Leftover roasted chicken (or rotisserie chicken) is one of the most versatile and delicious ingredients. Not a bit of it should go to waste! Get creative with your leftovers to create an even more incredible dish the next day. The recipes below each use leftover roasted chicken in their own unique way to make something brand new.
Recipes for Your Leftover Roasted Chicken
Stocks and Soups
Whether you freeze whole chickens after you’ve dined on them once or twice, or have leftover meat, soup and stock recipes are great ways to use these nutritious and delicious leftovers.
Mushroom Stock
True confessions: I always seem to have a few bags secreted into the back of my freezer that are filled rotisserie chicken carcasses. It only takes two or three to make your own stock. Thrown them into this recipe, and you will be AMAZED at the goodness. You can freeze the stock and use it to make something very simple like store-bought tortellini or brown rice floating in broth. Add a handful of chopped green onions and fresh parsley and you have another gourmet treat.
Farm Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Soup is one of several perfect ways to use leftover roasted chicken. You can boil the bones for stock, and throw chunks of leftover meat into the soup. This delicious recipe from a foodie farm family calls for both! It’s a warming meal that you could serve with a crisp white wine and some crusty bread.
Gluten-Free Chicken Noodle Soup
This delicious recipe uses rice noodles. Whether you’re on a gluten-free diet or not, the switch to rice noodles makes for a new flavor experience. Empasize that culinary adventure by adding the umami of a dash of soy sauce. Go still further, perhaps, by throwing tablespoons of fresh ginger root and turmeric root in the warming of the broth. My family loves the layering of flavors. Yours will too! The Asian-inflected flavors pair well with a classic beer.
Lemon and Fregula Chicken Soup
TABLE’s frequent contributor Anna Franklin drew upon her Italian roots to embrace fregula. This is a unique, pearl-shaped Sardinian pasta which is toasted prior to packaging it up for sale. The texture and caramelization are what make it so delicious! We like to serve this alongside a fresh salad. That way, we have wonderful full meal for family and friends.
Casserole, Wraps, and Crostinis
Casserole, wrap, and crostini recipes cry out for leftover roasted chicken! Small tender bits of chicken get tossed around and combined with other great ingredients…and the resulting new dish is greater than any single ingredient that went into it.
Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Casseroles are time-tested ways of using leftovers. Multiple James Beard Award winner Cheryl Alters Jamison makes an absolutely delicious New Mexican casserole here, and it could become a new star in your kitchen. The charms of New Mexican green chile are under-appreciated in most of the United States. We think it’s time to embrace their gentle heat.
Chicken Bulgogi Lettuce Wraps
Fresher and lighter than a casserole, this Chicken Bulgogi Lettuce Wrap recipe is a great way to use leftover chicken. Once you master it, you can add your favorite chopped vegetables and fresh herbs to customize it to your taste. Try shredded carrots, fresh cilantro, a sprinkle of toasted unsweetened coconut and a dash of tabasco or other spicy condiment…YUM!
Chicken Quesadillas with Guacamole and Pico de Gallo
This recipe is super kid-friendly. What young palate doesn’t love a quesadilla? They can get into the kitchen and make it with you, which is half the fun. We think bonding in the kitchen is one of the great joys of family life!
Chicken Bruschetta
Little chunks of chicken seasoned in a classic Italian melange of tomatoes, garlic, and herbs. A sliver of delicious toasted baguette. A plate of these with a bottle of prosecco and three friends is a happy hour just waiting to happen.
Pasta
Many pasta recipes call out for shredded chicken. Why not use your leftover chicken? A quick warm up in a nicely spiced sauce is all they need to be delicious once again. Your whole family will love what you’ve made.
Spicy Chicken Sauce
Uruguayan-Italian grandmother Victoria Sande shared one of her favorite recipes with TABLE readers. As with much traditional Italian cooking, all you have to do is start with good ingredients and follow instructions. The secret is in keeping the traditions intact. When you succeed, your tastebuds recognize the deliciousness.
Chicken Harissa Gluten-Free Pasta
A Moroccan-inflected recipe makes it easy to use your leftover chicken. If you don’t know harissa, rush right out to the grocery store’s International aisle and track down a jar of harissa spice. It has a gentle heat, and cries out for tomatoes and peppers and tender meats. Combining all of the above creates a wonderful layering of flavors.
Story by Keith Recker
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