Cook the Whole Bird

It's Kitchen Tip Tuesday over at Tammy's Recipes so here is my tip for the week.

Buy whole chickens.

It is so much cheaper than buying pieces individually and it is very simple to prepare the whole bird.

Here are a couple of different ways to use your chicken.

I buy 3 or 4 whole chickens a month (usually at $0.89/lb. at Aldi) and throw them in my freezer. Whenever I'm ready to use one I defrost it, pull out the "guts", put it on a roasting pan, pat it down with seasoning salt, and bake it in a 400 degree oven for 1 hour. That's it.

That recipe will make a delicious roast chicken that you can eat that evening. Then with the leftovers I make a small portion of chicken salad for my lunches that week and a chicken pot pie for the freezer.

OR....

Take your defrosted/gutted chicken and put it in a pot of boiling water. Let it boil until the meat is just about to fall off of the bone, approx. 30 mins. Remove the chicken from the pot and put it on a platter to cool. When it is cool enough to touch without burning yourself, pick all of the meat off of the bones and set aside, removing skin and any fat tissue along the way. Use your chicken for chicken-n-dumplings or chicken pot pie or chicken salad or chicken quesadillas, etc. Don't forget to save the broth in your pot too. Freeze it in 2 cup portions for use in future recipes.

This is a great way to save money and make some great chicken dishes. I find I can get 3 meals for my family of 5 off of one chicken. Try it. It's finger lickin' good.