So my husband is bringing home one of those rotisserie chickens and I need ideas

[Nakia]

We will, of course, eat most of it tonight, but we usually just throw away what's left. In an effort to be more frugal and less wasteful, I was thinking about trying to use the leftovers. Any ideas?

[gingersmom]

We make homemade pizza and the extra chicken lands on my sons chicken pizza.

 

Chicken salad

[Aubrey]

I'm stunned that you *have* leftovers off of those things! :lol:

 

Pull the rest off, put it in a tupperware, & then add it to salad, make chicken salad (if you've got that much), eat it on tortillas w/ beans, cheese, whatever you keep handy, on crackers, in soup, etc.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I'm stunned that you *have* leftovers off of those things! :lol:

 

Pull the rest off, put it in a tupperware, & then add it to salad, make chicken salad (if you've got that much), eat it on tortillas w/ beans, cheese, whatever you keep handy, on crackers, in soup, etc.

 

:iagree:

[plain jane]

I'm stunned that you *have* leftovers off of those things! :lol:

 

:iagree:

 

Ours are picked clean!

 

We usually take a big loaf of fresh french bread, add mayo, mustard, tomatoes, cheese, cucumber, lettuce, pepper, and make a big sandwich out of it. Yum.

 

There's usually absolutely nothing left but bones (and even those are licked clean) by the time we're done but sometimes, if there is a bit left, I have put it and the bones in a pot, added some chicken breasts and made a broth for soup for the next night's dinner.

[Jennifer in MI]

I know, I know!!!!!

 

Eat half of it tonight. Whip up a bunch of side dishes if you need to - potatoes, corn bread, noodles, veggies, etc. Then:

 

On the second night, cut up the leftovers and make a chicken salad. Throw EVERYTHING in. Grapes, apples, celery, onion, tomato, rice, lettuce, etc. Make it stretch. Have it on pita (my fav!).

 

For the third night, Stick the bones/skin in to a pot with water and a tablespoon of vinegar (the vinegar gets the marrow out of the bones). Boil it for a couple hours. Voila - broth!!! Make soup for the third night. Yummy!!!

 

Another thought for the second night - cook onion and garlic with oil. Add the leftover chicken. Add to it - milk, cream, cream cheese, sour cream (whatever you have in this department!). Serve over noodles or rice. Yummy. Sometimes I'll add chick peas to stretch it further.

 

Enjoy!!!

[MamaSheep]

It depends a little on how much is left. If there's enough, I will sometimes make chicken salad with it, or chicken pot pie or a casserole. If there's not very much left over I'll toss the bones and skin and whatever meat is left in a pot and boil it for a while with a chopped up onion, a sprinkle of dried basil, and maybe a carrot or two and a stalk of celery if I have them. And a little salt. And water, obviously. This works in a crock pot too, though obviously you simmer it longer in a crock pot than on the stove. Anyway it makes a good chicken broth. After it's simmered a while I fish out the bones and skin and pick off whatever meat is left and put it back in the pot with the broth. I throw away the bones and skin. The boiling makes the meat come off really easily and you can get all the little bits from the nooks and crannies without much trouble. I'm always surprised how much meat is left on a picked over chicken. Anyway, at that point I put in some noodles or rice and cook until they're done and serve it up as soup.

 

For pot pie you do pretty much the same thing, but you use just enough water to cover everything. After you pull out the bones and skin you add in whatever other vegetables you want (I often use leftovers) and heat through. Then thicken the broth with corn starch or flour like you would gravy, but make it extra thick. Put it in a pie crust, put another crust on top, make slits in the top crust and crimp the edges. Bake it at 350 or so until the crust is golden, which will probably take about 45 mintues to an hour. Yummy stuff.

 

If you want homemade noodles put an egg, a pinch of salt, and a teaspoon or so of cooking oil in a bowl and whisk it together with a fork. Stir in enough flour to make a stiff dough (a couple of handfuls), then roll it out with a rolling pin (or the side of a glass if you haven't got a rolling pin handy) until it's quite thin and cut it into strips. Toss the strips into the boiling soup and let them cook for about 5 minutes.

 

For chicken and dumplings make the soup broth and then drop spoonfuls of biscuit dough in the broth, put a lid on the pot, and let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

[Classical Country Mama]

Leftover chicken is one of my FAVORITE problems!! ever since I discovered this blog. I actually took up this challenge and blogged about it myself; it was such fun, I bought another roaster chicken and did it a second week. In fact, I'm becoming so obsessed with seeing how far I can stretch a chicken (and believe me, it's faaaaaaaar), I have two more chickens in the freezer just WAITING to be stretched....

 

Lots of fab things to do with leftover chicken--take a look at the blog for some ideas; my favorite recipes were the white chili and the picadillo. Oh, and the chicken curry in a hurry. YUM!

 

If nothing else, do something boring and traditional like chicken sandwiches--but throw in curry powder and golden raisins. Simple way to make a totally different-tasting dish!

[OnTheBrink]

Boil the left over bones and skin and make broth, then freeze it for future use.

[Nakia]

Is it me or are those things getting smaller? :D There isn't much left, but I am going to boil what's left and make some broth. Thanks everyone. I am going to save these ideas for when I buy fresh birds and roast them myself.

[CalicoKat]

I add the cut up leftover chicken from to my "tuna" pasta salad. :D Omit the tuna and add chicken.

[MaMa2005]

I make chicken carbonara with the leftover rotisserie chicken. A great way to stretch a little chicken into another meal.

[Truscifi]

I use the leftovers to make quesodillas, then use the bones to make stock (I save chicken bones in the freezer until we have enough for a big batch of stock).

[mom31257]

We eat meat, but not large amounts, so we usually have almost half left. One thing I like to do is dice it up and turn it into a taco/burrito filling. I add taco seasoning, corn, and rinsed, drained black beans.

[LibraryLover]

I'd simmer it all day tomorrow with carrots, celery, an oinion, a couple/few cloves of garlic & a teaspoon or two of apple cider vinegar and make broth. If you choose to do this I would let it cool some, and then freeze in 1/2 or whole cups for future marinades, soups, stews, stir fries, and upset winter tummies.

[Nakia]

I'd simmer it all day tomorrow with carrots, celery, an oinion, a couple/few cloves of garlic & a teaspoon or two of apple cider vinegar and make broth. If you choose to do this I would let it cool some, and then freeze in 1/2 or whole cups for future marinades, soups, stews, stir fries, and upset winter tummies.

 

So just put the bones and the whole thing in a pot with those things and leave it on low all day? I don't have any celery, but I do have all the other things you mentioned.

[Laura Corin]

Well, the obvious thing is sandwiches, or throwing chopped chicken into a salad. You can make a white sauce or a tomato sauce and then warm the cooked chicken through in the sauce. Or throw it into a celery soup.

 

Laura

[runamuk]

I often make (or buy) an extra chicken so we can have these the next day. They travel well, too, so they're perfect for a picnic or long drives.

 

Caesar Club Sandwiches

[LibraryLover]

So just put the bones and the whole thing in a pot with those things and leave it on low all day? I don't have any celery, but I do have all the other things you mentioned.

 

Yep. All in the pot. Simmer low for as long as you can stand to and then strain. It won't be clear broth, because it's been roasted, but it will be yummy. You can freeze some and keep some to use right away or the next day. If you noticed it has gelled overnight in the fridge--awesome-- bone broth to perfection. :)

[BMW]

Great idea for the broth. I usually do that. But, with the chicken that is left over, I LOVE to make chicken tostadas...

 

I take the meat, shred it and put in a bowl... cook up several potatoes (cubed and in the broth)... add thawed and strained spinach... toss with some may and chill... top tostada shells and add tapatio hot sauce drops... cheese if wanted... My kids go crazy over these and none of us can eat just one!

[Gooblink]

I'd simmer it all day tomorrow with carrots, celery, an oinion, a couple/few cloves of garlic & a teaspoon or two of apple cider vinegar and make broth. If you choose to do this I would let it cool some, and then freeze in 1/2 or whole cups for future marinades, soups, stews, stir fries, and upset winter tummies.

 

:iagree:

 

It's kind of a pattern with us that we have the chicken the first night, then I make King Ranch chicken the next night (sans the cream soups, I use broth and sour cream) and then, with the bones/scrapings, I do what LibraryLover does.

[Nakia]

When I started pulling the leftover chicken off, there was more than I thought. Then I realized that my youngest didn't eat any chicken last night, and I didn't eat much. Anyway, I am going to have enough for the girls to have some for sandwiches today, and I will make myself a little chicken salad. Got the bones going right now for broth. YAY! I feel so frugal. :D

 

Thanks everyone!!

[Melinda S in TX]

Pick the leftover meat off the bones, and then boil the bones for broth. Use the meat and broth to make gravy or soup.

 

Blessings,

Melinda

[flobee76]

I am another one that uses the bones for broth!!

[Denisemomof4]

We make homemade pizza and the extra chicken lands on my sons chicken pizza.

 

 

 

:iagree: that stuff is AWESOME on pizza! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it with pesto sauce instead of tomato sauce, add cheese and black olives and onions. Mmmmmm! It's also good with pesto, red pepper, onions and broccoli. MY FAVORITE!