WINNER, WINNER CHICKEN DINNER AND WAYS TO STRETCH THAT CHEAP BIRD!!

 

Glorious looking Bird! But if you are stretching your food dollar there is a better way to serve this meal! When we eat a dinner like this most of our plate has chicken with a few sides, we are a protein heavy Society and it is unnecessary. So what would I do when my husband lost his job and we were living paycheck to paycheck and had 6 kids. I had to use things I had because I was trying not to go to the store.

So, I had flour baking powder and margarine. I had carrots and an onion, those were things I always had on hand. So I made chicken and biscuits instead. I had some frozen vegetables ( green beans) and added that. But I could have made green beans as a side dish. I boiled my chicken with onions carrots and celery, salt and pepper and a few boullion cubes. When it was done I pulled it out of the water to cool and scooped out the cooked vegetables. Then I started pulling the meat off the bones, every last bit, even the wings. I split the meat because I was going to use the other 1/2 of the meat for something else. In a pan melt a little butter and add the same amount of flour (roux) 1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick) to a little more than 1/4 cup flour cook it for just a few minutes together and then with a ladle slowly add you chicken stock you made with your chicken, let it thicken a bit before adding more. If you need to add more boullion cubes, salt and pepper, seasoning - I use marjoram for this but thyme, sage would work great too. Add the chicken and any other vegetables you would like or have on hand. Put in a large casserole dish or deep 13x9 pan. Find a simple biscuit recipe, roll out the dough thick and use a glass to cut out the biscuits. Lay them on top of the or chicken and vegetables, bake according to the biscuit recipe. I love this because the biscuit that cooked in he gravy becomes dumpling on the bottom and biscuit on top. 

Tomorrows do a Mexican chicken dish, usually it would be tacos or burritos but stretching your meal with a can of beans and corn. Make rice enough for your family. What do I have in my pantry? A can of tomatoes, corn, black or red beans and the chicken, sautéed onion and a pepper, then cook altogether with a chili or taco packet, again with a boullion cube to taste, add more tomatoes than I added if your family is large. Pour over rice, Buy a cheap back of tortilla chips and crumble on top part of the bag, just bake to heat through evenly. The rest of the chips share with all as my kids loved to use them as scoops for this meal. If you have grated cheese put it on top as soon as you take it out of the oven , it will melt.

Other things to stretch that bird

Chicken Tetrazzini

Greek lemon chicken soup ( made with the stock from cooking the bird and half the chicken left over from the Tetrazzini) 

 Chicken noodle soup

Chicken with a Asian peanut butter sauce with spinach on ramen noodles

Just google chicken casseroles. If you ever saw a picture of people during the depression eating a meal there was always a stack of bread on the table! Probably homemade but you know it was for fillers. 

This too shall pass! And you will find that your stretch meals you will continue to eat well past when you can afford better

Other things to consider Lentils! Lentil stew is delicious and I have also made meatless loaves with it. Topped with the same stuff I would top my regular meatloaf with!