These crazy-delicious Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes have only seven ingredients and take only 20 minutes to make! This easy, healthy dinner is perfect for game day and it's gluten-free and 21 Day Fix / Weight Watchers friendly!
Happy Friday, party people!! Were your kiddos off last week like mine? It's always so tough getting back into the groove after a break, isn't it? Enter these stupid easy buffalo chicken sloppy joes.
I made a big batch of these this week (they're so perfect for meal prep!!) and it's been so amazing to have something super delicious and healthy on hand and ready to go (especially when they only took me 20 minutes to make in the first place)!
I freaking love sloppy joes, you guys. These barbecue flavored sloppy joes are a favorite over here (and I know for a lot of you, too!) and so I had been dreaming up some other fun flavor variations of this all-American fave and I knew I had to do a buffalo chicken version. Buffalo anything is such happy food, ya know?
My friends, I can (and have) literally eat these every day. They're the perfect amount of heat with that addictive buffalo flavor and then to top them off with a little blue cheese - come on!! Seriously perfection.
Plus I love how you can basically put them on anything ⇑ and they're just so freaking good. I've put them on a bun, I've put them in chunks of celery for a delish snack, they're great in butter lettuce cups, they would also be great as a bowl over some cauliflower rice or brown rice.
Not to mention other whole-grain bread products like pitas, english muffins, sandwich thins, etc. The options are truly endless. OMG - you guys - these would even be so fun as a taco!!
I'm totally trying that.
By the way, not only do these Instant Pot (or stovetop!) Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes only take 20 minutes, but they also only have 7 ingredients! I mean you really can't beat it. They're essentially perfect in every way. Just sayin'.
Anyway, let's get to some Q&A about this recipe and then I've got a super thorough tutorial to show you just how easy these are to make!
What are sloppy joes?
A sloppy joe is a sandwich with a filling of ground meat (usually beef), with some chopped veggies like peppers and onions, cooked in a tomato-based sauce and served on a burger bun. They're saucy, a little messy, and completely delightful.
How spicy are these Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes?
I would say they're at a medium heat level, but heat is so subjective, isn't it? To me they have a good kick but nothing crazy - no eye-watering or sweating happening here!
Can I make this recipe less spicy?
Absolutely! Here are a few options:
- This recipe calls for Frank's Red Hot Sauce, another hot sauce that I love that has a similar flavor profile but less heat, is Cholula (⇐ affiliate link), so you could swap those out.
- You could also add a little more greek yogurt at the end or
- drizzle with a little ranch dressing.
Are these Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes gluten-free?
As written, they aren't because blue cheese isn't generally gluten-free (though I've read that there are some varieties of GF blue cheese, I'm just not sure how readily available they are). However, the blue cheese is optional and if you served these sloppy joes on a gluten-free bun or in a lettuce wrap and without the blue cheese (a drizzle of some ranch dressing would be an amazing replacement!) these would be gluten-free!
- the blue cheese isn't gluten free - if you skipped the blue cheese and used the lettuce cups or a gluten-free bun, this would be a great GF option.
Are sloppy joes healthy?
Traditional sloppy joes aren't generally healthy, they're often made using fatty ground beef and with a canned, processed sauce. However, these Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes are just as easy to make and are made with lean ground chicken and ingredients that you can feel good about. They're also 21 Day Fix approved and I've included Weight Watchers points (for all plans)!
That being said, they're a little higher in sodium than most of my recipes because of the hot sauce, so I always advise a little extra water on days that you're eating buffalo-flavored anything 🙂
Is Frank's Red Hot Sauce 21 Day Fix approved?
Well, technically speaking, no - and if you like, you can use a technically approved hot sauce (like your favorite Mexican hot sauce - I love Cholula!). However, Autumn has used Frank's Red Hot in some of her Fixate recipes, so I'm taking that as a sign that it's really ok (plus, I can't think of a reason they wouldn't be).
Love Frank's? Here are a few other fave healthy buffalo-flavored recipes that use it!
- Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese {21 Day Fix | Weight Watchers}
- Buffalo Chicken Meatballs from Grandnanny's House
- Buffalo Chicken Taquitos from Confessions of a Fit Foodie
- Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Chili from Confessions of a Fit Foodie
Obsessed!!!
How many Reds for 21 Day Fix do you get from one pound of ground chicken? 2 ⅓ Reds
I cooked up some ground chicken by itself this week to test this (I was curious because this recipe made less by cup than I was expecting) and I found that a pound of raw lean ground chicken cooked up to only 1 ¾ cups - which is about 2 ⅓ Red containers.
Can this sloppy joe recipe be frozen?
Yes! It freezes beautifully! I like to portion individual servings into small ziploc bags and then put them into a large gallon sized ziploc and throw them in like that. To reheat, I just take them out of the baggie, put them in a microwave safe bowl and use my defrost setting until defrosted then heat regularly in the microwave until hot.
Can these healthy buffalo chicken sloppy joes be doubled?
Yep! I've given instructions on doubling in the recipe card 😉
How long will these last in the fridge?
A general rule of thumb for a cooked, meat-based dish is 4 days. Btw, these are GREAT for meal prep and reheat beautifully!
How to make Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes:
Spray the liner of your pot with olive or coconut oil cooking spray, put your pot on saute mode and then add your carrots and celery:
Saute for a few minutes...
Add your chicken and season lightly with salt and pepper...
Brown the meat (it doesn't have to be fully cooked), breaking it up with your spatula as it cooks.
Add your sauce ingredients (tomato sauce, hot sauce, water).
Stir, then pressure cook for 2 minutes with a quick release when finished.
Meanwhile, whisk together finishing ingredients:
When the Joes are done cooking and the pressure has fully released, stir in this mixture (with your pot on saute mode) until thickened.
Perfect!
I hope these are as big a hit for you guys as they've been for us! Have a great weekend!
Don’t forget to save this easy Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes recipe to Pinterest! ⇓
Don’t have an Instant Pot yet? I use the 6 quart Duo and love it – you can check that out right here! <- affiliate link).
Can I ask a quick favor? If you make this Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes recipe, please let me know how it went by leaving a star rating (in the recipe card) and commenting! And if you snap a pic, I’d love for you to tag me @thefoodieandthefix on Instagram so I can check it out! I love seeing what recipes you guys are making!
📖 Recipe
Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes {Instant Pot | Stovetop}
These delicious Instant Pot Buffalo Sloppy Joes make a great, quick and easy, healthy dinner and are perfect for game night!
Ingredients
- ½ cup carrots, chopped
- ½ cup celery, chopped
- 1 lb lean ground chicken
- ⅓ cup no-salt-added canned tomato sauce
- ⅓ cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce (or your favorite hot sauce with a similar heat level)
- 2 Tbs water (not needed for stovetop)
Finishing ingredients:
- 2 Tbs 2% plain Greek yogurt
- 2 Tbs of the same hot sauce you used above (not needed for stovetop)
- ½ Tbs cornstarch (not needed for stovetop)
- Blue cheese (optional) - you can use however much you like, for 21 Day Fix 2 ½ Tbs is ½ of a blue container, just fyi!
- Whatever you want to serve them on: butter lettuce cups, whole grain bun, whole grain pita, etc..
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions:
- Press the saute button on your Instant Pot. Spray the liner with olive or coconut oil cooking spray and saute the carrots and celery for 2 or 3 minutes - they'll finish cooking under pressure, so need to fully soften.
- Add the ground chicken, lightly season with salt and pepper and brown, breaking up the meat with your spatula as it cooks. No need to fully cook, once the meat is crumbled, you can add the tomato sauce, hot sauce and water. Stir. Turn off the saute function and cook on manual (or pressure cook) for 2 minutes, with a quick-release when finished.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt, 2 Tbs hot sauce and cornstarch. Once pressure has fully released, remove lid and put the pot back on saute. Next, stir in the yogurt mixture and let cook, stirring occasionally for a few minutes until thickened.
- Serve on whatever you like (some great options are listed in the ingredients list!) with some blue cheese (if you're into that)!
Stovetop Instructions:
- Spray a large saute pan with olive or coconut oil cooking spray. Add the carrots and celery and cook until softened.
- Add the ground chicken, seasoning lightly with salt and pepper. Brown the meat, breaking up and crumbling as you go with your spatula.
- Once the meat is fully cooked (or just about), stir in the tomato sauce and hot sauce and simmer for around 10 minutes or so (I like to continue to break up the meat even further at this point while it's simmering, but it's not necessary, you can just stir it every now and then). Most of the liquid will evaporate in the cooking process.
- Stir in the Greek yogurt and you're ready to go! Serve on whatever you like (some great options are listed in the ingredients list!) with some blue cheese (if you're into that)!
Notes
*When doubling this recipe in the Instant Pot, double all ingredients EXCEPT the water.
21 Day Fix Container Counts: ½ Red, ¼ Green (don't forget to count however much blue you use for the blue cheese, plus counts for whatever you serve these Joes on!).
Weight Watchers Personal Points Link: Buffalo Chicken Sloppy Joes (don't forget to add any points needed for whatever you serve them on - though the lettuce cups are free!)
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: about ⅔ cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 160Total Fat: 5g
Nutritional information provided is approximate and for informational purposes only.
Kelly says
Holy cow, just made this for the first time tonight and it is AWESOME! Even my hubby (who traditionally is NOT a fan of anything healthy) went back for seconds! We served ours on romaine lettuce "boats" and it was perfect! Thank you so much for the recipe, definitely one we will make often in this house!!
Stephanie says
Ah! I'm so thrilled to hear you guys enjoyed it! And there's nothing better than winning someone over!!