These baked chicken bacon ranch sliders are made with soft slider buns, shredded chicken tossed in a savory ranch sauce with sharp cheese and crispy bacon, then topped with a garlic butter sauce! They’re the perfect appetizer for game day or any party, and will feed a crowd!
This is one of my Appetizer recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
We’re coming up on prime party food season, which is one of my favorites! Between game day parties (go Bengals!) and holiday gatherings, you’ll want to have some easy appetizer recipes in your back pocket.
This slider recipe is definitely an easy recipe! Made with simple and common ingredients, these chicken bacon ranch sliders are absolutely loaded with flavor.
The combination of the chicken, bacon, cheese, and ranch is sometimes referred to as “crack” chicken. That name can be a bit controversial, so I purposefully didn’t name the recipe “crack” chicken sliders, but I wanted to mention it in case you recognized the flavors.
You can also make these sliders ahead of time, and even freeze them!
So whether you’re hosting the party, or just attending, you can serve/bring the party food everyone will be talking about.
What do I need to make this recipe?
- Slider buns – you can use any slider buns you’d like. Hawaiian rolls are traditional, but butter or potato rolls/buns are other great options.
- Shredded chicken – a shredded rotisserie chicken is what I typically use.
- Bacon – in a pinch you could use bacon bits (the real ones, not the hard pellets), but I definitely prefer the flavor and texture of cooked and crumbled bacon pieces.
- Cheese – feel free to use any cheese you’d like. Cheddar or Colby Jack are my two favorites.
- Ranch dressing – you can use homemade or store-bought, whichever you prefer.
- Mayonnaise – this recipe was tested using full fat mayo, but light mayo would also work well. Don’t use Miracle Whip though, you want real mayonnaise.
- Spices – in this recipe, that’s the garlic powder, onion powder, dried dill, and black pepper.
- Butter – you can use salted or unsalted butter.
How to make chicken bacon ranch sliders:
This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.
- Mix filling. Stir together the bacon, cheese, ranch, mayonnaise, garlic powder, onion powder, fill, salt, and pepper.
- Add chicken. Stir in the shredded chicken until everything is well combined.
- Assemble sliders (photos 3-5). Add the bottom half of the buns to a baking dish, then top with the filling, and top that with the top half of the buns.
- Make topping. Stir together the butter and garlic powder.
- Add topping. Brush liberally or pour the butter topping over the buns.
- Bake. These sliders are baked covered half of the time, and uncovered the rest of the time.
Helpful Tip!
If you would prefer to use a baking sheet instead of a pan, just make sure you use one that has sides. This is pretty buttery and you don’t want melted butter all over your oven!
Variations of this recipe
- Rolls – any slider buns/rolls will work for this recipe. Hawaiian, potato, or butter slider rolls are my favorites. Leftover homemade dinner rolls will also work!
- Pan – you can use any rectangular baking pan that both packages of rolls will fit into. You could also use a baking sheet, but make sure it’s one that has a rim. You don’t want to clean up any melted butter from the bottom of your oven!
- Chicken – I typically pick up a rotisserie chicken and shred it, but if you have some leftover chicken, this recipe is a great use for it! You could also cook some chicken and shred it.
- Extra cheesy – there’s shredded cheese in the chicken bacon ranch mixture, but if you’d like to add a generous sprinkle of shredded cheese on top of the mixture (before the top buns), I certainly won’t stop you!
- Butter topping – please feel free to add any additional spices and flavorings to the butter topping, to your tastes. Poppy seeds and dried minced onion are great options, as is everything bagel seasoning.
FAQ’s
Both actually! The sliders are covered for most of the baking, to ensure everything is nice and hot (without the tops burning), and keep the sliders from drying out. Then they’re uncovered the last few minutes, to get the tops of the sliders nice and golden brown.
I like to use Kings Hawaiian rolls, but any slider-style bun will work. Potato rolls, or butter rolls are great substitutes.
Making sliders ahead of time
The great thing about sliders is that you can make them completely ahead of time!
Just make the recipe right up until the baking part, and cover tightly with foil.
Refrigerate for up to 1 day, then bake as directed.
Freezing
To freeze, make the recipe right up until baking, then cover tightly and freeze for up to 3 months.
Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bake as directed. I feel this method makes the sliders a bit softer, but if you don’t mind, it’s a great long-term storage option.
Storage
Any leftovers should be refrigerated in an airtight container and enjoyed within 3-4 days.
My Favorite 9×13″ Baking Pan!
You can use any 9×13″ pan, but I like that this one comes with a tight fitting lid.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 cup cooked and crumbled bacon
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup prepared ranch dressing
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp dried dill
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 3 cups cooked and shredded chicken
Sliders
- 12 slider buns Hawaiian rolls, butter rolls, or potato rolls
Garlic butter topping
- 1/3 cup melted butter salted or unsalted
- 3/4 tsp garlic powder
- minced fresh parsley for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Prepare
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13” pan with foil or parchment paper, and spray lightly with cooking spray.
- If your buns/rolls aren't sliced, follow the next step. If they're pre-sliced, omit the next step.
- Add a package of buns/rolls to your cutting board and using a serrated knife (like a bread knife), carefully slice across them horizontally, keeping one hand on top of the rolls to steady them.
Make filling
- To a large mixing bowl, add all filling ingredients except the chicken (bacon, cheese, ranch, mayo, garlic powder, onion powder, dill, salt, and pepper). Stir well to combine.
- Add chicken and toss until well coated.
Assemble sliders
- Keep the buns/rolls connected to each other (on the top and bottom halves). Add the bottom section of the rolls to the prepared baking pan, cut side up.
- Spread the chicken filling evenly over the tops of the cut rolls.
- Add the top sections of the rolls, cut side down.
Make garlic butter topping
- In a small bowl, combine the melted butter with garlic powder.
- Brush or pour topping over the sliders.
Bake
- Cover with foil and bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes, then uncover and bake another 10 minutes, until as golden brown and crispy as you’d like.
Cool and serve
- Remove from the oven and let sliders sit for about 5 minutes to cool slightly. Cut into individual sliders, sprinkle with parsley and serve hot.
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Chef Tips
- Recipe makes 12 sliders, which you’re free to divide into as many servings as you’d like.
- Recipe can be doubled, just use two pans or a large rimmed baking sheet.
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
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