Cooking in large batches saves time. On Saturday I roasted two chickens and made several meals from the meat. I didn't measure exactly how much meat but I think it was about 8 cups.
Above I've reserved 3 cups in the glass dish (for Sunday's chicken a la king) and two portions of 1.5 cups in plastic bags. The bags will go in the quart freezer bag and will be frozen for a future meal to be made quickly.
Below, I added some vinegar, water, two bay leaves and some extra shredded carrots to the bones and made broth. After simmering for several hours I'll have broth to use for rice and cream of mushroom soup for chicken a la king. See how yellow the fat is on the top of the broth? It's because the chickens were raised in a pasture with real sunshine. This is very good for me and my family!
For dinner I made chicken salad in the food processor. Chicken salad comes together quickly once the chicken is cooked. Our family eats chicken salad for lunch and dinner.
My recipe: shred 2 carrots, a few stalks of celery then dump that in a bowl. Using the blade attachment, chop about 2 cups of chicken and add about 3-5 tablespoons of lacto-fermented mayonaise. Add about 1 T of spicy mustard and 2T of horseradish. If I have it on hand (which I didn't), I also add parsley, green onions and or shredded jicama. The veggies help to "stretch" the chicken salad, making it more economical, all while sneaking raw veggies in the meal.
We eat chicken salad as a wrap, either in tortillas or lettuce. Last night we had both sprouted flour and sprouted corn tortillas from Food for Life (Ezekiel 4:9 brand). It was the first time to eat chicken salad in corn tortillas but I really liked it. There was enough chicken salad for lunch today.
So, from two chickens, I have enough for at least five meals. And, I didn't spend the whole day in the kitchen.
Julie
Well this is interesting. We have been buying "free-range" chicken and eggs for awhile assuming they were pastured. I have made broth from the chicken necks for awhile. Just found out I needed to add vinegar to extract vitamins (of course, they need a low pH for chelation). The fat layer has not been yellow in the past. I wonder if it will be once I add the vinegar. We'll find out soon enough
ReplyDeleteCharissa,
ReplyDelete"Free-range" is not the same as pastured. A "free-range" chicken is supposed to have some access to the outdoors. This may just be a door that is opened to a dirt yard. A pastured chicken should be in a "chicken tractor" which is moved onto fresh grass daily, so the chicken has access to green grass and bugs. Our area has a number of producers of pastured chickens. Check our "food resources" list by clicking on the link at the top of the page.
Charissa:: When you buy "free range" in the grocery store, all that means is that the bird is not confined to a cage. It can walk around in probably very crowded conditions, and very unlikely outside.
ReplyDelete