Rotisserie chicken

[ronandannette]

How do you make your alfredo sauce?

I'm not who you asked but a very simple version is to melt a couple of tablespoons of butter in a skillet (I actually use garlic butter because I love it), add about 1/2 cup heavy cream and bring it to a very gentle boil - not too hard or you'll break it. Cook until it's reduced and thickened then add grated parmesan and black pepper to taste. It may or may not need salt; the parm is pretty salty on it's own. You can expand this to double or triple depending on how much you need.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I'm not who you asked but a very simple version is to melt a couple of tablespoons of butter in a skillet (I actually use garlic butter because I love it), add about 1/2 cup heavy cream and bring it to a very gentle boil - not too hard or you'll break it. Cook until it's reduced and thickened then add grated parmesan and black pepper to taste. It may or may not need salt; the parm is pretty salty on it's own. You can expand this to double or triple depending on how much you need.

Thanks, I'll try that.

 

[cayennews]

Sometimes I take the chicken off to cut up and put in a salad. Other times we eat the meat while it’s still hot for dinner. I will also take it off the bone and put it in the fridge for sandwiches.

 

[Frozen Canuck]

How do you make your alfredo sauce?

This is the general recipe that I follow. It is definitely one that you can play around with depending upon your preferences. Enjoy!

Basic Alfredo Sauce

Many different variations can be made by adding cooked chicken, mushrooms, asparagus, broccoli, seafood, artichokes, fresh herbs, or whatever else is leftover in the fridge. You could even stir/wilt fresh spinach into the sauce over low heat once it is finished. Our favourite version of this uses leftover grilled chicken and fresh broccoli.

12 oz. cooked pasta (I always just use the full pound of pasta and haven't had an issue with too little sauce, but if you like your pasta really saucy, stick with the 12 oz. amount)
1 cup reserved water that the pasta was cooked in (you want the hot, starchy water, not just tap water)
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 garlic clove, minced
Freshly ground black pepper
Add-ins (chopped grilled chicken, broccoli, sliced and cooked mushrooms, etc.)

Start by cooking the pasta in boiling salted water, according to package directions, before you begin the sauce. Feel free to add chopped veggies such as broccoli, asparagus, etc. to the pasta water while the pasta cooks. I usually use broccoli and find that putting it into the pot with the pasta 5 to 6 minutes before the pasta is done cooks it perfectly. Reserve one cup of the hot water the pasta was cooked in before draining. Cover to keep warm

Over medium-high heat, add the cream to a sauté pan or skillet. When it bubbles, add the salt. Small bubbles will erupt into larger bubbles when the salt hits it. Stir. When the sauce thickens enough to leave a clean line in the bottom of the pan when you pull a silicone spatula across it, add the one cup of reserved pasta water. Cook over medium-high heat about 3 minutes until it bubbles again and the sauce thickens. (Again, I just follow the tip about being able to draw a quick line through the pan of sauce. Turn off heat. Add the cheese, garlic,and a few grinds of pepper. Taste and add more salt if needed. Add the cooked pasta and any additional ingredients and stir to coat.

 

[klacey1]

I buy them on occasion from Stop & Shop, where they're $5. My fiance and I will typically eat some of the breast meat hot and fresh as soon as we get home from the store, but then I'll shred the rest of it up for some snack-y type recipe—buffalo chicken dip, taquitos. Sometimes in a quick chicken soup. I also like it on top of salads. I always make stock from the bones.

Last week I picked up a whole organic chicken that was about $9 for a chicken roughly twice the size of the rotisserie chicken and it came out amazing. It wasn't super healthy as I stuffed butter under/over the skin with herbs (and stuffed the cavity with more herbs, a lemon, salt and pepper), but it still "felt" healthier that the rotisserie bird. I was happy to be able to purchase organic, too. I probably won't buy a rotisserie chicken again unless I'm in a rush or have a bunch of apps to make for a party.

 

[Disneylover99]

Imagine taking chicken gravy and a mildly spicy bbq sauce, removing every hint of anything good from both of them, watering them down and then mixing them together. It's positively gag-worthy, especially the weird, thin consistency, which may be what contributes to it being mistaken for a beverage by it's fan base.

Well, if you ever come to my house for rotisserie chicken, bring your own beverage, cause you know what I’ll be serving.

 

[Frozen Canuck]

For those who would like to give Swiss Chalet Sauce a try with their rotisserie chicken, you can try this copycat recipe:

Swiss Chalet Sauce for dipping

 

[1GoldenSun]

I don't really like those chickens very much. They have a flavor that you don't get when you roast one yourself, and to me it's a somewhat artificial/processed/chemical flavor that I don't care for. Which is too bad, because it really is about the same cost to buy a roasting chicken and cook it yourself. I do end up with a bigger bird with more meat that way, though; those rotisserie chickens are tiny. It's like they cook down a lot or something.

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

Same here. I am always so shocked when I hear about families eating off ONE roast chicken for several days. Like...what? How big is this chicken? Even our thanksgiving turkey leftovers only last, at MOST 3 days, and that is with like 8 people eating off it on day one.

I buy a Costco chicken and it's one meal for me (2 legs and 2 wings) and then like 4 servings of chicken salad after that. When I don't make chicken salad, and we just eat it as "roast chicken", it's one day of a full meal for 4 people, and then some scraps left over that maybe one person can use for a salad or sandwich the next day.

Us too, if I showed up with 1 of those chickens, teenage boy would hand his brother a drumstick then ask what the rest of us were planning on eating.

My SIL loves those things (too salty for me and I really like salt). She gets two of them for 7 people when they're visiting. No leftovers except the bones.

 

[ronandannette]

Well, if you ever come to my house for rotisserie chicken, bring your own beverage, cause you know what I’ll be serving.

Thanks for the invitation - and the warning!

 

[shoney]

I buy them from stop n shop and Costco.

What gets me is the ones at stop n shop are barely 2 pounds and sold by the piece. (Around $5 or $6)
If I want to buy a while raw chicken they are those overly large ones and sold
By the pound of course. I don’t like the. Way too tough. Wish they sold those 2 pounders.

Even for chicken cutlets I started buying only bell and Evans. They cost more around $8lb but they taste so much better.

What’s with all the mini turkey sized
Chickens?

 

[Christine]

I buy them from stop n shop and Costco.

What gets me is the ones at stop n shop are barely 2 pounds and sold by the piece. (Around $5 or $6)
If I want to buy a while raw chicken they are those overly large ones and sold
By the pound of course. I don’t like the. Way too tough. Wish they sold those 2 pounders.

Even for chicken cutlets I started buying only bell and Evans. They cost more around $8lb but they taste so much better.

What’s with all the mini turkey sized
Chickens?

Now that the kids are gone and I am not feeding an army, I will only buy the Bell and Evan's chicken. OMG, so good. Still tender and delicious if you happen to overcook.

I think the regular chicken is huge (cut pieces) and tough. I can barely eat it anymore. I think that's why stores overbrine them now prior to roasting--makes them tender. I don't even want to know why they are so large these days.

 

[shoney]

Now that the kids are gone and I am not feeding an army, I will only buy the Bell and Evan's chicken. OMG, so good. Still tender and delicious if you happen to overcook.

I think the regular chicken is huge (cut pieces) and tough. I can barely eat it anymore. I think that's why stores overbrine them now prior to roasting--makes them tender. I don't even want to know why they are so large these days.

Totally agree. I even bought the bell and Evans wing pieces for super bowl. They made delicious buffalo wings. I refuse to buy those large parts too. We just don’t eat those as often as chicken cutlets just because they take longer to cook on a work night!

 

[Christine]

Totally agree. I even bought the bell and Evans wing pieces for super bowl. They made delicious buffalo wings. I refuse to buy those large parts too. We just don’t eat those as often as chicken cutlets just because they take longer to cook on a work night!

Oh, I meant that regular boneless chicken breasts are massive. I was cutting them down to make them smaller with every pack I bought. And tough...so tough. They just seemed to make every recipe blah. I love the Bell and Evans. Wish they weren't $7.99 a pound!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

Do you buy them at the grocery store?

What do you do with them?

We might serve them just as “chicken”, or shredded in casseroles, soups, etc. Regardless, I find it easiest to debone them right away. Home from the store, then let it cool on the counter just enough that it can be handled by hand. Meat peels right off and I typically don’t even need to use any utensils. Then, the carcass & skin go in the pot to make some stock.

You?

I get them at the grocery store and use them to make chicken tortilla soup. I love the flavor of the chicken, and other than the salsa we throw in everything else is fresh. I make a big pot of it and it lasts almost all week. (So good) When I was involved with the church youth group I would make soup and about 10 or so core members and the youth leader and deacon would come to the house (avg 10 people). I'd have to kick them out at 11pm so I could go to bed. lol

They still ping me about "soup night."

I got a rotisserie chicken at Sams one time and there was so much fat in it (sad). I never got another one from there. I prefer the more lean ones.

 

[QueenIsabella]

I just run mine through a strainer.

You'd think this would work for me. It does not. I'm willing to admit that the problem is me, I'm not sure what I do wrong. On the good side, I rarely get whole chickens these days, even though I love rotisserie chicken. Instead, I bake up thighs--those, I can find all the bones from, no problem!

 

[low-key]

I like to peel it from bone with hands and stuff it in my mouth, makes me feel like a real strong cave man

 

[Aimeedyan]

I buy one anytime I'm at Costco - I used to get so annoyed at how time consuming it was to shred until I realized if you shred it when it's warm/hot, it falls apart and takes less than 5 minutes. I was always fighting with it after throwing it in the fridge for a day!

We just had one this week actually; made an enchilada skillet dish. Once I use it in a recipe (typically calls for all of it), and DH pulls off the legs, I don't have enough leftover for multiple meals.

 

[kaddjr]

Another Costco shopper here! I usually buy two or three when I go there. Never had a problem with them being mealy or under cooked. They don’t taste saltyto me either and I generally don’t use a lot of salt. Maybe I’m weird? I bring them home and DH takes the meat off the bones for me. Most of the meat goes into the freezer for quick meals. DS loves tacos made with the breast meat. I also make stock with the bones. For $4.99, I think it’s one of the best buys in Costco.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Okay, here is how I do a quick Alfredo.
I am not seeing olive oil in the one recipe above.

Melt real dairy butter in a warm pan... for us, I would use about a quarter stick... Add about twice the amount of light tasting olive oil as butter.
In a bowl stir and dissolve maybe a full heaping tablespoon of flour per cup of cold milk. (making as much or as little as you want)
The flour should be dissolved and beaten into COLD milk, and then added to just-warm butter and oil. Not 'hot'. No lumps...
Stir this into the warm butter and oil, and bring to a light simmer.
Parmesan does have a lot of salt, but sometimes I add a little... some pepper...
Garlic, to taste... Otherwise this is a pretty bland kind of white-sauce.
And then, at the last, stir in the Parmesan Cheese.
Do not continue to simmer or boil once the cheese is all stirred in and integrated.

And, taste, taste, taste..... you can add the salt, garlic, etc.. until it taste to the way you like it!

Over time, this Alfredo will 'separate' some, and when you dish it out the pasta is coated in the oils, with a nice conglomeration of the thickened white/cheese as well.
This is not like a creamy mac-n-cheese type thing. (which is not, to me, what a real alfredo is.
This is a real Italian sauce with the olive oil and garlic)

I recently made a huge crock pot of this, with a nice organic brand Penne that I know is good, for a function at my DH's work, and it was a hit!