Cooking Chicken for a Variety of Recipes

I'm an easy woman.  Well, that doesn't sound right!  I like to keep things EASY and simple!  One of my favorite things is to buy bulk chicken breasts on sale and cook them ahead to use for a variety of recipes,  This is right up there next to brain surgery. NOT!  If you are intelligent enough to make it to the grocery store and purchase your own food, you can do this.  If I continue to post this kind of stuff (does anybody need it? want it?), I may rename the blog something like "Never Cooked Before" or "Learn From the Village Idiot".  :)

Equipment Needed:
Crock Pot
If you don't have a crock pot, you can still do this....get the heaviest pan you own and put it on the stove! A crock pot is just that the easiest way.


Ingredients
Large Package SKINLESS, BONELESS Chicken Breasts (I purchase family size that has 6-9 breasts in it)
Water: Approximately 1-2 Cups

Strain the broth to get that
 foamy, yucky, bloody
stuff that turned white when cooked.  

First, I have the "Big Mama" Crock Pot that is like 6 quarts;  this allows me to double this recipe. My hint right here: if you can double a recipe and freeze enough for at least one meal AND you have room in your freezer, you are an idiot not to save yourself some time! Double when possible.

Rinse chicken breasts and throw in crock pot. This does not have to be pretty or artistic.  As long as they are mounded altogether in one spot but spread relatively evenly, you can't go wrong.  Add water. IF YOU WANT, you can add salt/pepper but I don't.  Totally up to you. Turn on low and cook 6ish hours. I go to the grocery in the evening, and then put them in the crock pot when I get home and they cook overnight.  If you're cooking on the stove top, choose a pot that will allow you to cook the chicken--with water added--- and still have room to stir if you want. Cook until meat is done: no longer pink inside and juices run clear if you cut into it.  This is good!

Chicken Broth! I know what
you THINK it looks like!

Remove Chicken from crockpot and allow to cool. While cooling, pour broth in pot through a strainer to remove that nasty, foamy white stuff!  DO NOT THROW AWAY THE BROTH!

Always label before freezing so you
are sure what you're pulling out.

When I take Chicken out of the crock pot, I put it on a big plate or cutting board so that I can use this same thing as I pull it apart and drop the meat into the plastic bags from here.  The more you can spread out the meat on the plate or cutting board, the quicker it will cool! The chicken be chopped or just pulled apart. After cooking it that long, it will pretty much fall apart.  If you choose to cut it, think of cutting 1-2" across the grain of the meat. According to the size of your family (or just you) place pulled chicken in quart size zipper bag. For my family, this is approximately 3 cups per bag. Pour a small quantity of chicken broth into bag before sealing and pressing extra air from the bag.  Label and put in freezer for future use.  Still have broth to use? Throw it in a zipper bag and freeze it to make Chicken Noodle Soup!

Ready for the freezer!

 Coming next: Recipe for Chicken Noodle Soup.  Easy--Peezey!