Christmas is an expensive time and year so if there are any ways to save a few extra pennies here and there I for one and going to follow them. We eat quite a lot of chicken in this house and it can get expensive when only using neatly packaged boneless chicken breasts from the supermarket. We now tend to mostly buy whole chickens to help cut back on our food costs. They cost more upfront than a few breasts but they sure do go a lot further. I don’t like to brag but I’ve become somewhat of an expert at making the most out of a chicken and can now proudly drag it out to a minimum of 3 meals. Intrigued? Here’s how you too can get frugal with a chicken or turkey.

Firstly I should say that you could in fact butcher the whole chicken yourself if you have a sharp knife and a vague idea of what you are doing. I however do not, so instead I just put the whole chicken in the oven and roast it in the normal way. The Hedgerow way is to rub butter, salt and pepper into the skin, insert some lemon quarters and roast for 20 minutes per pound and sometimes 20 minutes over a la Delia Smith. You can enjoy a delicious meal of roast chicken served with potatoes, vegetables and a splash or two of gravy. This is meal one with the chicken and it’s delicious.

Meal 2 involves the leftovers and you will surprised as to how much there actually are. I always attack the carcass as soon as dinner is over so that’s done and isn’t left waiting for me to get around to it. Just get stuck in with your hands removing all the little pieces that are left. I can usually fill a cereal bowl full of leftover meat even if it appears most of the chicken has been scarfed so it’s definitely worth doing. Cooked chicken freezes very well or it can be left covered in the fridge. The next day it can be used in a casserole, stir fry, quiche, sandwich, soup, baked potato or as topping for homemade pizza.

Finally you can turn your attention to the carcass itself. Because there is a bit of effort involved in being frugal with a chicken, I find that roasting it initially on a friday night is a good idea. Then I can remove the leftovers the same night and boil up the carcass on the saturday while I get on with other things around the house. So, what to do with the carcass? Simply place it into a pot with one or two chunks of vegetable. Celery, carrot and onion are the traditional ones to use so who am I to argue. Cover with cold water so everything is submerged and bring up to the boil. Once you have brought the pan to a fast boil, turn the heat down and simmer for a few hours. It will need at least four hours.

When it’s “done” you can remove the large lumps and yes finally throw them away. The rest should be strained through a sieve so you are left with a lump free stock. This can also be frozen for future use. It can be used in any recipe where you would normally throw in a stock cube. Soups, casseroles, curries…anything that needs a bit of flavoured water. You can even cook your vegetables in it to give them a bit of oomph.

Another way we are exploring reducing our food costs is by having a few meatless meals which is something you may be considering too. This will be a future post however. I hope everyone’s Christmas preparations are going well. We are mostly ready, just a few Christmas goodies to make nearer the time.

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