Uses for a Chicken to Feed a Family of Four

Today, I would like to discuss chicken and its uses. Chicken is a very versatile meat; it can be broiled, baked, fried, stewed, grilled, and roasted. It is fairly inexpensive and can be cooked in a way that will extend its uses beyond one meal.

Let's begin with the whole chicken. Some people like dark meat and some don't, I personally like white meat only but have come up with a way to make the most of the whole chicken. Starting with the whole chicken I cook it in the crock pot for several hours until it's done or the legs begin to fall off. I strain the broth into a bowl and place the whole chicken on a plate. The broth goes back into the crock pot for noodles and the chicken is de-boned into two piles, the white meat or breasts primarily are used with the chicken and noodles for the first meal the dark meat is put aside for a later meal. You can serve the breast meat in large chunks or cut it up and add to the broth if you are serving a large group to insure the chicken is distributed evenly and everyone gets some. The dark meat you put in the fridge or freeze for use later.

For the dark meat of the chicken you put aside, earlier, you will need a top and bottom pie crust (recipe can be found in a Betty Crocker cookbook), a packet of instant brown gravy, and a bag of frozen mixed vegetables, and the dark meat chicken from before. Cook the vegetables and make the gravy, per package instructions, drain the vegetables and add the chicken and gravy. Place the chicken, vegetable, gravy mixture into the pie crust put top pie crust on and bake until golden brown and enjoy, instant chicken pot pie with little hassle or mess.

If pot pie isn't your speed you can always use the dark meat and broth and make chicken soup. By adding a stalk of celery and a pound of peeled and chopped carrots, cook until carrots and celery are tender and add one cup of minute rice for quick and easy soup with little cost. Throw an inexpensive can of biscuits along side and you have a meal. You can also use the dumping recipe in the Betty Crocker cookbook instead of biscuits. The breast meat from the chicken can be made into chicken salad or used in any number of other ways that you can think up. Use your imagination and save yourself some money, heaven knows no one has enough of that these days.