in the microwave and heat it up.
- Freeze the whole thing for an easy ready-made dinner or freeze it in smaller portions that you can pull out one at a time. Use a vacuum sealer or wrap it tightly in saran wrap before putting it in a freezer bag.
- Make-Ahead Tips: Making your lasagna sauce ahead of time is a great way to simplify things down the road.
- You can make this sauce and store it until you are ready to put your lasagna together. This sauce freezes well if it is stored properly. All those lovely flavors mingle and intensify as they sit even in the freezer.
- You can also chop all the veggies and store them in a Tupperware dish in the fridge until it’s time to put the sauce together. You can also store them in a Ziploc bag, but I find that the garlic sticks to the sides making it hard to get out.
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.
More Chicken Pasta Recipes
- Caesar Pasta Salad
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta
- Chicken Riggies
- Garlic Parmesan Chicken Pasta
- Chicken Pasta Salad
Buffalo Chicken Lasagna
This buffalo chicken lasagna is layers of intense flavors, succulent chicken and plenty of gooey melted cheese that is finger-lickin' fantastic!
Servings: 12 servings
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 pounds ground chicken
- 1 cup onion chopped
- 2 stalks celery finely chopped
- 1 large carrots grated
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 (15-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes undrained
- 3/4 cup Frank's hot sauce
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 9 lasagna noodles
- 1 (15-ounce) container whole-milk ricotta
- 1 1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles divided
- 4 cups mozzarella shredded, divided
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
Instructions
- Spray a 9X13 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray; set aside. Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Heat vegetable oil (2 tablespoons) in a Dutch oven. Cook the chicken (1 1/2 pounds), celery (2 stalks), onion (1 cup), and carrot (1 large) over medium heat, until there's no longer any pink in the chicken and the veggies are soft. Stir in the garlic (4 cloves) and cook until it becomes fragrant about 1 minute. Add undrained tomatoes (1 can), Frank's hot sauce (3/4 cup), water (1/4 cup), salt (1/4 teaspoon), pepper (1/4 teaspoon), and Italian seasoning (2 teaspoons) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Meanwhile, while the sauce is cooking, prepare the lasagna noodles (9) according to the package instructions. Drain the noodles.
- In a small bowl, combine the ricotta cheese (1 container), 3/4 cup blue cheese, 2 cups mozzarella, and egg.
- Spread 1/2 cup of the sauce on the bottom of the pan. Layer 3 noodles, 1/3 of the sauce, and 1/3 of the cheese mixture, in the baking dish. Repeat twice with the remaining layers. Sprinkle top with remaining 2 cups mozzarella cheese. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly and center is hot. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle top with remaining 3/4 cups blue cheese. Allow to stand for 10 minutes. Serve.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- Salt Your Water: While you want to prepare the lasagna noodles according to the package instructions, here are a couple of important tips. First and foremost, please salt your pasta water. I use 2-4 tablespoons for every 4 quarts of water, depending on the type of salt. (Also recommended by Marcella Hazan) This will help flavor your pasta from the inside out which will enhance your buffalo chicken lasagna recipe.
- Al Dente: Cook your lasagna noodles al dente, which is still a little firm in the middle. This will help prevent them from going soggy in the oven.
- Assembly: Lastly, to ensure a nice thick buffalo chicken lasagna recipe that serves nicely and tastes amazing make sure to follow the rule of thumb for assembly. You want to use sauce, noodles, filling – repeat.
- Rest It: Letting your lasagna rest about 15 minutes after it has been baked will help you avoid that soupy mess when you cut it.
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Conclusion
Layers of complex flavors define this buffalo chicken lasagna that is just off the charts on cheesy goodness. Rarely do you come across a dish that is so easy to make, wholesome and versatile enough to please even the most delicate palates.
This buffalo chicken lasagna recipe is one of my favorite go-to dishes when I’m ready for something really decadent or I’m having a special get together. Save this recipe and give it a try for yourself. I’ll bet it becomes a staple in your kitchen too.
This sounds amazing. Do you think I could swap the ground chicken for cooked, shredded chicken?
Hi, Marianne! Thank you! Yes, if you prefer the texture of shredded chicken, you can definitely substitute it in this dish. Leftovers or a store-bought rotisserie chicken will work great, or you can certainly bake or boil your own. You’ll just need about 4 cups to use in the recipe. Enjoy! 🙂