Crisp butter lettuce cups piled with spicy, tangy buffalo-ranch chicken, crunchy celery and creamy avocado, finished with salty blue cheese crumbles for contrast.
Handheld Buffalo Ranch Cups: Big Flavor, Little Fuss
Crisp butter lettuce leaves cradle spicy buffalo-ranch chicken, crunchy celery, creamy avocado and salty blue cheese for a low-carb, weeknight-friendly meal.
If you love the tang of wings but hate the mess (and the carbs), these lettuce cups give you everything you want—heat, creaminess and crunch—without a plate full of crumbs. Butter lettuce makes the perfect shallow cup: tender enough to bite through, sturdy enough to hold a generous scoop of chicken. The contrast between the spicy, glossy buffalo coating and the cool avocado is the sort of mouthfeel that keeps you going back for 'one more'.
This is a 30-minute dinner that leans on smart shortcuts: bite-sized chicken pieces tossed with garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, salt and pepper, seared until golden, then finished in a simple sauce of butter, hot sauce and a splash of ranch for that tangy, creamy finish. The skillet does the heavy lifting—browning for texture, a buttery-hot-sauce gloss for flavor—so the assembly feels almost celebratory.
Prep is the easy part: rinse and pat the lettuce dry so it doesn’t go soggy, thinly slice celery and green onions for crunch and brightness, and dice avocado just before serving. Pile the chicken into each leaf, scatter celery and green onions on top, then dot with avocado and salty blue cheese crumbles. The blue cheese is optional but it adds a sharp, savory counterpoint that makes the whole thing sing.
These cups work for game day, a quick weeknight dinner, or a make-ahead protein for lunches—cook the chicken ahead and reheat, but keep avocado and lettuce separate until the last minute. If you want more heat, drizzle extra hot sauce; if you want it lighter, swap full-fat ranch for a yogurt-based ranch. Either way, you get bold buffalo flavor with the lift of fresh, crunchy greens.
Ingredients
How to Make Buffalo Ranch Chicken Lettuce Cups
- Rinse and dry the butter lettuce leaves and pat them dry; thinly slice the celery and green onions, dice the avocado and set everything aside for assembly.
- Trim and cut the chicken into 1/2-inch pieces, then toss with garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, kosher salt and black pepper until evenly coated.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering, add the chicken in a single layer and cook 6–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned and cooked through.
- Remove the cooked chicken to a plate; reduce heat to low, add the butter to the same skillet and melt, then stir in the hot sauce until smooth and bubbling lightly.
- Return the chicken to the skillet and toss to coat in the buffalo sauce for 1–2 minutes, then remove from heat and stir in 1/4 cup of the ranch dressing to create a creamy buffalo-ranch coating (reserve remaining ranch for drizzling).
- Taste and adjust seasoning if needed; if you like it tangier, squeeze half the lime over the chicken and stir.
- To assemble, place a few tablespoons of the buffalo-ranch chicken into each lettuce leaf, top with sliced celery, green onions, diced avocado and a sprinkle of blue cheese crumbles, then drizzle with the reserved ranch and a little fresh lime juice.
- Serve immediately while the chicken is warm so the lettuce stays crisp; offer extra hot sauce or ranch on the side.
Recipe Card
Buffalo Ranch Chicken Lettuce Cups
Crisp butter lettuce cups piled with spicy, tangy buffalo-ranch chicken, crunchy celery and creamy avocado, finished with salty blue cheese crumbles for contrast.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 12 min
- Servings
- 4
Ingredients
Instructions
- Rinse and dry the butter lettuce leaves and pat them dry; thinly slice the celery and green onions, dice the avocado and set everything aside for assembly.
- Trim and cut the chicken into 1/2-inch pieces, then toss with garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, kosher salt and black pepper until evenly coated.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering, add the chicken in a single layer and cook 6–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned and cooked through.
- Remove the cooked chicken to a plate; reduce heat to low, add the butter to the same skillet and melt, then stir in the hot sauce until smooth and bubbling lightly.
- Return the chicken to the skillet and toss to coat in the buffalo sauce for 1–2 minutes, then remove from heat and stir in 1/4 cup of the ranch dressing to create a creamy buffalo-ranch coating (reserve remaining ranch for drizzling).
- Taste and adjust seasoning if needed; if you like it tangier, squeeze half the lime over the chicken and stir.
- To assemble, place a few tablespoons of the buffalo-ranch chicken into each lettuce leaf, top with sliced celery, green onions, diced avocado and a sprinkle of blue cheese crumbles, then drizzle with the reserved ranch and a little fresh lime juice.
- Serve immediately while the chicken is warm so the lettuce stays crisp; offer extra hot sauce or ranch on the side.
Nutrition
- Carbohydrates
- 6
- Saturated Fat
- 10.5
- Sodium
- 900
- Fiber
- 3
- Unsaturated Fat
- 24
- Protein
- 37
- Fat
- 35
- Cholesterol
- 140
- Trans Fat
- 0
- Calories
- 480
- Sugar
- 2