One Chicken: Three Meals!
I'd been letting a whole chicken defrost in the fridge for several days, and on Sunday I cut it in half and divided the chicken into two bags with potatoes, some chicken broth ice cubes, and onions. One bag went into the freezer for a later date (meal one) and one went in the fridge for Monday's dinner (meal two) and into the crock pot on Monday morning. I left out the spices so I could vary them the second time around. I must say that while I enjoyed the chicken and am glad to have a ready-to-go meal for later, I did NOT like having to cut up the chicken. Taking out the insides, throwing them away, then having the dog get into the trash and leave the parts scattered all over the place is not my idea of a good time. From now on, I plan on buying "country style" whole chickens that are cut up with all the gross stuff taken out.
On to meal three! After dinner last night I let the bones sit in some water until I had a yummy-smelling broth. Then I strained the broth, picked out the bones, and put the bowl of the crock pot (it comes out!) into the fridge. Today I stuck the soup back in the crock pot, and when I got home I made some whole-wheat noodles to finish off my soup. Mike had a migraine and didn't want to eat right away, so I scooped out what I wanted and threw some rice in the pot so it would be ready by the time he was (Mike doesn't eat pasta). Since it was just me, I decided to go simple and make a fruit salad. I had never tried whole-wheat pasta before, and in this setting I thought it was pretty good. I think I'll start using it in dishes like soup and lasagna, but stick to regular noodles for good ol' spaghetti. Mike is in the chair next to me snoring, so I think his dinner will be going in the fridge for tomorrow. I feel very thrifty getting three meals from one chicken, maybe four if I make another soup from the other chicken half. My mommy would be proud :)
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