The Roaster Chicken that Could - Day 1

... could feed you dinner for three days, that is. Why buy chicken breasts when you could get a whole roaster chicken for a comparable price, and make three-times as many meals with it? You can buy it already roasted at the grocery store to cut down on your prep time, but roasting your own chicken really isn't very hard. (Just be sure to get one that has been fully gutted so you're just seasoning it and tossing it in the oven.)

See eHow.com: How to Cook a Whole Chicken

The key to maximizing your chicken's potential is using the carcass to make a stock. It will be more delicious than any store-bought chicken broth you'll ever have. From there, you have endless possibilities at your fingertips. Here's my standard routine, in three parts.

Required kitchen gadgets

• Stock pot

Basic Ingredients

• 1 whole roaster chicken
• 3 large onions
• 1 stalk of celery
• 1 lb. bag of carrots
• 1 head of garlic

Improvise with your own pantry items from here!


Operation Roaster Chicken Day 1

 On a day when you can be home all day:

• Buy your chicken (roast if you bought a raw chicken), and separate the meat from the carcass, discarding the skin.
• Make your chicken stock. See Alton Brown's recipe for a good guideline, but get creative and add whatever herbs and seasonings you have on hand.

• Since it takes all day to make the stock, I make my first meal a simple chicken salad to have with salad greens, a sandwich, or on its own.

Chicken Salad
Use a third of the meat from your roaster chicken, and mix it with your desired dressing and fillings. Here's two suggestions.


Creamy Waldorf Chicken Salad
Dressing: 1/4 cup mayonaise, 1 1/2 T. vinegar (white wine or apple cider), salt, pepper and chopped fresh herbs to taste.
Fillings: Shredded chicken, chopped onion and celery, raisins or sliced grapes, and chopped nuts

Chicken Pasta Salad
Dressing: 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 1/2 T. lemon juice, salt, pepper and chopped fresh herbs to taste.
Fillings: Shredded chicken, 1 1/2 cups cooked macaroni and chopped veggies, such as garlic, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes, etc.



Save your stock and extra chicken for Days 2 and 3!

Day 2 - Chicken and Dumplings

Day 3 - Chicken Soup