Simple BBQ Chicken Pinwheels are the perfect kid-friendly lunch, party appetizer, or picnic food. With mere minutes of prep time, this versatile recipe delivers flavors everyone will love in a bite-sized rollup.
I’m excited to see that spring weather is slowly creeping back in and bringing with it sunshine and warmer weather so that I can finally get back outside! One of the easiest snacks/lunches you can make yourself or your family this season is bite-sized rollups or pinwheels.
Why BBQ Chicken Pinwheels?
Essentially a mixture of cream cheese and other sandwich ingredients in a tortilla that’s the perfect kid-friendly lunch, party appetizer, or picnic food. Since I absolutely love BBQ chicken, I decided to combine these flavors to make simple BBQ Chicken Pinwheels that I can eat for several days or easily pack up for a spring picnic!
Pinwheels are the perfect bite-sized food to eat on-the-go or share for events. Not only do they travel well, but they are also easy to customize with your favorite ingredients. In this case, I wrapped all of the ingredients in a tomato basil tortilla to add a little more flavor, and inside the barbecue sauce takes away from the tanginess of the cream cheese. Then I included chopped chicken, shredded cheese, and green onions with garlic salt and pepper to make each bite taste flavorful, but also very true to BBQ chicken dishes.
How to customize BBQ Chicken Pinwheels!
How thin or thick you slice the pinwheels is entirely up to you, but I find that if it’s less than an inch, they may fall apart. About 1-1/2 or 2 inches is a good size for me, and I can get about five out of one tortilla, which I find is more than enough for one person. Served with sides like fresh fruit and something crunchy like pretzels or chips, it becomes a well-rounded lunch I wouldn’t mind eating every day.
Simply pack them all up in zipper bags and you’re ready to eat anywhere, like the beach, the park, or simply at work! Thanks to the cream cheese that disguises many flavors, I think you could even get picky children to love these bite-sized pinwheels. Add more ingredients if you prefer, but remember that the more ingredients pinwheels have, the harder they are to roll up and slice.
Ingredients
- 4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup cooked chicken, chopped
- 1/2 cup shredded Mexican cheese
- 1/4 cup green onions, chopped
- 1/4 cup barbecue sauce
- 1/2 tsp garlic salt
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
- Burrito-sized tortillas
Instructions
- Combine cream cheese, chicken, cheese, green onions, barbecue sauce, and spices in a large bowl and mix with a fork until smooth.
- Lay a large tortilla on a piece of plastic wrap and spread about half of the cream cheese mixture all the way to the edges of the tortilla.
- Tightly roll up the tortilla and wrap tightly in the plastic wrap. Move to the fridge for 1-2 hours and repeat with a second tortilla.
- Remove the rolled tortillas and slice into pieces at least 1 inch thick, if not thicker.
- Serve fresh or store in an airtight container for up to two days.
Notes
Home Chef Tip: Add a little more flavor to these pinwheels by using tomato basil tortillas or spinach tortillas, and add more toppings if desired!

We hope you enjoy these BBQ Chicken Pinwheels from SoFabFood Home Chef, Holly from Club Crafted, as much as we do. If you love this easy picnic food or party appetizer, you can find more like it by visiting our Appetizer section. For daily recipe inspiration, subscribe to our newsletter, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Pinterest. Enjoy!
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