If you make nothing else for the freezer, you’ve got to make this chicken. (Okay, and some taco meat.) It’s so easy, and having it in your freezer sets you up for some amazing and super quick dinners.
I use it to make BBQ Chicken Tortilla Pizzas, Grilled Barbecue Burritos, and one of our favorite meals; Pulled Chicken, Roasted Potatoes and Salad.
I have a confession to make. This is one of those “recipes” that I sort of have to guess when it comes to ingredient amounts. I just cook some chicken and add some sauce. I know that doesn’t fly with some people, so I’ve tried to nail down some amounts. Also, the cooked chicken you see here is from my big chicken processing day with my Zaycon boneless chicken. I’ve since decided that I like this recipe better when I simmer a whole chicken and use both the dark and white meat. (Which is a miracle in itself because I typically don’t like dark meat.) The directions for that would be the same though, I’m just not sure if 2 chickens and one sauce recipe is the exact ratio I use. But the sauce recipe makes a lot of sauce so I think we’re good. (I promise, next time I make it, I’ll try to remember to notice the amounts I use!).
So, on to step one:
Cook some chicken! (How’s that for precise? Better directions can be found in the printable recipe below. You’re welcome.)
Make your barbecue sauce. (Click that link for the recipe.)
This doesn’t look like a lot of sauce but this is a really big pot! I guess I thought I was cooking for an army or something.
Once the chicken is cooked, pull it from the bone. I stick it in the kitchen Aid and just give it a quick mix and this is what I end up with. Perfectly shredded chicken! (Be careful not to let it go too long. Just a few seconds will do.)
Mix the sauce with the chicken. (No need to put it in a pretty bowl unless you’re serving it as-is for dinner. (Goes great with roasted potatoes).
But don’t freeze it like that! First of all, stick a label on those puppies! I know you think you’ll know what it is. Trust me. You won’t.
And second, flatten it out so it takes up less room in your freezer. If you plan on Eating Better and Spending Less, you’ll be putting a lot of food in there!
You’ll have to trust that I did both of those things. 😉
- 8-10 chicken breasts (bone in) or a mixture of breasts and thighs if you prefer some dark meat. You can also just use 2 whole chickens if you have a large enough pot.
- 2 carrots
- 2 slices celery
- 1 onion
- handful mushrooms (opt)
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon (opt.)
- 1 batch of My Grammy's Barbecue Sauce
- Wash and chop veggies.
- Place in a large soup pot along with seasonings.
- Add chicken on top of veggies.
- Cover chicken with water.
- Boil until done.
- Remove chicken and allow it to cool. (Keep the liquid and make some chicken broth!)
- While cooling, make your barbecue sauce.
- Pull cooled chicken from the bone (discarding skin) and shred into small pieces.
- If you have a Kitchen Aid, a quick mix gets the job done nicely.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the shredded chicken and barbecue sauce.
- Freeze in meal sized portions in freezer bags.
- Flatten the bag so it takes less space in the freezer.
- Have one for dinner tonight and freeze the rest.
Leave a Reply