My sister calls them miracle chickens. They are those tasty roasted chickens slowly turning over the fire at your local store. I love them because they’re versatile and delicious. Best of all, they’re already cooked and ready to go. The challenge is that they really should be served up the same day you buy them. So enjoying one in the middle of the week requires adding yet another stop at the grocery store to the already crowded schedule.
Here are a few tricks we use to enjoy a roasted chicken almost anytime:
1.) Buy more than one chicken at a time. Remove chicken meat from the bones, being careful to separate out all bones and cartilage. Place the chicken into ziptop bags, each containing about 1 cup of meat. Freeze. Now you have chicken on hand all the time for fast, delicious, and nutritious meals!
2.) Forgot to thaw it out? No problem. Put about a cup of chicken broth in a sauce pan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, add the frozen chicken, and reduce heat to medium low. Cover and allow the chicken to simmer until thawed. With one pound of meat this takes about six to eight minutes.
3.) Get the best deal. Buy the rotisserie chicken at your local Costco or warehouse-type store. The chickens there are usually larger and less expensive.
And here are nine ways to turn that chicken into easy meals!
1.) Add barbeque sauce to shredded rotisserie chicken meat and serve on a nice crusty roll for one of the best BBQ sandwiches you’ll ever eat!
2.) Make chicken tacos: Place the chicken on a platter with warmed tortillas, salsa, lettuce, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and hot sauce on the side. Each person can build their own tacos just the way they like them. This is great for large crowds.
3.) Easy chicken quesadillas: Melt cheese, salsa, and chicken on corn or flour tortillas in a large frying pan over medium heat. Fold the tortilla in half over the filling, flip and cook the other side.
4.) Quick chicken soup. Add chicken to chicken broth in a sauce pan. Throw in some carrots, onion, celery and a handful of egg noodles (just a few noodles will do). Boil lightly for eight to 10 minutes or until noodles and veggies are tender.
5.) Curried chicken salad sandwiches. Mix chicken with a bit of mayonnaise, minced onion and curry powder. Serve on soft rolls.
6.) Mix chicken with cheese, green onions or chiles and a bit of sour cream, and roll the filling inside warmed corn or flour tortillas to make enchiladas. Place in a single layer in a microwave-safe casserole dish. Top with enchilada sauce and a bit more cheese. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave for six to eight minutes or until bubbly.
7.) For Southwest chicken, place chicken on hot rice and top with black beans, salsa and light sour cream.
8.) BBQ chicken pizza. Mix chicken with barbecue sauce. Place on a pre-cooked pizza crust (such as Boboli) and top with cheddar cheese and sliced green onions. Bake at 400 degrees until cheese is bubbly.
9.) Roll chicken, refried beans, sour cream and salsa in a large flour tortilla to make burritos.
About the Author:
I'm a work-from-home dad who left the travel and long hours of corporate America to reconnect with my family and pursue my passion for cooking. I am the founder of Your Home Café, a popular dinner-planning website that helps members quickly create personalized dinner plans. www.yourhomecafe.com.
