One of our favorite ways to prep meals for a busy week is to make a whole chicken on Sunday night and use it throughout the week. We love how easy it is to quickly pressure cook a chicken in the instant pot– and that’s our go-to method for weekly prep. But you can also make a beautiful meal by roasting it in the oven with veggies right in the pan for an easy and healthy meal.
Regardless of how you cook your bird (or if you buy it pre-cooked), it’s very likely that you’ll have a lot of extra chicken to use, so we’ve rounded up our favorite ways to use the chicken, enjoy!
Bone Broth
Bone broth is super easy to make (though it does take a while) and it’s so good for you! Once you’ve cooked your chicken, pull the meat off of the bones and throw them back into the instant pot or a crockpot and let it cook for hours. Then strain the broth to use right away, store in the fridge or freeze for later. We like storing our bone broth in large mason jars like these. It’s amazing how much better everything tastes when you use homemade bone broth instead of grocery store chicken stock.
Chicken Noodle Soup
Use that delicious bone broth and the chicken you pulled off the bone to make an easy chicken noodle soup – or favorite chicken soup of your choice. Just add veggies and noodles or rice and pair it with some delicious crusty bread. We love to throw in a splash of soy sauce to really bring out the flavors.
Chicken Pot Pie
We always keep a few refrigerated pie crusts on hand for quiche or an easy (but impressive) dessert. They last for a long time in the fridge and really come in handy! One of our favorite comfort foods is Chicken Pot Pie – it’s actually really easy to make your own vs. buying the freezer pies. Pair it with a fresh spring mix salad and dinner is done!
Rotisserie Chicken Nachos
Nachos for dinner is one of our favorite easy meals. Usually, you think of nachos as an appetizer or bar snack, but they are a great fun meal to have at home too!
Quesadillas & Tacos
It’s so much easier to fill tortillas if you already have the chicken made. It gives you time to focus on toppings or maybe go to the next level and make your own tortillas!
Chinese Chicken Salad
YES. We love to order Chinese Chicken Salad while out at restaurants but it’s actually a great meal to make at home too. If you want to really keep it simple, grab a salad kit at the grocery store and use pre-made dressing, then all you need is the chicken!
Chicken Salad Sandwiches
This is a classic. Chicken salad is so much easier if you’ve already cooked the bird and you have leftover chicken in the fridge. Serve it on a butter croissant or bed of spring mix.
Chicken Stuffed Baked Potatoes
This is another meal that’s quick and easy! There are a million versions of this so pick your favorite (BBQ, Buffalo, Chicken Alfredo) or go free form and use what you’ve got in the fridge.
Shredded Chicken Sliders
So many options here! Add your favorite sauce and serve on Hawaiian rolls. Pair it with chips to keep things easy or take it up a notch and serve with home-baked fries.
Chicken Chili
We love to switch up our classic chili night by making it with chicken. It feels like a completely different meal and it’s healthy too.
Rice Bowls
It’s so great to have pre-made chicken ready to go for quick lunches. You can use your fresh-made chicken for rice bowls and switch up the other ingredients to make it last all week without getting tired of it. We love to pair with beans, salsa, and avocado for a tex-mex bowl or toss with teriyaki sauce and add veggies for an Asian inspired bowl. The possibilities are endless!
Chicken Mac & Cheese
We left our favorite for last. Up-level your Mac & Cheese by adding chicken and veggies. You can even make the classic for kids while adding in extras for the adults.
Does anyone else have a favorite way to use a whole chicken? Let us know your favorite tips, tricks, and recipes in the comments!