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Jessica Secrest

Shredded Rotisserie Chicken for the Freezer

Turn three store-bought rotisserie chickens into about four and a half pounds of shredded chicken, portioned into bags and frozen for easy weeknight meals. The leftover carcasses get frozen too, ready for homemade bone broth.

⏱ 30 min16 servingsAmericanmeal preprotisserie chickenfreezer mealsshredded chickenmake ahead

Ingredients

  • 3rotisserie chickens · Costco, grocery store, wherever
  • 1 boxquart-sized freezer bags
  • —masking tape and a Sharpie · or just write on the bag

Steps

  1. 1

    If the chickens came out of the fridge, let them sit on the counter for 20 to 30 minutes. Cold chicken is slippery and much harder to pick.

  2. 2

    Pull all the meat off the bones into a big bowl. Decide for yourself whether to keep the skin, gristle, and odd bits. Snip off the strings that tied the birds and throw them away.

  3. 3

    Wash your hands, then wipe down the counter.

  4. 4

    Portion the shredded chicken into quart freezer bags, about 1 pound per bag. If you have a kitchen scale, zero it before weighing each bag. Otherwise, eyeball it.

  5. 5

    Press the air out of each bag, wipe the outside dry, and label it with the date.

  6. 6

    Freeze the bags flat for up to 6 months. Pull out a bag whenever you need a quick meal.

  7. 7

    Put the picked carcasses, skin, and any veggie scraps in a gallon freezer bag. Press out the air, label the bag, and freeze for up to 6 months. When you're ready to make stock, put the frozen bones straight into an Instant Pot or slow cooker with water.

Creator's notes

Three chickens made about 4.5 pounds of shredded chicken. Save the bones in the freezer so you can make bone broth in the Instant Pot or slow cooker later.

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