What to do with extra chicken?

[kirkbyky]

I am currently making chicken stock in my crock pot & will have a bunch of tender juicy chicken when its done. I'd like to use it for dinner tonight-but none of my recipes are calling my name. Its cold and rainy here, and some serious comfort food is in order. I was going to make chicken pot pie, but am also thinking about Cheddar Chicken Chowder (don't have all the ingredients, tho.:( ) Any ideas?
TIA

Kyle

PS: I'm also trying to stay away from tomatos (recipes)--I just made a TON of spaghetti sauce & am in 'tomato overload':o

[Kelli Kerrigan]

How about making a Cacciatore sauce, adding the chicken and serving over rice or noodles?
Barbecued chicken sandwiches with oven fries

I know after making a stock the chicken isn't the most flavorful so adding it to something spicier might be good.

[Jewel]

Well, since I usually have a lot of leftover chicken from making stock or from my smoker, I have a few ideas. You said 'Cheddar Chicken Chowder', so that must be a CL recipe from a few years back, but MY Cheesy Chicken Chowder is pretty user-friendly and the only 'weird' item required is a pound of light Velveeta, but 2 cups of sharp cheddar could be substituted easily once shredded. Don't have the recipe on me, I'm at work, but you could do a search on this BB for the recipe!

My other favorite is Lorileis's Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas, which are wonderful! Not your traditional red-sauce enchildadas since they call for minced chipotle and a beef broth-based sauce, but they are totally unique and amazing served with sour cream and homemade spanish rice. Again, do a search for that recipe on the BB.

You could always make Chicken Tettrazini! I think it was Grace that provided the best recipe recently on this BB, and it might have been labeled as a Turkey Tettrazini recipe, but chicken could obviously be substituted! It's the one with cream cheese added, and is SO decadent! I added sharp cheddar to it since we're cheese freaks, and there were no leftovers!

You could also make BBQ Chicken Sandwiches, just mixing the chicken with a snazzy BBQ sauce and melting slices of smoky cheese on 'em!

If you've got Chipotles in the house, I'd go with the Enchiladas, but that's just my opinion! They're SO yummy!! :D

[Jasmine-Rose]

Hi Kyle,

Hands down my favorite dish for cooked chicken is the Roasted Chicken and Wild Rice soup from last January's issue. Just made a batch on Sunday! It calls for 3 cups shredded roasted chicken but I always cook chicken breasts on the stovetop and use those.

- E.

[kirkbyky]

Well -- I decided to make the Cheddar Chicken Chowder. It was SOOOO good!! I had DH pick up what was needed on the way home & it turned out to be a real keeper. DH says it is in his top 10 of all time and rated it a 9.5. I did change a few things; I cut back on the potato & added great northern beans instead, I also included the carrot that I had used in making the chicken stock, and roasted the red pepper before I added it. Of course, I added more cheese than the recipe asked for--but thats not a bad thing!:D

"life without cheese, is like a kiss without a squeeze!"

Thanks for the other ideas!
Jewel-I would have made the Chipotle Chicken Enchaladas, but I didn't have any Chipotle's (kinda important to the recipe) & DH is afraid to get anything he can't pronounce, for fear of bringing the wrong thing home. :rolleyes: I don't beat him, HONEST!
Jasmine-Rose-I will be sure to try the roast chicken/wild rice soup in the future--I'm assuming it will freeze well? let me know if it doesn't.

Again, thanks for the reply's/reviews!

Kyle

[AD]

If you don't want the chicken right away, cooked chicken pieces can be frozen up to a month.

[neenbeez]

I am a chicken salad fan. You can freeze leftover chicken meat, and then thaw it later and chop it for salad. I like to improvise based on what's in my refrigerator. You can do a "mayo" based salad with fat-free yogurt & lo fat mayo (half & half) + celery, apples and/or grapes, walnuts, a little lemon juice. Very easy.

You can also do asian flavor with celery, water chestnuts, some chopped cashews, red bell peppers, rice wine vinegar, dash of sesame oil, soy sauce, etc.

I can't give you exact measurements because it is improv. But you can lump a cup of the salad on some lettuce and have a very satisfying lunch.

[Jasmine-Rose]

Jasmine-Rose-I will be sure to try the roast chicken/wild rice soup in the future--I'm assuming it will freeze well? let me know if it doesn't

Hi Kyle,

It freezes very well indeed. Everytime I've made it I've frozen at least part of the batch (if I remember correctly it makes 10 cups).

A note - the soup is made with fat-free evaporated milk which gives it a slightly creamy base. Everytime I've made it I've thickened the soup with flour and water - the recipe as listed ends up in a kind of middle ground (not broth/not cream) and from the very first time it didn't quite do it for me so I went ahead and thickened it. It comes out like chicken and wild rice stew. I guess you could try it both ways - when finished with the recipe take a portion and thicken just that part if you want to.

Good luck and enjoy!

[BethR]

Kyle --
I really like your signature quote -- it was exactly what I needed to hear today. I had been reading the news and was feeling quite down. Thanks for the lift!
Beth

[kirkbyky]

It's what I needed to hear too....

Kyle

[Julia1Pin]

After reading this thread, I was inspired. I decided not to throw the leftovers away, but to use them in a recipe.

September's (I think) Balsamic Vinegar and Grape (I know it's the wrong recipe name) fit the bill perfectly. I used the leftover chicken from the soup, and browned according to the recipe, and for chicken broth, I used the chicken soup. Additionally, I had soba noodles in my chicken soup, so I added those in the last couple of minutes, and they absorbed the "sauce" wonderfully.

I ended up having all the ingrediants on hand partially due to this BB. For the first time ever, a couple of weeks ago I froze a ton of grapes. They really are great frozen, and this way, if a recipe calls for grapes, I still have a ton in my freezer.

This was truly a CL BB meal :D

[Curleytop]

Last, but not least, here is what I made with my leftover turkey breast (also can use chicken) tonite!

* Exported from MasterCook *

CHICKEN PIE

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 1 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Casseroles Low Fat
Pies Poultry


Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
Chicken or Turkey (leftover) -- Cooked/cubed
8 Ounces Carrots and Peas -- Frozen
1/2 Pound Mushrooms -- Sliced or cut up
Red and green bell peppers -- Chopped
SAUCE
2 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Flour
1 Cup Chicken Broth or Water and Crystals -- or more
Dry Sherry -- to taste
Salt and Pepper
Curry powder -- To taste
CRUST
1 Cup Unbleached Flour
1/3 Cup Margarine or butter
Salt
3 Tablespoons Icewater

In suitable casserole dish, place the cut up poultry, parcooked carrots and peas, peppers and mushrooms.
Prepare sauce and add to casserole. Can be made ahead to this point.
Prepare pie crust in cuisinart. Heat casserole in micro until good and hot. Over the hot mixture, place the crust Make holes and make a hole in center with knife. Dot with margarine and sprinkle lightly with paprika for color. Bake in preheated 475° (450° convection) for about 15 minutes, or until the crust is nicely browned.

[keeganm]

Hi Kyle, which recipe did you use for your cheddar chicken chowder? I did a search on the BB and came up with a few that were mentioned...it sounds so good for when the weather gets cold (80 degrees in D.C. today!).

Thanks!