Buffalo Sauce
This buffalo sauce recipe makes a glossy, tangy, buttery sauce with eight simple ingredients in just 10 minutes—perfect for wings, fries, and dips.
Equipment
- Small saucepan - 1 quart (about 1 liter); a narrow pan keeps the butter pooled so it melts evenly
- Small balloon whisk - to blend the butter and hot sauce into a smooth emulsion
- Measuring spoons - for the vinegar, Worcestershire, and dry seasonings
- Glass liquid measuring cup - with a spout, for pouring ⅔ cup (160 ml) of hot sauce cleanly
- Heat-resistant silicone spatula - to scrape the corners of the pan
- Airtight glass jar - 16 ounces (475 ml), for storing the finished sauce
- Two small bowls - for pre-measuring the liquids and dry seasonings
- Cutting board and knife - for portioning the butter
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter - 113 g, 1 stick, cut into 8 equal tablespoon-size pieces
- ⅔ cup Frank's RedHot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce - 160 ml, the original, not the premixed "Buffalo Wings Sauce" bottle
- 1½ tablespoons distilled white vinegar - 22 ml
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce - 2.5 ml
- ¼ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper - 0.5 g
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder - 0.4 g
- ⅛ teaspoon fine salt - 0.7 g
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper - 0.3 g
Instructions
- Cut the butter into 8 equal pieces, pour the Frank's RedHot into a liquid measuring cup, and measure the vinegar and Worcestershire into one small bowl and the dry seasonings into another.
- Place a 1-quart saucepan over medium-low heat, add the butter, and stir occasionally until it melts completely, about 2 to 3 minutes; it should look pale yellow and smooth.
- Keep the heat at medium-low and pour in the hot sauce while whisking, then add the vinegar and Worcestershire and whisk about 30 seconds until uniform light orange with no yellow streaks.
- Sprinkle in the cayenne, garlic powder, salt, and pepper and whisk for 20 to 30 seconds, pressing any cayenne clumps against the side of the pan.
- Raise the heat to medium and whisk constantly until tiny bubbles appear around the edge, 1 to 2 minutes, then remove from the heat before it reaches a rolling boil and whisk 15 to 20 seconds more.
- Dip a clean spoon in the sauce, let it cool about 10 seconds, and taste; add cayenne for heat, vinegar for tang, or cold butter to soften the sharpness.
- Pour the warm sauce over hot food and toss, using about ¼ cup (60 ml) per 1 pound (450 g) of wings, or cool 15 to 20 minutes and store in a sealed glass jar or squeeze bottle in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- Start with Frank's RedHot Original, a vinegar-based cayenne sauce; the premixed "Buffalo Wings Sauce" bottle is less flexible because you cannot control the butter.
- Use unsalted butter for better control, since Frank's RedHot carries about 190 mg of sodium per teaspoon.
- Stay at medium-low until the bare simmer and whisk the whole time; high heat is the main reason buffalo sauce splits.
- Pull the pan at the first bubbles—a hard boil only risks separation.
- Taste after a short cool-down, because hot sauce tastes hotter and sharper straight from the pan.
- This recipe uses roughly four parts hot sauce to three parts butter; a 1:1 ratio is creamier and milder, and more hot sauce makes it tangier and thinner.
- Sauce at the last minute and toss while the food is warm, since the sauce softens crisp coatings quickly.
- Store in an airtight jar or squeeze bottle in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks; do not leave out more than 2 hours, and freezing is not recommended.
- Reheat on the stove over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes or in the microwave in 10 to 15 second bursts at 50% power, stirring between each.
- If the sauce separates, whisk vigorously over low heat or blend a few seconds with an immersion blender; to thicken, simmer 1 to 2 minutes longer or whisk in a slurry of ½ teaspoon cornstarch and 1 teaspoon cold water and simmer 1 minute.
- Variations: whisk in 2 tablespoons honey for honey buffalo, add 2 minced garlic cloves to the melted butter for garlic buffalo, increase butter to ¾ cup and skip the cayenne for mild, add ½ teaspoon cayenne for extra-hot, add ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika for smoky, or swap in plant-based butter sticks for dairy-free.
Nutrition
Serving: 1ServingCalories: 105kcalCarbohydrates: 0.4gProtein: 0.1gFat: 11.5gSaturated Fat: 7.3gCholesterol: 31mgSodium: 800mgSugar: 0.1g
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