Weekend days are cooking days. Travis leaves Monday mornings for his trip, and we're working on sending him with enough food to avoid fast-food restaurants.
This week, Chicken was on sale. Hurray!
As it's a weeks worth of meals, I tend to do three or four at a time if I can. I'm making fried chicken, salsa chicken, boiled chicken (to make a decision about a meal later), and chicken broth. Fried chicken for tonight, and the rest to be divvied up for Travis's meals and our leftovers. Maybe some soup from the scraps. This is how we save the moolah!
First, unwrap it, rinse, and divvy the chicken up: Two in the pan for fried chicken, two in the pot for boiling, and two in the pyrex. Put oven to 375 degrees and set ya spices up
Chicken stock: fill the large pot with water; add spices and any vegetable scraps. Put on low and await chicken bones.
Fried chicken:
Put a tablespoon or two coconut oil (buy here)on the iron skillet--my favorite to cook--add spices to chicken. I like to add garlic, pepper, chili powder, paprika, and maybe some italian spices or adobe for fun.
Brown on medium until the skin is crispy, then transfer to baking dish and place in oven.
I find this is a successful fried chicken that is healthier as we've avoided Canola oil. It's also egg, dairy, and grain-free for a bonus.
Meanwhile, add some water and spices to the chicken in the saucepot; put on low and cover. Cut up some onions and and split them between this and the broth pot.
Ideally, I would put this in the crock pot, but it's currently being used for yogurt. Get a second one for my next birthday maybe?
Pause and take a moment to find your child
he's fine.
Go add spices to the chicken in the Pyrex, then add brown mustard and salsa (instructions to come next time I make more). Place in oven.
homemade salsa can't be beat
I know most people don't like to put more than one dish in the oven at a time, but when I'm home all day and aren't in a time-constraint for meals, this is what I do).
Chicken is fully cooked at the minimum of 165 degrees; use the meat thermometer after maybe 45 minutes. I'm not big on times with meals; you each know your own oven and this one runs hot.
When everything is fully cooked, store the chicken easily in the fridge when cooled and add side dishes when needed.
This one I just tore up into strips and put into a large container for Travis to eat while he drives; no need for sauces or fanciness for him.
I'll be making mashed cauliflower and boiled spinach with the fried chicken tonight, maybe chicken tortilla soup with the salsa chicken, and whatever leftover meat will go in a nice cream of chicken soup. The bones will be added to the stock pot, kept on low for at least a day or two, then drank every morning and night, as well as used as baby food.
See how much you can make?
This isn't so much a step-by-step recipe tutorial a it is an example of how to stretch your grocery budget in healthy living. It IS possible!
What do you do to make your family healthy meals on a small budget?
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