It’s nice to know that we’re not alone in precooking a lot of meals (or as you said so well, the meal components) ahead of time for later use. Liked the idea of using the grill for this, since it was already in use for something else already.
Jessica Fisher
Yep. This post is from a year ago before not rinsing was widely addressed. Thanks for sharing the link.
Rose Bakes...
Freezing grilled chicken is something I’ve never, ever heard of… and I do lots of freezer cooking! I understand if it’s in a casserole or for tacos, it would be easy to re-heat/incorporate, but do you ever use it whole? How do you re-warm it, say, to serve on the bone or as a stand-alone main dish?
Jessica
It’s been wonderful to add to pasta and rice salads or to tuck into my husband’s lunches. I typically do this only for boneless breast meat, and usually serve it chopped into something else, but you could easily serve a whole breast. Thaw it completely in the refrigerator and then reheat the way you typically do for leftovers (microwave or foil pack in the oven).
Liz
Definitely don’t overcook it….I learned that the hard way last week, and now I’m stuck eating dried out chicken. The good thing is I only made one extra pound. =P
Christine A
How long can you keep cooked chicken in the freezer (properly cooked, prepped and stored, of course)? 6 months?
Jessica
@Christine A, it depends on if it’s in the deep freeze or the refrigerator freezer. I like to use things up within 2 to 3 months, preferably.
Steph
Hmmm. I’ve done chicken in the crock pot then shredded it and froze it but I haven’t done grilled chicken. That’s a good idea.
KellyinPA
Great idea! A local store has boneless, skinless chicken breast on sale for $1.69 this week, but you must buy 10 lbs. Now I know what to do with that 10 lbs. of chicken. I love your step by step instructions but if you could add into what portions you are chopping, slicing and leaving whole pieces and what meals you intend to use that chicken for it would be helpful for me. Thanks, Jessica! I appreciate all you do!
Jessica
Obviously, what I do for our family of eight is going to be too much for most people, so I didn’t prescribe a certain portion size in the tutorial. For my husband’s lunches, I made 4 ounce portions of sliced chicken. Then I chopped the rest and packaged it into 4 cup-portions. We’ll use this over one or two meals, depending on what we make. 2 cups of chopped chicken is typical for a casserole, salad or pot pie while we might need more for something like tacos or sandwiches.
I roast chicken in the oven and freeze it for chicken tacos, enchiladas, soups, etc. It is so much yummier than boiling it like a lot of people I know do, and it is so convenient to have it available all of the time.
Carla
Looks good, but alas, its been 112F out today and will be 100Fish all week (will likely be that way all August). Will have to sacrifice the a/c bill one day soon to stock up on baked goods and the like in one insane day of baking. Today was NOT the day! Looking forward to see what other ideas you have to share.
Jessica
@Carla, The beauty of grilling chicken was that the heat stayed outside. 😉
Carla
@Jessica, Yeah, if one can tolerate cooking in 112F temps. Let’s just say my dh would prefer to live in New England weather-wise. 😉
DJS
What’s the best way to defrost the frozen chicken?
Jessica Fisher
I usually put the package on a tray in the refrigerator. That is the safest way, though you’ll need to be patient.
Tom Mann
Latest information from the USDA says that rinsing chicken may actually cause cross-contamination problems and isn’t necessary.
Here’s something from their website in pdf format,
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/wcm/connect/2ceaa425-0488-4e86-a397-e2d9c470fc4a/Washing_Food.pdf?MOD=AJPERES
It’s nice to know that we’re not alone in precooking a lot of meals (or as you said so well, the meal components) ahead of time for later use. Liked the idea of using the grill for this, since it was already in use for something else already.
Jessica Fisher
Yep. This post is from a year ago before not rinsing was widely addressed. Thanks for sharing the link.
Rose Bakes...
Freezing grilled chicken is something I’ve never, ever heard of… and I do lots of freezer cooking! I understand if it’s in a casserole or for tacos, it would be easy to re-heat/incorporate, but do you ever use it whole? How do you re-warm it, say, to serve on the bone or as a stand-alone main dish?
Jessica
It’s been wonderful to add to pasta and rice salads or to tuck into my husband’s lunches. I typically do this only for boneless breast meat, and usually serve it chopped into something else, but you could easily serve a whole breast. Thaw it completely in the refrigerator and then reheat the way you typically do for leftovers (microwave or foil pack in the oven).
Liz
Definitely don’t overcook it….I learned that the hard way last week, and now I’m stuck eating dried out chicken. The good thing is I only made one extra pound. =P
Christine A
How long can you keep cooked chicken in the freezer (properly cooked, prepped and stored, of course)? 6 months?
Jessica
@Christine A, it depends on if it’s in the deep freeze or the refrigerator freezer. I like to use things up within 2 to 3 months, preferably.
Steph
Hmmm. I’ve done chicken in the crock pot then shredded it and froze it but I haven’t done grilled chicken. That’s a good idea.
KellyinPA
Great idea! A local store has boneless, skinless chicken breast on sale for $1.69 this week, but you must buy 10 lbs. Now I know what to do with that 10 lbs. of chicken. I love your step by step instructions but if you could add into what portions you are chopping, slicing and leaving whole pieces and what meals you intend to use that chicken for it would be helpful for me. Thanks, Jessica! I appreciate all you do!
Jessica
Obviously, what I do for our family of eight is going to be too much for most people, so I didn’t prescribe a certain portion size in the tutorial. For my husband’s lunches, I made 4 ounce portions of sliced chicken. Then I chopped the rest and packaged it into 4 cup-portions. We’ll use this over one or two meals, depending on what we make. 2 cups of chopped chicken is typical for a casserole, salad or pot pie while we might need more for something like tacos or sandwiches.
KellyinPA
@Jessica,
Thank you, Jessica:)
Rachel
I roast chicken in the oven and freeze it for chicken tacos, enchiladas, soups, etc. It is so much yummier than boiling it like a lot of people I know do, and it is so convenient to have it available all of the time.
Carla
Looks good, but alas, its been 112F out today and will be 100Fish all week (will likely be that way all August). Will have to sacrifice the a/c bill one day soon to stock up on baked goods and the like in one insane day of baking. Today was NOT the day! Looking forward to see what other ideas you have to share.
Jessica
@Carla, The beauty of grilling chicken was that the heat stayed outside. 😉
Carla
@Jessica, Yeah, if one can tolerate cooking in 112F temps. Let’s just say my dh would prefer to live in New England weather-wise. 😉