What to do with all that chicken
Sometimes I plan ahead. I wouldn’t call it meal prep, per se, it has more to do with the fact that I prefer to shop a sale. In this instance, family-size packages of thin cut chicken breast were on a deep discount. Since I’m only ever cooking for one, I’d normally portion and freeze the breasts when I get home. This time I opted to just roast them all off. Here a few ideas for how to jazz up your chicken that can be incorporated into other recipes throughout the week or frozen for those times when you just don’t feel like cooking.
Garlic Yogurt Chicken
Ingredients
1/2 cup greek yogurt
1/3 cup mayo (trust me, mayo-haters, you’ll be sad if you don’t just mix this in)
2 tbsp white or white wine vinegar
2 tbsp garlic powder (correct, you’re not using fresh garlic in this one, thank me later)
1 tbsp cracked black pepper (less if you don’t want too much spice)
optional: feel free to add some fresh parsley or herb of your choice
*This will make plenty, only use what you need to coat the chicken and then refrigerate the rest for up to one week for use as a sauce on other dishes
Harissa Honey Chicken
Ingredients
3 tbsp harissa paste or 2 tbsp harissa seasoning
3 tbsp honey
juice of one lemon
Plain Ol’ Chicken
Ingredients
Salt and pepper
Squeeze of lemon
The Chicken
The following instructions are best for boneless, skinless breasts or thighs. I’ll hook you up with skin-on, bone-in recipes down the road.
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375°
Divide the breasts or thighs however you see fit. For example: I made 3 yogurt, 3 harissa, and 3 plain ol’s because I knew I’d have enough recipes to use for the jazzy ones. If you’re going to end up freezing more, then increase the number of plain ol’s so you have options when you use them later.
Coat the Garlic Yogurt chicken and set in the refrigerator. Coat the Harrissa Honey and season the Plain Ol’s and place in single layers on baking sheets. Roast for 20-30 minutes or until thickest part reaches 165° (Please pay attention, cooking time will vary based on chicken thickness!)
Reusing the Plain Ol’ pan, place the Garlic Yogurt chicken in the oven after the other two have finished. This batch may take an extra 10 minutes or so since they are going into the oven cold.
Once all your chicks have cooled off, portion and either refrigerate for a few days or freeze for up to one month.
