One chicken, three meals: smart, quick, sustainable
Buy a large roasting chicken, preferably organic, and turn it into three different meals. That saves a lot of time, money and hassle. And because you eat the whole chicken instead of half of it ending up in the bin, it’s sustainable too.
The most versatile cut of meat, right? So one large roasting chicken can provide three meals. Maybe even four, if you also make stock from the bones and use it to make ramen or pho.
It can be even tastier
First, roasting that chicken: how do you do it? Preheat the oven to 175 degrees, rub the chicken with olive oil and season it with pepper and salt, place it in a roasting tin and roast away. Of course, it can be even tastier: put a pierced lemon into the cavity of the chicken, along with a few sprigs of rosemary. Rub the chicken skin with all kinds of delicious herbs, including paprika or garlic pepper. In any case, your chicken will be ready after about an hour. Pierce the thickest part of the leg with a knife: if colourless fat drips out, your chicken is fully cooked; otherwise, give it another fifteen minutes.
Faster than chicken breast
Let the chicken cool and pull it apart. The breast meat is suitable for a recipe you would normally use chicken breast for, such as this chicken teriyaki in a pineapple. Simply follow your recipe, but keep the cooking or baking time short, because the chicken meat is already cooked. Meat from the legs and wings is great for a stew, for example with lots of garlic and lemon. Use the last bits of meat, such as those from the back and breast, in this Mexican chicken nacho bake.
Potatoes with an explosion of flavour
And what about that delicious fat rendered from the chicken? It would be a shame to throw that away too. Pour it into a bowl while it’s still warm and store it in the refrigerator. Use it like butter and fry potatoes in it the next day. An explosion of flavour!
