I am a fan of Costco, ever since one went in near my previously beloved Sam's club, I checked it out and fell in love. In my opinion, their prices are very comparable to Sam's but their offerings are much more along the lines of what I usually feed my family. There are a variety of organic options, the stores are seemingly larger, and the products more diverse. I shop at Costco monthly and drop a pretty hefty amount of my grocery budget there, buying in bulk.
One of the things I buy that I can streeeeetch my dollar really far on, the Rotisserie Chicken. I have to say I much prefer my homegrown and processed hens, but, I am totally out of those right now so here comes my budget conscious self to the rescue!
Out of pocket I spend $9.98 for the two chickens, and I head home with a smile that tonight's dinner for my family of 7 is going to be SUPER easy!
Meal #1- Whole Roasted Chicken & sides (usually potatoes and salad)
That went pretty well, and there is still a breast left over! (2 legs, 2 thighs, 2 wings and a breast were devoured by my clan). I take the leftover breast meat and chop it up finely, that is part of tomorrow's meal.
The second chicken, the one that didn't have a date with my dinner table, was brought home from Costco and immediately shredded from the bone and into a large ziplock freezer bag. I find that doing this right away is so much easier as once the chicken is refrigerated it is so much more difficult to shred the meat (oh and I also pull the skin off, not using it in my shredded meat). Lately I have also been tossing in a can of fire roasted tomatoes and 1 tsp curry and 1 tsp cumin in with the chicken. I then use this as a base in my Mexican chicken and rice soup as well as in my Taquitos.
One of the things I buy that I can streeeeetch my dollar really far on, the Rotisserie Chicken. I have to say I much prefer my homegrown and processed hens, but, I am totally out of those right now so here comes my budget conscious self to the rescue!
Out of pocket I spend $9.98 for the two chickens, and I head home with a smile that tonight's dinner for my family of 7 is going to be SUPER easy!
Meal #1- Whole Roasted Chicken & sides (usually potatoes and salad)
That went pretty well, and there is still a breast left over! (2 legs, 2 thighs, 2 wings and a breast were devoured by my clan). I take the leftover breast meat and chop it up finely, that is part of tomorrow's meal.
The second chicken, the one that didn't have a date with my dinner table, was brought home from Costco and immediately shredded from the bone and into a large ziplock freezer bag. I find that doing this right away is so much easier as once the chicken is refrigerated it is so much more difficult to shred the meat (oh and I also pull the skin off, not using it in my shredded meat). Lately I have also been tossing in a can of fire roasted tomatoes and 1 tsp curry and 1 tsp cumin in with the chicken. I then use this as a base in my Mexican chicken and rice soup as well as in my Taquitos.
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It is usually the night I come home from Costco after dinner and all that chicken shredding that I take the two chicken carcasses, and any remaining bits and start making my chicken stock for soup (post here with pictures) I just put a large pot on the stove, fill it with water, salt, pepper and onions and let it cook for 24-48 hours. I usually use up the stock so quickly that freezing it is the best option for our family, I also end up with about a gallon's worth of stock from two chicken carcasses, this translates into 4 large quart jars that I am able to line my freezer door with.
Meal #2- Chicken Salad Lunch
We sometimes have a light lunch here, crackers and chicken salad with sides of veggies and fruit are perfect. Enter in the chicken salad. If stretched it can make enough for the kids, if not a large sandwich for hubby and a side for me.
Meal #2- Chicken Salad Lunch
We sometimes have a light lunch here, crackers and chicken salad with sides of veggies and fruit are perfect. Enter in the chicken salad. If stretched it can make enough for the kids, if not a large sandwich for hubby and a side for me.
Meal #3- Mexican Chicken and Rice soup.
This one is quick and easy.
This one is quick and easy.
I have the broth from the gallon of the stuff I made (I only freeze about three of the quart jars and keep the fourth in my fridge for just such a meal). So I start by adding the broth to a large stock pot, I then add about 1 cup of rice and 1 1/2 cups of my shredded chicken and tomato mixture to the pot, season with some salt and pepper and bring to a boil before turning to a simmer, it is done when the rice is no longer crunchy.
Meal #4- Mexican Taquitos
I will have to post a step by step tutorial on this recipe soon as this has become a HUGE fan favorite at my house. We either roll the tortillas up like you see in the picture and eat them with a side of mexican rice (homemade of course) or we fry them flat and layer with refried beans, rice and the chicken mixture.
Meal #4- Mexican Taquitos
I will have to post a step by step tutorial on this recipe soon as this has become a HUGE fan favorite at my house. We either roll the tortillas up like you see in the picture and eat them with a side of mexican rice (homemade of course) or we fry them flat and layer with refried beans, rice and the chicken mixture.
Meal #5- More Soup
I either make a potato soup with my chicken broth or some other kind of vegetable soup with it, I still have enough broth to make soup 1-2 more times from the broth I garnered from those two rotisserie chickens.
There you have it between 5-7 different meals/lunches all from 2 Rotisserie chickens. If you are not a family of 7 like we are I am sure you could stretch these even further. If you prefer to avoid the seasonings in the Rotisserie chickens for health reasons you can always roast your own as whole chickens cost less per pound then store bought. This is one of my answers to "Fast food" instead of eating out, this is how we can make quick and easy meals.
Any other ways you use leftovers? Please comment and share below!
I either make a potato soup with my chicken broth or some other kind of vegetable soup with it, I still have enough broth to make soup 1-2 more times from the broth I garnered from those two rotisserie chickens.
There you have it between 5-7 different meals/lunches all from 2 Rotisserie chickens. If you are not a family of 7 like we are I am sure you could stretch these even further. If you prefer to avoid the seasonings in the Rotisserie chickens for health reasons you can always roast your own as whole chickens cost less per pound then store bought. This is one of my answers to "Fast food" instead of eating out, this is how we can make quick and easy meals.
Any other ways you use leftovers? Please comment and share below!
