These Crack Chicken Pinwheels are cooked in the air fryer to give a crisp finish to the pinwheels! Packed with creamy, cheesy chicken and bacon, and perfect for game day or a quick lunch!
Our crack chicken pinwheel recipe is a favorite appetizer among our friends. We love serving it when we are having a small gathering that allows us to bust out our air fryer!
It is clean enough to eat as a finger food, win.
It is good enough for the guests to talk about while eating it, win.
It is very easy to make and clean up after cooking, a huge win!
Plus, anything with crack chicken – an addictive mix of cream cheese, chicken, bacon, ranch, and cheddar – is always a favorite!
Ingredient Notes:
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Chicken – You’ll need cooked, shredded chicken for this recipe. Start with a rotisserie chicken or toss a couple of chicken breasts in the crockpot and then shred them up.
Other fillings – Essentials are cream cheese, crumbled bacon, and shredded cheddar. All of this will be wrapped an a flour tortilla.
Added flavor– The combo of minced chives, mayonnaise, and ranch seasoning is wonderful in these pinwheels.
Make it low carb by swapping out traditional tortillas for low carb tortillas!
How to Make Crack Chicken Pinwheels:
- Combine the filling– Add your chicken, cream cheese, bacon, mayo, chives, and ranch seasoning to a bowl and mash the mixture together until well combined. I use a fork for this.
- Fill and wrap the tortilla– Divide your filling evenly between two flour tortillas and spread the mixture out all the way to the edges of each tortilla. Sprinkle shredded cheese over the top of both tortillas evenly. Now roll up each tortilla tightly, trying not to squish out the filling. Use a sharp knife to cut off the ends and discard. Now cut each tortilla into 5 evenly sized pieces.
- Air fry the pinwheels– Spritz your air fryer basket with an oil mist and arrange your pinwheels in a single layer. Air fry for 5 minutes at 370 degrees F.
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FAQ:
These are rich, creamy, and decadent enough to serve on their own, but they also go great with a side of ranch dressing or BBQ sauce for dipping.
2 large flour tortillas will yield you 10 pinwheels. If it’s an appetizer, you can expect each person to eat 2-3. If you are serving these as a meal, 5 pinwheels is more of a serving.
Recipe Tips!
We use this parchment paper in our air fryer. It has holes that allow the air to still flow through while also making cleanup easy.
For a lighter version, use Laughing Cow cheese wedges or light cream cheese and light mayonnaise. Low carb tortillas also work great here if you’re watching carbs.
Comments & Reviews
Judy Henningsen says
Can these be made in the oven? I don’t have an air fryer.9
Karly Campbell says
Yes, I’m sure they can. I’d probably bake them at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes, until crisp. I haven’t tested it, so you’ll just have to experiment a bit.
Bonnie says
Question please, can I make ahead and freeze, then thaw and air fry? I have a lot of prep for a baby shower and I will have company, so ny items I can make ahead would be perfect, thanks!
Karly Campbell says
I haven’t tried this myself, but I think it would work great!
Bonnie says
Thank you! 😋💖
Anna Ramirez says
These look so good I can hardly wait ✋️ to try them❗️😋 💕
Mandy says
These are so delicious!!
Karly Campbell says
Thanks, Mandy!
Mike Gibson says
As an extra precaution to keep pinwheels from unrolling while in their air fryer, use toothpicks at the seam.
Karly says
Great idea! 🙂