Skillet Blue Cheese Crusted Buffalo Chicken

I started making this recipe when I was around 5 months pregnant with my daughter.  I couldn’t get enough of spicy foods, and who doesn’t love Frank’s Red Hot?  They weren’t kidding, I can legit put it on everything.  Since then, it has become a favorite in my house and I am still making it well after my daughter was born.  I have made this dish so many time with so many different variations its ridiculous, but this one surpasses them all.

I used boneless skinless chicken breast, and like most of my chicken recipes, I cook it in a cast iron skillet, both on the stove and in the oven.  I pat dry the chicken and season it with Sea Salt, Cracked Pepper, and Garlic powder.  I then lightly coat the breasts in rice flour.  This gives it a nice brown crunch in the skillet, and really just tastes delicious.

I heat my skillet on high and heat about 2-3 tablespoons of smart balance canola oil.  Ones the pan is nice and hot, I add my chicken breasts and cook them for 2-3 minutes on each side.  Long enough for the chicken to develop a nice golden brown crust.

Once the chicken is seared, place the entire skillet in an oven on the middle rack, preheated to 375 degrees. The total bake time should be around 15 minutes depending on who thick the chicken is.

After the first 7 minutes, I take the skillet out of the oven and check the chicken.  It should be mostly cooked, maybe a little pink. I slather the chicken with around a half of a cup of red hot and I add about a tablespoon of butter to the pan.  This helps the sauce stick to the chicken.  I then top the chicken with shredded Mexican (you can use cheddar) Cheese, and about a 1/4 C of Crumbled Blue Cheese per breast.  Then back into the oven.  After around five minutes I switch my oven over to broil for the remaining two minutes.

The chicken should be moist and delicious!  Garnish with Scallions and Serve over Jasmine Rice!

Blue Cheese Crusted Buffalo Chicken
Comfort Food at its Finest

INGREDIENTS

3 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
½ tsp Salt
½ tsp Pepper
½ tsp Garlic Powder
¾ C Franks Red Hot
1-2 T Butter
¾ C Crumbled Blue Cheese
½ C Shredded Cheese
½ C Shredded Cheese

3 T Rice Flour

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat Oven to 375.

2. Pat Chicken dry with paper towel and season each side with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Once seasoned, dredge the chicken through the rice four to lightly coat.

3. In a Cast Iron Skillet, Heat 2 T of Olive Oil. Once hot, Sear Chicken for 3 minutes on each side. Once Chicken is seared with a nice golden crust, place entire skillet into preheated oven.

4. Bake Chicken for 7 minutes, then take skillet out of oven and place on the burner of the stove on med heat. Add Butter and Hot Sauce, making sure to coat the chicken entirely. Top Chicken with Shredded cheese, then Blue Cheese and return to oven.

5. Bake chicken for another 5 Minutes on 375, then on broil for the final 2 minutes.

6. Garnish with Scallions and Serve over Jasmine Rice