Having meat, beans, and/or vegetables already prepared ahead of time is more than half the battle when trying to get dinner on the table quick. Therefore, when it comes to freezer cooking recipes some of my favorites are the incredibly simple meal starters.
A couple months ago I posted the Shredded Mexican Chicken Freezer Meal Starter. This has become a personal favorite which I use in tacos, enchiladas, burritos, quesadillas, and other Mexican dishes. However, as versatile as it is, I could not use it in other recipes because of the spices.
To solve this problem I decided to create a very basic shredded chicken recipe that I could add to my collection.
I love this recipe! It is super easy to make and very adaptable. So far I have prepared my Buffalo Chicken Wraps, salads, and lunch wraps with it.
Nothing beats having chicken that is recipe ready!
There are many different uses for this basic shredded chicken. Here are just a few.
- Variety of wraps and sandwiches.
- Chicken soup or other soup recipes.
- Pizza topping.
- Pasta recipes.
- Pretty much any recipe you want to add chicken too!
I know this is basic. But trust me, having this chicken ready will make it so much easier for you to eat healthier during the week. Plus, who says being healthy needs to be complicated 😉 Not me!
Oh and did I mention that it will also save you tons of time and your weeknight sanity?
- 4 medium chicken breasts (about 2-3 lbs)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried garlic flakes
- 1 tablespoon dried onion flakes
- 4 cups water or chicken broth
- Put chicken in slow cooker and season with salt, pepper, dried garlic flakes, and dried onion flakes.
- Pour water or broth over chicken. Make sure that there is at least 1 inch of water over the chicken.
- Cook on low for 6 hours.
- Take chicken out of the slow cooker, transfer to a bowl, and shred. Use in your favorite recipe that calls for shredded or chopped chicken.
Freezer Cooking Instructions
Allow the chicken to cool slightly. Portion out into freezer bags.
Reheating Instructions
Let thaw overnight in refrigerator, or in microwave (put in microwave safe bowl) then use in your favorite recipes that call for shredded or chopped chicken.
The slow cooker that I used for this recipe is the Hamilton Beach Set ‘n Forget 6-Quart Programmable Slow Cooker
. I love this slow cooker! It is the perfect size for making medium to large batches of freezer meal starters.
. I love this slow cooker! It is the perfect size for making medium to large batches of freezer meal starters.
Just used shredded chicken yesterday. 🙂 I added a small can of tomato sauce and a healthy dose of our homemade taco seasoning. Kids said they were the best tacos ever. I think I will do this next week and cook up a bunch of shredded chicken! Thanks for the reminder that I can use a crockpot…and cook extras!! 🙂
I love having taco chicken and plain chicken available for recipes now. That way I can use it other recipes besides mexican inspired ones. It is really nice to have both. And the crockpot makes life so much easier!
Thanks so much for this great idea! Seriosly, I was just thinking what to do with all the chicken I bought today (Aldi had split breasts for 89¢/lb). I will be putting some in the crockpot tomorrow!
God bless!
I love this idea! The chicken probably comes out so much more tender than boiling/poaching. Thanks!
I love having cooked shredded chicken and cooked ground turkey or beef in the freezer on hand at all times. It really doesn’t take too much time to cook/freeze the meat, but it saves so much time when I’m trying to put dinner together on busy weeknights.
I also love having prepared meat ready in the freezer. Don’t know why I never though about doing it in the slow cooker! Can’t wait to try this along with a new tip I saw to on Pinterest the other day – using a KitchenAid to get perfectly shredded chicken!
http://simplyhealthyfam.blogspot.com/2010/05/shredded-chicken-bbq-sandwiches.html
using the beater on your kitchenaid to shred your chicken works wonderfully. I have done it many times.
At what speed?
I use mine at low speed and it shreds wonderfully!
Thanks for sharing Jenni!! I came up with this trick many years ago when making tamales! It’s crazy it’s my most popular Pin and I’m seeing it shared all over the Blogging world. Nice to get credit 😉
I share your love for freezer cooking, ran across your post on moneysavingmom. I just prepped 40 lbs of chic this weekend and did the kitchen aid shredding tip, worked great. I blog about freezer cooking for family and communit at momonamission.me. Hope you stop by. Blessings.
Hi Jackie! Thanks so much for stopping by my blog. I will certainly check yours out.
I made this yesterday, it cooked for 6 hours while I was at work. When I got home, the chicken was so tender, it basically fell apart. easiest shredding ive ever had to do! thanks so much for the great idea! i am new to your site, and have already started using many of your freezer cooking meal starter ideas. I am loving them!
That is great Melissa! Meal starters are my favorite freezer cooking recipes.
I made this tonight. I used about 1.5 lbs of chicken, no salt, and it took about 5 hours. It shredded beautifully. Can’t wait to use it this week! And I am using the water for chicken broth. Next time I’ll add in some veggies before I turn on the chicken to make it more nutritious. Great basic recipe!
That is awesome so glad it worked out!
Is this for boneless skinless chicken breast or the regular split breat? And if using boneless how would you adapt it? Thanks.
Is this for boneless skinless chicken breast? And if not how would I adapt for that? Thanks
Yes this is for boneless chicken breast. Thanks for pointing that out.
Can you use the chicken “water” as a broth afterward or do you just have to dump it? I cook my chicken all the time in a crockpot but have never added water and it always turns out moist…I just add Italian seasoning to it and it is scrumptious. My kids have a plain palate but they love this…
Yes I have use it for broth in other meals. I will have to give your recipe a try. Have a great night.
Happy New Year! Do you freeze this chicken in 1/3 cup serving size portions, or in a bag with 4 portions (1 1/3 cups) to feed a family of 4?
I don’t have a slow cooker so what alternative do you recommend?
You can boil/poach it in a pot on the stove.
Love this so much! After I shred it I put it in snack size bags then put them in a quart freezer bag for protection. In the morning I just throw one in my lunch bag. By lunch it’s mostly thawed and helps keep the rest of my food cold till I’m ready to eat.
great idea. itll save me on freezer bags and Itll keep the rest of my stuff cold
I weight my protein by ounces, so how many ounces is is 1/3 cups of chicken?
Every time I try chicken breasts in the crockpot, they dry out. Thinking this recipe with the broth will eliminate that problem. In they go, this week!!!
First of all, thanks for this site!! My doctor recently told me that I needed to increase my vegetable intake because im on the very low end risk for diabetes. So I stumbled onto the Mason Jar Salads which I’ll start next week!!
One question though: where can I find dried garlic and onion flakes?? I didnt want to have to go to every grocery store in Philadelphia looking for them. Any suggestions?? If i have to use Garlic and Onion flakes, I will, but I rather stick to the recipe. Thanks in advance!!
JMF
Those spices can be found in the spice section of any major grocery store.
Dollar Stores have those spices as well, if you find it is cheaper than you local grocery store.
I’ve been making this and the Mexican one for a whiles always delish! Tonight for the first time I used the kitchenaid method to shred. One word: WOWEE!! So easy and such perfect shreds! Thanks.
Thank you for the easy chicken recipe. I like the idea of setting and forgetting while you work out or do something fun. Sometimes my family likes to eat junk food and I want to eat healthy and this is great to have in the freezer ready to create something fabulous! I’m going to do this this weekend!
Thanks again, and have a good week everyone!
I made this recipe today and the chic e was very tender and shredded so easily however after a few chews it was al out chalky tasting and dry. I followed the recipe! Thoughts??????
Do you use chicken breasts with skin and bones, or boneless, skinless?
either one will work but I use skinless and boneless.
Can I start with frozen chicken breast, and if so do I need to add cooking time?
Do you know how many ounces a serving would be? Made this Sunday and it’s really good! My 13 yr old (who tasted chicken for the first time when I made it!) loves it!
About 3-4 ounces.