Millions of us rely on grocery store rotisserie chickens for a quick dinner. It’s easy to see why. It’s easy to run in a store and grab a warm rotisserie chicken. At most grocery stores and warehouse stores, they’re generally affordable. And you can’t beat their crispy golden brown (and sometimes seasoned) skin, moist and tender meat.
While the rotisserie chicken is tasty on its own, you can take that bird a bit further using it as an ingredient. You can shred or cube it for tacos and salads, add it to soups or casseroles or use it as a pizza topping.
When it’s all over and you’ve picked most of the meat from the bones, don’t forget to make a broth from those bones.
This recipe for Sweet and Sour Rotisserie Chicken only looks like it has a lot of ingredients. What you are doing is make a warm, sweet and tangy glaze with Asian-flare to brush over the chicken pieces. It’s just that simple. This chicken is served with a cucumber and frisée salad with a citrus vinaigrette to balance the flavors.
Sweet and Sour Roast Chicken
Serves: 4
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Total time: 35 minutes
1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
2 Tbsp. Thai fish sauce
2 Tbsp. less-sodium soy sauce or tamari
2 Tbsp. water
2 tsp. or to taste chili garlic sauce
1/4 cup fresh lime juice, divided
1 warm fully cooked rotisserie chicken, cut into 10 serving pieces
1 1/2 cups sliced seedless cucumbers
1/2 cup sliced red onion strips
1 tsp. rice vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 small head frisée, torn into bite-size pieces
1 fresh red or green chile, sliced, optional
In a medium saucepan, whisk together the brown sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, water and chili garlic sauce until combined. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to medium and cook until sauce thickens, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 3 tablespoons of the lime juice.
Brush half of the sweet-and-sour sauce over the flesh and skin sides of chicken pieces.
In a medium bowl, toss cucumbers and red onion with the remaining 1 tablespoon of lime juice, vinegar, salt and pepper. On a platter, arrange the frisée, cucumbers and onions and place chicken pieces on top. Sprinkle sliced chile, if desired. Spoon remaining sauce over chicken or serve on the side.
Adapted from www.delish.com.
Tested by Susan Selasky for the Free Press Test Kitchen.
762 calories (38 percent from fat), 31 g fat (9 g saturated fat), 35 g carbohydrates, 82 g protein, 1,211 mg sodium, 246 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber.
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