This easy and pre-prepared chicken recipe goes with EVERYTHING (tacos, salads, soup, sandwiches, pasta, stews, etc.), use any cut of chicken, cook in the oven, slow cooker, grill or Instant Pot.
If you like
this recipe, you might like our other chicken recipes and advance preparation recipes.
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How long does it take you to cook dinner? One of the biggest complaints I get from singles or professionals who work over the kitchen is how long it takes to prepare a meal.
I
mean, I don’t know what the problem is, really. After working all day and coming home exhausted, my favorite thing is cut, boil, sweat, bake, and wait an hour for the chicken to cook while answering the kids’ questions about when dinner will be ready.
And this from someone who enjoys cooking
.
Easy chicken to prepare ahead of time
One trick that saves my dinner prep is to cook most of our protein up front. This is especially useful for chicken. There are pros and cons to making chicken ahead. For one, you don’t get all the spicy, spicy flavors of your dish soaked in the fibers (or whatever) of the meat. But on the other hand, you have a life because you’re not in the kitchen all day.
Chicken prepared in advance takes my dinner preparation time from 1-2 hours to 15-20 minutes. And our food tastes great.
Chicken prepared in advance takes my dinner preparation time from 1-2 hours to 15-20 minutes. And our food tastes great.
My philosophy is, if I want to eat healthy and frugally, it has to be simple, tasty and effective over time. Since I love to cook, I periodically play some music, pour a glass of kombucha (or whatever), and spend the next hour in the food paradise. However, doing that on a daily basis is neither practical nor fun, so I need a balance.
Making chicken ahead is our balance.
How to Use
Make-Ahead Chicken We use this Make-Ahead chicken
for
EVERYTHING.
You can use our seasoning for any cut
: breasts thighs
- legs thighs
- drumsticks
Use any cooking method:
- Bake Grill
- Slow
- cooker Instant cooker
Use
in almost any kitchen or flavor profile
:
- American Mexican
- Greek
- Middle East
- Italian
- Indian
- Chinese
- All of them, friend. I have yet to find a flavor profile that this doesn’t fit.
Chicken prepared for freezing
This chicken also freezes well. When I make a batch, I refrigerate what we will eat in the next few days. Then throw the rest into a plastic container or freezer bag for later. Boom. Chicken dinners are ready for the month.
Save money with prepared chicken
One way to save money and eat healthy is to treat meat more like a dish or seasoning for most of our dinners. We try to get a lot of protein, but meat gets expensive, especially if you’re trying to buy clean, sustainable meat.
When we cook chicken in batches, crush it, and add it to our main course, we end up eating less meat. This helps us save money and eat well.
(This post is part of How to Build Your Healthy Frugal Pantry, a series we hope will explain itself, haha. This is how we save money on quality meat and find cheap and healthy grains)
This Make-Ahead chicken is:
Easy
- Delicious
- Paleo
- Keto
- Make-ahead
- Freezer-friendly
- Easy
- Whole30
- Real food
- Instant Pot
- Slow cooker
- Perfect for preparing meals
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and tag a photo #cheapskatecook and @cheapskatecook on Instagram.
