Description
Buffalo Ranch Chicken Melts are ooey, gooey and cheesy delicious warm chicken sandwiches. They have a mild spicy kick that’s not too heavy-handed so they’re great for young and old.
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 3 precooked boneless skinless chicken breasts, (or leftover or rotisserie chicken – frozen chicken should be thawed)
- 1 1/2 cups Buffalo Ranch Dressing/Sauce (favorite brand or recipe in NOTES section
- 6 ciabatta rolls
- 3 Tablespoons butter
- 2 1/4 cups Cheddar Jack or Colby Jack cheese, grated
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400° F.
- Thinly slice all three chicken breasts. I slice it even thinner than an 1/8″. It’s like 2mm thick. I can’t slice it as thin as deli meat, because I just use my big chef’s knife [affiliate link], but I get it as thin as I possibly can. If you prefer you can shred or dice the chicken. We just prefer slices.
- Grate the cheese so it’s ready to go.
- Add the Buffalo Ranch Sauce to the skillet with the chicken. Stir to evenly coat every single slice.
- Heat lightly over medium heat, stirring so it doesn’t stick and so all pieces are exposed to the heat. You don’t need it hot. It’s already fully cooked. You just want to take the chill off your chicken and sauce if they have been refrigerated. You’re basically bringing them to room temperature or a little warmer. It will take 3 to 4 minutes, tops. (You could try doing this in the microwave, but I don’t recommend it. The meat will become dry and tough.) This quick preheat means the sandwiches will spend less time in the oven and will heat more evenly. Set the warmed chicken aside
- Butter both the top halves and the bottom halves of all 6 ciabatta rolls.
- Spread 3 Tablespoons of grated cheese on top of the butter on each bottom half.
- Next, add 1/6 of the chicken slices you’ve prepped for the Buffalo Ranch Chicken Sliders.
- Top the chicken with 3 more Tablespoons of grated cheese.
- Add the buttered top halves of the ciabatta rolls over the cheese to top of your sandwiches.
- Wrap each individual sandwich in foil, being careful to seal the edges. Place the individually wrapped Buffalo Ranch Chicken Melt Sandwiches on a baking sheet and place them in the oven for 15 minutes at 400° F.
- Remove the foil and move each sandwich to the plate you’ll be serving it on.
Notes
For homemade Buffalo Ranch Sauce
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 4 to 5 Tablespoons ranch dressing mix, adjust to taste
- 4 to 5 drops Franks Red Hot, adjust to your heat preference
Stir all ingredients together and use as a sandwich topping, on tacos or salads.
Storing and Reheating
If you won’t be eating six sandwiches at one sitting, I recommend storing the prepped chicken for your Buffalo Ranch Chicken Melts in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. Build the sandwiches as you need them and bake.
The good new is that we did have two leftover sandwiches the day I first made these.. I allowed them to cool completely, still in the foil and stored them in the fridge.
Two days later, rather than disassemble the sandwich to bring the chicken to room temp, I simply put the whole foil packet in the oven and turned it on to 400°. Leaving the sandwich in the foil kept it from drying out. As the oven preheated, the contents were warmed slightly. When the oven hit 400°, I set the timer for 15 minutes.
The Buffalo Ranch Chicken Melt I reheated was just as good as the first time around! Delicious! (I do think that the tougher crust on the hearty ciabatta roll made this possible. I’m not sure a soft roll would have held up.)
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Main Dish, Chicken, Sandwich
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American