This homemade Buffalo Sauce is a rich, tangy, and spicy condiment for all of your favorite foods.
When it comes to favorite dipping sauces, there are lots of teams out there: Team Ranch, Team Blue Cheese, Team Ketchup, and my team: Team Buffalo Sauce.
If you’ve seen our recipes for other things “Buffalo,” you probably already know that in 1964, Anchor Bar co-owner Teressa Bellissimo was making a snack for her son and his friends: she cooked up some chicken wings and covered them with a “buttery hot sauce” and the next thing the world knew, Buffalo chicken wings were born. What made them new and special? The Buffalo Sauce, of course. And now, when we mix melted butter with the hot sauce of our choice (and sometimes, like in our recipe here, some other deliciously savory ingredients), we get a sauce so tangy and deeply flavorful that we find ourselves eating it with way more than chicken.
This sauce could not be easier to make (4 ingredients), tastier (the Worcestershire sauce and garlic powder add a wonderful complexity), or more versatile, which is why you should make a big batch and keep it on hand. You never know when you might need it (though I’m going to give you some ideas pretty soon!). It has all the snap, tang, and spice you want in a sauce and a beautiful orange color, too, which means your presentation will be very tantalizing—after all, we do eat with our eyes first.
Because of its history, Buffalo Sauce is a no-brainer when it comes to Wings. And the traditional way to serve wings in Buffalo Sauce is to add raw carrots, celery, and a cooling agent like Blue Cheese Dip or Ranch Dressing.
Picking Your Hot Sauce
In 1912, American pharmacist Wilbur Scoville invented the Scoville heat scale to measure the pungency of chili peppers, the main ingredient in hot sauces. Today, all hot sauces receive a Scoville rating, ranging from 0 to 16 million Scoville Heat Units, or SHUs.
The amount of heat in your Buffalo Sauce is going to depend on the kind of hot sauce you choose in this recipe. And there are a lot of choices out there. A popular favorite is Frank’s Red Hot Sauce, which scores 450 SHUs, a rating that is considered low. Just to give you an idea of where Frank’s comes in, the hottest hot sauce on the Scoville scale is Pure Evil, whose score is 13 million. OK, we probably don’t want our Buffalo sauce that hot. For many people, Frank’s has just the right balance of vinegar and cayenne, but if you want something hotter, try Texas Pete’s (747 SHUs), Cholula (1,000 SHUs), Tabasco’s Chipotle flavor (2,500 SHUs), or for all of you more fiery eaters out there, Crystal Hot Sauce (4,000 SHUs). There are hotter ones, too, but I’ll give the advice I always give: the best one is the one you like best.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup hot pepper sauce
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
How to Make Buffalo Sauce
Step 1: In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.
Step 2: Add the hot pepper sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder to the melted butter.
Step 3: Whisk the ingredients together until well combined and continue to cook for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce is heated through.
Step 4: Serve the buffalo sauce warm, or allow it to cool and store in the refrigerator for later use.
FAQs & Tips
How to Make Ahead and Store?
Buffalo Sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for 3 months.
Is there a good substitute for Worcestershire sauce?
If you don’t care for the taste of Worcestershire sauce, you can use soy sauce or even your favorite steak sauce (A1, anyone?) instead.
What's the difference between hot sauce and Buffalo sauce?
Hot sauce is typically made from chili peppers and vinegar; Buffalo Sauce is traditionally made from hot sauce and butter, though lots of recipes, including ours here, add some other ingredients for balance and flavor.
Serving Suggestions
Things that are super delicious dipped in Buffalo Sauce are French Fries, Onion Rings, Cauliflower Hash Browns, Sauteed Shrimp, and so many things chicken (besides wings), like Chicken Fingers or sliced Smoked Chicken Breasts.
But then just think about the things you love with hot sauce, and you’ll discover so many other dishes that will get elevated to a state of super deliciousness when you slather or drizzle or mix them with Buffalo Sauce! For example, how about a breakfast sandwich with Buttermilk Biscuits, Delicious Over-Hard Eggs, crispy Bacon, and Buffalo Sauce? Or what about this? Toss some Shredded Chicken with your homemade Buffalo Sauce and then mix it into this Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese before you add the panko topping and put it in the oven.
Buffalo Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup hot pepper sauce
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Add the hot pepper sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder to the melted butter.
- Whisk the ingredients together until well combined and continue to cook for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce is heated through.
- Serve the buffalo sauce warm, or allow it to cool and store in the refrigerator for later use.
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