Nothing is heated. Two cups of already-cooked chicken are bound with cream cheese, buffalo sauce, ranch and blue cheese, spread on four tortillas, and rolled.
Then the recipe simply waits. An hour wrapped in the fridge is what turns a soft roll into something a knife can cut into twenty-four clean spirals.
Why This Recipe Works
- Cream cheese firms as it chills, which is what holds the spiral shape after cutting.
- Spreading the filling thinly and leaving a half-inch border stops it squeezing out as the log is rolled.
- Rolling tightly is what makes the spiral pattern visible in the cut face.
- Trimming the ends removes the loose, uneven turns before slicing.
Ingredient Notes
- Fully cooked chicken
- Two cups, finely shredded and already cooked. If you cook it for this, take it to 165 degrees Fahrenheit first.
- Large flour tortillas
- Four, each yielding six spirals. Flour rather than corn, because they roll without cracking.
- Ranch dressing, twice
- A quarter cup in the filling, and more alongside as the dip the finished board shows.
How to Make It
Mix the filling
Mix chicken, cream cheese, buffalo sauce, ranch, blue cheese and scallions until evenly combined.
Spread thinly
Spread filling thinly over tortillas, leaving a 1/2-inch border.
Roll, wrap, chill
Roll each tortilla tightly into a log, wrap, and chill 1 hour.
Trim and slice
Trim ends and cut each log into six spirals.
Serve cold
Arrange on a board and serve cold with ranch dip.
What Goes Into One Pinwheel
Four tortillas give six spirals each. This is one of the twenty-four, and none of it has been cooked.
What goes into one pinwheel
The tortilla, a sixth of one
From a large flour tortilla rolled tightly into a log. Flour rather than corn because it bends into a spiral instead of cracking.
The buffalo filling
A twenty-fourth of the mixture: 2 cups of shredded cooked chicken bound with 4 oz cream cheese, 1/3 cup buffalo sauce and 1/4 cup ranch. Spread thin, with a 1/2-inch border so it does not squeeze out.
Blue cheese and scallion
1/3 cup of crumbles and 2 tbsp of sliced scallions, mixed through the filling rather than laid on top - in a spiral there is no top.
An hour chilled, ends trimmed, then cut. Served cold with extra ranch as the dip the finished board shows.
Success Tips
- Spread the filling thin and leave the border; an overfilled tortilla squeezes out as you roll.
- Roll tightly. A loose log gives a loose spiral and falls apart when cut.
- Use a sharp knife and wipe it between cuts for clean faces.
Serving Ideas
Twenty-four pinwheels arranged cut-side up on a board, served cold with a bowl of ranch dressing alongside.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I skip the hour in the fridge?
No. It is what firms the log so the spirals cut cleanly rather than squashing.
Is anything cooked?
No. The chicken arrives already cooked and the whole thing is a chilled assembly.
Can I use corn tortillas?
The recipe calls for large flour tortillas, which roll without cracking.
