We meal prep on Sunday nights by making a big meal like this healthy buffalo chicken casserole. We get to enjoy a hearty meal and then have leftovers in the fridge for the upcoming week. We made this baked chicken casserole Paleo, Whole30 and Low Carb, and with a simple modification it can also be made Keto.
Paleo, Whole30, Keto + Low Carb buffalo chicken casserole recipe
This recipe is made with all real food ingredients, and it’s simple to make it fit all of your dietary needs. As is, this buffalo chicken spaghetti squash casserole is Paleo and Whole30 compliant. It’s also naturally low carb (thank you, spaghetti squash!), and by omitting the carrot you can make it Keto friendly, too!
How to bake spaghetti squash
We love how spaghetti squash is a great alternative for making “pasta” dishes. It hits the spot when you are craving comfort food, and it’s way healthier! But….baking it can be a little daunting…mostly the cutting of it. So, here are some tips.
- Slice your spaghetti squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and place it cut side down on a sheet pan. We like to line ours with parchment paper so it doesn’t stick. Bake at 400° for about 30 minutes.
- If you’re really worried about slicing your spaghetti squash in half, you can always ask someone working in the product department at your grocery store to cut it for you. Problem solved!
- You can also bake your spaghetti squash whole, it just takes longer, but will be easier to cut once it softens from being baked.
- Or you can cook your spaghetti squash in your Instant Pot. To do this, we recommend cutting your squash in half, right in the middle. Scoop out the seeds, and place it in your Instant Pot on the steaming rack with a cup of water in the bottom of the pot. Cook on manual/high pressure for just 7 minutes.
A buffalo chicken bake for meal prep
We use Sunday dinner as a way to meal prep. Typically, we make a larger meal like this buffalo chicken casserole. We eat it for dinner Sunday, and then plan the leftovers into our week for lunches or another dinner. All you have to do is re-heat the leftovers and you’ve got a super easy, satisfying meal ready with no extra effort. It’s a real time saver during a busy week.
More spaghetti squash casseroles to try
- TACO STUFFED SPAGHETTI SQUASH
- SPAGHETTI SQUASH CARBONARA
- CREAMY GARLIC SPAGHETTI SQUASH CASSEROLE
- SPAGHETTI PIZZA CASSEROLE
- BBQ CHICKEN CASSEROLE
Time to try this oven-baked buffalo chicken casserole
Whether you are meal prepping or making a meal to feed your family or a crowd, this buffalo chicken casserole is going to be a new favorite! Leave a comment and rating below, and let us know how it goes. Also, take a pic to share on Instagram. Tag us @realsimplegood, so we can check it out. We love to see what you’re making!
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Healthy Baked Buffalo Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 spaghetti squash (medium to large)
- 1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs (breast will work but you'll have to adust the cooking time)
- Sea salt and ground pepper (to season chicken on both sides)
- 1 bell pepper, diced
- 1 carrot, diced
- 2 ribs celery, diced
- Ranch dressing (for topping, see recipe notes)
- 4 green onions, sliced (for garnish)
For the buffalo sauce:
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1/2 cup hot sauce (check ingredients for Whole30 compliance and adjust and use less/more based on desired spice level)
- 1/2 cup mayo (check ingredients for Whole30 compliance)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° Fahrenheit and grease two medium baking sheets with oil. Cut spaghetti squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place the squash, cut side down on one of the baking sheets. Also, grease a casserole dish and set aside.
- Place the chicken on the other baking sheet and season on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Place the squash and the chicken in the oven to cook. Remove the chicken after it has cooked to an internal temperature of 165° Fahrenheit, about 20 minutes. Remove the squash when it is cooked (it will give a little when you press on the skin), about 30 minutes. Set aside to cool and keep the oven on at 400° for cooking the casserole.
- While the squash is cooking, prep the bell pepper, carrot and celery as noted. Place in a large mixing bowl or casserole dish and set aside.
- Also, while the squash is cooking, prepare buffalo sauce by placing all of the sauce ingredients into a small bowl or jar and mixing well.
- Once the chicken has cooled a little, chop it into bite-sized pieces and add it to the bowl with the veggies. Once the squash has cooled a little, scoop out flesh of the squash with a fork into the bowl.
- Finally, add the buffalo sauce to the bowl and mix everything together well. Dump the mixture into the casserole dish and spread it out evenly.
- Place the casserole in the oven to cook for 20-30 minutes, until everything is heated through. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Notes
Interested in making this on Sunday. Would it be okay to use the Green Giant Veggie Spirals frozen spaghetti squash noodles? Should I heat them up before putting them in the dish?
Hey there – we’ve never used frozen spaghetti squash, but I’d suspect it might be a little watery. If you’ve worked with it before and can confirm that, we’d recommend letting it thaw, draining the water and then using it in the recipe. Let us know how it goes!
Made this tonight and while the flavor was great, it was quite mushy. Is that the correct texture? Any tips for making it less mushy next time?
Every spaghetti squash is different so you can try adjusting the cooking time on that. If the squash is overcooked it will get mushy. You can try pulling the squash out at 20 minutes. As long as it is soft enough to “shred” it into noodles with a fork you will be good because it will cook further when everything is mixed together. Hopefully this helps for next time 🙂
This is SO tasty and easy! Great for leftovers too! Will keep this in my arsenal of easy to make din!
Thanks McKenzie, glad you’ll be making this one again!
This was my FIRST realsimplegood recipe and it was a winner. I’ve since made a few other recipes and this is my new favorite recipe website. I really enjoyed the flavor and texture of this recipe. Such a great way to get veggies into my dinner.
So glad you love this one, too! We’re so glad you found us and hope you find many recipes to love and enjoy on our website. Thanks for being here! 🙂
On my fourth round of Whole 30 and just made this recipe for the first time. Gah! Delish!! I wasn’t sure about the nutritional yeast, but it gave such a creamy texture that I’m a fan now. I actually think it’s better the next day. I’ve been working on it for days now! Thanks for sharing!
You’re very welcome Amber, thanks for coming back to leave a rating and review!
I make this meal every other week for about 3 months now… it’s sooooo good!
We are so happy to hear you love it so much!! Thanks so much for coming back to tell us! 🙂
This is ridiculously good. Shockingly so. My wife loved it and she’s not even eating whole30. I used 1/4 c of a Frank’s style hot sauce and homemade mayo. I’ll probably do 1/3 c of hot sauce next time because we did dash on a bit when eating.
Amazing!! We are so glad to hear it was a hit for you both! Thanks so much for taking the time to come leave a review! We really appreciate it! 🙂
Super delicious and satisfying. For those who don’t like anything too spicy I might suggest reducing the amount of hot sauce used.
Glad you liked the recipe! Thanks for the advice on the sauce, as the spice level will also depend on the hot sauce you use. I added a note in the recipe card to emphasize this point.
This was delicious. Thanks for a great recipe!
You’re welcome, thanks for coming back to leave a rating and review!