The Chicken I Didn't Cook

Today while the boy and I were at Fry's he gave me the puppy dog eyes in the deli section and asked if we could take home a rotisserie chicken for dinner. Relenting, I reached for the smaller size and met with a gentle rebuke: "Oh, we can get the smaller one if you want," he said agreeably, "but it's usually gone in three minutes flat." Thus the larger bird found its way to my cart and to my kitchen where Jeff said, "You must be able to read my mind. I was thinking about calling you to see if you could bring home a roasted chicken for dinner." And so my fate was sealed - rotisserie chicken (not my favorite meal) became the main course. I popped a bag of "lightly sauced" pasta and veggies in the microwave and some brown and serve rolls in the oven to round out the meal.

I think the best part of rotisserie chicken is what's leftover. Once everyone has eaten his fill, there's still plenty of chicken to be picked off the bones and shredded for other dishes - like chicken salad (one of my personal favorites). The best chicken salad has shredded chicken (or tuna if you like), a chopped (preferably green) apple, and an equal amount of halved or quartered black or red grapes. Put everything in a bowl and add an appropriate amount of mayonnaise. This could be just enough to keep everything moist or enough to drown the bird -whichever you prefer. Finally, put in plenty of freshly ground black pepper. This offsets the sweetness of the fruit and makes the salad sing. I could sit and eat this from the bowl - forget any need for bread.

Another good use for left over chicken (or turkey since Thanksgiving is on the way) is enchiladas. Make a medium consistency white sauce and season it to taste. Add some chopped green chilies and sauteed onions to the chicken. Soften some corn tortillas in a little oil over medium heat. Finally, put a spoonful of white sauce and chicken mixture inside the tortillas, roll them up tightly, and place them in a large casserole. Pour the remainder of the sauce over the finished rolls and top with a generous amount of grated cheese (cheddar or a casserole mix work well here). Put the dish in the oven at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes until the cheese is thoroughly melted and everything is bubbly. Allow it to rest a few minutes and top it with some chopped tomatoes and black olives. This is excellent served with avocado slices and a dollop of sour cream. (If you want to take the easy way out, just layer the tortillas and chicken mixture in the casserole dish instead of rolling each one. It tastes just as good and saves a lot of time.)

Of course, left over chicken is always good added into other dishes - like potato soup or vegetable stir fry - for some protein.Whatever route you go, don't pass up the opportunity to use all of that rotisserie chicken you might bring home rather than just some of it. You might find the leftovers are better than the original incarnation.