Cheap, easy and can be made with what’s in the fridge, these leftover chicken recipes are a great way to use up that odd bit of chicken your pan-fried chicken from last night. Make a salad or soup or even a pot pie with the scraps to make sure nothing goes to waste.
These recipes cost pennies to throw together and easily use that odd bit of leftover chicken sitting in the fridge.
These easy leftover chicken recipes can be thrown together on a weeknight within thirty minutes.
1. BBQ Chicken Pizza
This BBQ chicken pizza is not only easy to make with leftover chicken, but it’s also a great way to use up other leftover ingredients hanging out in your fridge. Use Kinder’s barbecue sauce instead of the usual pizza sauce, cheddar cheese and red onion. Add the cilantro leaves after baking so they stay fresh and crisp.
This leftover chicken recipe is great for a a quick weeknight dinner when you want to make something hot and fast.
2. Chinese Chicken Salad
Looking for a light and easy salad for dinner? This Chinese chicken salad recipe only has a few ingredients and it’s super quick to throw together. It’s also pretty light on carbs and it’s easy to measure how many calories you’re eating when you’re making this dish.
This meal is a perfect leftover chicken recipe that can be thrown together in minutes. Use up what up have leftover in your fridge to make the perfect salad!
3. Chicken Caesar Salad
This salad can be eaten as a meal or as an appetizer. Generally, salad without meat will be an appetizer and salad with meat will be more of a meal. Make this salad into a meal by adding some cut up left over rotisserie chicken on top. Add your homemade creamy caesar salad dressing to the lettuce and toss before adding your other toppings so they don’t become soggy.
A chicken caesar salad is one of the most popular leftover chicken recipes that everyone in your family will enjoy.
4. Chicken Bone Broth
This chicken bone broth is another way to add nutrition to your soups, or you can just drink it on its own. Slightly different than just regular broth, bone broth boils down bones so that you are able to drink the collagen from the connective tissues. Super easy, super nutritious.
This recipe calls for chicken bones, but you can make this bone broth with any kind of bones you have that you want to use up. I used the full carcass of what was left over after eating my store bought rotisserie chicken.
5. Loaded Chicken Nachos
One of my favorite dishes on a Friday night is a plate of loaded chicken nachos. Make your own with homemade guac, sour cream and queso. It’s easy to throw your shredded leftover rotisserie chicken on top of the nachos to make it a complete meal. Don’t feel like eating chicken? Or don’t have any leftover chicken? Sub for pork or beef instead.
6. Chicken Noodle Soup
Nothing will warm you up more than this satisfying chicken noodle soup recipe. Make a pot for yourself and expect to have leftovers or make for your family.
You can make a base of either broth or chicken bone broth for this chicken soup to layer those classic soup flavors that we all know and love.
7. Chicken Matzo Ball Soup
This chicken matzo ball soup recipe only takes about half an hour to make and is super delicious and easy. Not only is simple and quick, but it looks quite impressive when it’s served. The matzo balls are made out of eggs, crushed matzo meal, oil, baking powder and broth.
Use a base of chicken broth, bullion or chicken bone broth and make the chicken soup. Add in your matzo balls into your chicken soup after they are finished cooking in the broth and serve.
8. Chicken Pot Pie
What’s better than a home-cooked chicken pot pie recipe? I used to only buy the Marie Calendar’s Pot Pies from the freezer section at Safeway, but making your own pot pie from scratch is something else. Hearty and warm, a home-cooked chicken pot pie is nothing short of filling.
Use up that leftover rotisserie chicken that’s been hanging around in your fridge, or buy a Costco chicken for only $5 to make this pie.
9. Chicken Salad
This is the BEST chicken salad recipe I’ve ever tried. It has sweetness from grapes, tanginess from the mayonnaise, zest from the onion and crunch from the almonds. Not only are there lot of different options for ingredients, but there’s also many ways to substitute ingredients as well.
This chicken salad goes well on sandwiches, scoops easy on top of lettuce to make a salad or you can eat it with saltine crackers. As a versatile dish, it’s easy to store and great to make for a large family or bring to a potluck. I always like to have some in the fridge for a snack to spoon onto a saltine. It makes for the perfect thing to grab out of the fridge after work or school for something quick.
10. Chicken and Cheese Enchiladas
Enchiladas are arguably one of the easiest (and quickest!) Mexican dishes to make at home. And you can top them with anything you have in the fridge. Try this authentic chicken and cheese enchilada recipe if you want to make a easy leftover chicken recipe.
A great tip for rolling the enchiladas: make sure that you have heated the tortillas thoroughly on the stove on a pan before filling them with your chicken mixture. If you try to roll them cold, they will crack. I heat my tortillas up in a nonstick pan without any oil. I heat them through for about 30 seconds.
11. Healthy Chicken Salad for Weight Loss
Looking for a healthy chicken salad recipe for weight loss? This simple-to-make salad is only a few ingredients and will keep you full without extra carbs weighing you down.
Start with a base of your favorite greens and then layer on vegetables. I generally use raw broccoli, onions, and tomato. Top with some leftover chicken and then add your favorite dressing and croutons or other crunchy topping, if you would like.
