If I were to buy a whole (organic) chicken, would I be able to make enough meals to make it worth it?

[hopefully]

Looking in the supermarket today, a reasonable sized whole organic chicken is a little under a tenner ().

Since we are not millionaires, the only way to buy said chicken is to eke it out over many many meals. animal guilt means non-free-range chicken is not an option, and organic never seems to be much more than plain free range, hence the chicken choice.

So how can I do it? Anyone got a routine, like roast on a sunday, followed by cunning things like soup and stew on monday and tuesday?

Or will the chicken always remain out of reach to me?

*size

Oooh I can make a chicken go a looooong way

Family of 2 adults, 1 4yo and a cat that might get a sniff if he's lucky

Roast dinner, stick a sausage alongside the chicken so that you don't need so much per plate. Under no circumstances allow the rest of the family anywhere near the carcass or it will get picked at.

Leftovers used to make a stew or a couple of pies or pasta thing or risotto - usually something I can make extra portions of and then freeze some of it, so it will do another two meals for all of us

Then boil the bones for soup. I'm not picky about the veg I use to make the stock - whatever's starting to look a little past it's best in the bottom of the fridge gets chucked in along with some thyme and a bayleaf.

Was planning on posting a thread today asking for ideas on things to do with yesterday's chicken that are not risotto or pie.

So, ideas for pasta please.

can anyone find me a chicken/rice/curry type dish i can do for tomorrow with leftovers?

missblythe I did a pasta dish for dd and I the other week with our leftover chicken. Something along the lines of: fry some finely chopped onion, add splash of white wine if there's any open. Microwave peas, dice chicken and tomato, add to onion with some cream. Meanwhile cook pasta and stir through sauce to seve. I only used a tiny bit of chicken for this.

Multiple meals from one chicken?

I always roast two chickens and we have about one and a half for a roast dinner. The remaining half goes into chicken pie for a very light lunch.

Misdee:

Chicken Pie - make a white sauce from butter, stock cube and flour, then milk.

Add in your chopped cooked chicken, a handful of frozen peas and/or corn.

Put in an oven proof dish and top with rolled out ready made puff pastry (or mashed potatoes).

Put in oven for about half an hour.

Watch it disappear.

Sounds good, Pinkspot.

And there's always wine open

Chicken curry:

Fry an onion in butter and add some curry powder. Stir in the cooked chickne, some raisins, a chopped apple, and a can of Campbells condensed cream of chicken soup + water.

Serve with rice, cooked with peas.

Garnish with more raisins and chopped nuts.

Chicken curry:

Fry an onion in butter and add some curry powder. Stir in the cooked chickne, some raisins, a chopped apple, and a can of Campbells condensed cream of chicken soup + water.

Serve with rice, cooked with peas.

Garnish with more raisins and chopped nuts.

There are 3 of us- me, DH and DD(2.6 but eats nearly as much as me)
We had
*Roast Chicken on Sunday,
*Individual chicken and vegetable pies today (I made 4, DH had 2)
*Chicken curry planned for Tuesday
and I will have the rest in my sandwiches tomorrow for lunch.

It was an organic free range chicken, cost 9.99 at Sainsbury.

The thing is- chicken that has been roated before use, just tastes so divine! It just melts when you put it in curry or pasta sauce- so delicious... am hungry again now!

I'm eating roast chicken breast with risotto right now.

Yum yum yum

What sort of chickens are you people all buying?? King Kong size? My chickens have enough for soup and maybe a sandwich but that is it. We must be pigs but 4 of us eat a whole large chicken easily. Pies, curries!!

sorry, i mean more of a curried rice dish, as dd1 almost stripped the carcass today lol.

I know what you mean bamboo, I can get sunday lunch for me and DH and DS out of the average chook plus either sandwiches for tea or a chicken curry/chicken and ham pie/casserole and stock from the bones. Three or four proper meals? No way. What a bloater I must be.

"Campbells condensed cream of chicken soup"

ooh, there's something I haven't had for years and years. Yum yum yum. It's a chicken frenzy tonight!!

"Campbells condensed cream of chicken soup"

ooh, there's something I haven't had for years and years. Yum yum yum. It's a chicken frenzy tonight!!

Chicken is very expensive at the moment, so I pad it out with loads of veg- you don't actually need to eat that much protein, most westerners get plenty in their diet.
Its a close run thing as to whether I like roast chicken or roast potatoes best.

I usually get 3 meals out of a chicken, but I think the trick is to be quite disciplined about how much you eat of the original roast - its hard not to just keep eating it! We usually eat the wings and legs for the roast meal, saving as much as possible of the breast for the next meal (usually chicken pasta sauce, chicken pie or risotto). Then make a stock with all the bones for soup or risotto.

My brother really shocked me on holiday when he told me that SILs family eat the breast and throw the rest away I really thought that was an urban myth put about by hugh f-w to patronise the working class - I didn't think anyone actually DID that!!! I asked him what they did now, and he said ' well I try to eat both the legs but SIL and neice will only eat breast!!'

the theory is fine i am just amazed at ntjhe slightness of peoples appetites

Just come back to check this thread for ideas before going and buying my chicken and just wanted to thank you all for the brilliant ideas!

I think I'm doing well if we get 2 meals from a roast chicken ( family of 4)

It's usually roast on the Sunday and curry or risotto the next day. If it's risotto, I use the bones to make the stock for it.