If your dinners, like mine, require complex calculations of time, money and ingredients, may I suggest you roast a chicken? With a little planning, you can turn one chicken into three meals for four people: roast chicken, chicken and biscuits, and chicken soup.
The secret: Be thoughtful about each ingredient. Stuff an onion in the cavity to make the chicken juicy, then chop and saute the cooked onion for gravy. Start the gravy roux with roasted chicken fat, not butter, and make enough gravy to transform leftovers into chicken and biscuits.
And, simmer the carcass for nutrient-rich bone broth, like our grandmothers did. That bone broth? It’s flavored with the sprigs of rosemary that made our roast chicken smell so good.
Credit: Kellie Hynes
Credit: Kellie Hynes
DINNER NO. 2
Pick and shred the meat from the reserved chicken pieces. Stir into the reserved gravy and heat. Serve chicken and gravy over biscuits or rice.
DINNER NO. 3
Place all carcass bones on a baking sheet with 2 carrots, 1 celery stalk and ½ an onion. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast 15 minutes in a 425-degree oven. Place the bones, vegetables and reserved skin in a slow cooker with reserved rosemary. Add 6 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar. Cook on low for 8 hours. Strain. Season to taste and serve with noodles or leftover rice from Dinner No. 2.
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