Chicken Options

I love a good roast chicken as much as the next person and I think a rotisserie chicken is wonderful, but…

I won’t lie, I love a good roast chicken. In fact, I have trouble not nibbling away at one, which could prove problematic. 😀 I love the potential of a roast chicken. Think of the meals that I could make out one: Roast on Monday, pot pie on Wednesday, soup on Friday… And, speaking of soup, I could make my own broth.

The only down side (besides my nibbling away at it) is that in order to get the meat off the carcass and use it, I will have to sit down and actually pull the meat off the carcass. Now, this isn’t a huge endeavor and it could be quite relaxing (queue some music or an audio book in the background…).

But what if I don’t have the time to do all that? Or, let’s be honest for a minute, if I just don’t want to do all of that?

I’ve long been a fan of large flats of boneless, skinless chicken breasts and thighs. While they cost a bit more* than a whole bird, the savings is in the fact that I don’t have to spend the time removing the skin and bones. All I have to do is put them in either the slow cooker or the oven and let them cook. The end result is a pot of cooked chicken that I can use for soups, casseroles, pasta bakes, etc.

*Yes, I am actually paying for someone else to do that work for me.

It is worth taking the time to see what your local markets carry and their price points. In my area, for example, it is not a huge difference between buying a whole bird, buying a rotisserie chicken, or buying the parts. The difference comes when you check different stores.

You can also look at the freezer case and check the prices for the frozen chicken that is not precooked. Don’t forget to check to see if the meat has been enhanced. You may not want that.

Chef John recently posted a Chicken Pot Pie Pasta recipe that caught my attention. I think the idea is a good one and is flexible enough to allow you to decide how you prepare the chicken. I would serve it with biscuits on the side. The only potential downside is the pasta will continue to soak up the sauce…but then depending upon how many you are feeding, this won’t be an issue. Check it out:

Before I Forget

I know lots of folks are a bit (!) intimidated by roasting a bird, be it chicken or turkey. My suggestion to those folks is to start small, with a chicken, and do at least one or two a month to get the hang of it. Then, when the holidays come around and you are facing the chore of roasting the Holiday Turkey, all you will really need to do is adjust your process from roasting a chicken to a turkey. Believe it or not, it really is that simple.

You can do this!