Chicken, Cheap, Fast, Easy?

[autumnfantasy]

Hi All!

In this home, we eat a lot of chicken. We can get it for cheap and its a universal food for the entire family.. human and non-human.

What I'd like to know, are some recipes that I can do real easy. I have next to no counter space. Something that I can toss in the oven or fry on the stove top. Also my husband is a VERY picky man, I hate cooking for him, so I'd like to find something he may like.

Here is one recipe I found in an issue of "Readers Digest" that I got today. I hope to hear some good recipes, and if there is already a post of one, just link me to it! I'll be sure to scan the forums too.

1 2/3 Cups FRENCH's French Fried Onions
1 lb Boneless, skinless chicken Breasts
1 egg, beaten

Crunch the onions in a plastic bag
Dip chicken into eggs and coat in onion crumbs
Bake 20min at 400oF until cooked through

I hadn't tried it yet, but it sounds good! I tend to buy frozen mixed veggies and fry them up in a pan and serve with my chicken.

[Kathy]

Autumn, do you use a crock pot/slow cooker? I will dig out a few of my favorite chicken dishes and post them for you.
With a little luck, your hubby will find some he likes.

[bbird]

Autumn- I do a similar recipe, but roll the chicken in Dijon mustard, then cover with crushed dried onions. There is something about it that makes the chicken so moist. Even with leftovers the next day, microwaving the chicken to warm it up doesn't dry it out. My family really likes it.

I'm also a big bbq'er. When baked chicken, fried chicken gets tiring I find firing up the bbq and adding some sauce gives me a different flaver and its easy. In fact, I did chicken on the bbq this weekend as it snowed all around me, lol.

Some other things I do with chicken is cube it up and throw in whatever is on hand like...green peppers, onions, tomatos, cheese, pickles, ect. That way the kids can just fill up a tortilla with salso and the chicken mixture and have lunch or a fast dinner.

We also like sweat and sour chicken. I cook the chicken first and then add it to rice. I add lots of pineapple, because my family likes pineappes.

[Kathy]

Here's what I'm making for dinner. I love Greek food. Even if you don't have the sauce, the kebobs are great!

Chicken Souvlaki and Tzatziki Sauce

Souvlaki Ingredients
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice( fresh preferred but bottled works)
3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
3 teaspoons olive oil ( I use vegetable oil with no problems)
1/2 teaspoon salt
4-5 garlic cloves, finely minced
3/4 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast or boneless, skinless thigh meat, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into (1/2-inch-thick) slices
Green pepper cut into chunks for kebobs
Cooking spray

To prepare souvlaki,
combine the first 5 ingredients in a zip-top plastic bag; seal and shake to combine. Add chicken to bag; seal and shake to coat. Marinate chicken in refrigerator for 30 minutes, turning once.
Remove chicken from bag; discard marinade. Thread the chicken, green peppers and zucchini, alternately onto each of 4 (8-inch) skewers. Thread veggies through the skin instead of the soft inner flesh so they will stay on skewers
**If using bamboo skewers, soak in water for 30 minutes to prevent burning.

Heat a grill pan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add skewers; cook 8 minutes or until chicken is done, turning once. I use one of those George Foreman type grills or an outside grill in the better weather


Tzatziki Sauce:
1/2 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded, and shredded
1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 garlic clove, minced

To prepare tzatziki sauce, combine cucumber, yogurt, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1 garlic clove, stirring well. Let sit in refrigerator for at least 2 hrs before serving so flavors meld.

Serve the tzatziki sauce with souvlaki. Warm pita bread is a good accompaniement.

[autumnfantasy]

Thanks all! Yeah we got a slow cooker that I need some yummy recipes for! We got a BBQ but its a pain in the butt dragging it out every time since we live in an apartment and you have to have it so many feet away from the apartment and so on. A lot of people use it right on the porch, but if you're caught its a $2000 fine! So no thanks, so its rarely used but I want to use it more.

Those recipes sound yummy and will have to try them out =) What can I use in replace of Zucchini? I could never get a taste for it.

[Kathy]

autumnfantasy said:

Those recipes sound yummy and will have to try them out =) What can I use in replace of Zucchini? I could never get a taste for it.

Autumn, you can use any combination of veggies that you like that are firm.
I've used partially cooked carrots(cook just till they're not crisp but not too cooked either), potato cubes(do same as carrots), cherry tomatoes(they will get kind of mushy), wedges of onion, green beans & pea pods.

[Kathy]

I make this for parties, it's easy fairly cheap and tastes very good. I have a 6qt crock pot so the numbers behind the ingredient is for making a double batch that fits in a 6qt slow cooker.

Crock Pot Chicken in Wine
INGREDIENTS:
4 boneless chicken breast halves (8)
flour
salt and pepper
1/2 cup white wine, dry (1c)
1 can cream of mushroom soup (2) I use one mushroom & one cream of chicken when I double the recipe
1/2 cup chopped onions (1c)
1- 4 oz can sliced mushrooms drained (2 cans or 8oz)

PREPARATION:

Cut up boneless, skinless chicken breasts in about 1
inch pieces. Lightly flour and sprinkle with salt and
pepper. Pour white cooking wine into Crock
Pot, add chicken. Pour in cream soup
and add chopped onions.

Mix. Do not add water as it makes its own gravy.
Cook
on low for 7-8 hours or high for 4-5 hours.
Serve over egg noodles or anything else you want.
Serves 4 (8).

[autumnfantasy]

Thanks! I'll have to try that without the mushrooms (hubby won't eat those) but it sounds quick and easy...ummm how do I know what wine is "dry"? Were can I get dry wine?

[Kathy]

autumnfantasy said:

Thanks! I'll have to try that without the mushrooms (hubby won't eat those) but it sounds quick and easy...ummm how do I know what wine is "dry"? Were can I get dry wine?

I'm not a wine drinker so I'm not an expert at all. I just go in and find a nice Rose or White wine, most of the liquor stores around here kind of group them by dry or sweet.

I don't use an expensive wine either, something like a Gallo works quite well IMO.

If hubby doesn't like mushrooms, you can use all cream of chicken soup so there's no peices of mushroom-or you can run the mushroom soup through the blender.

[Deleted]

I love my slow cooker!

I make this recipe and it's really good:

Boneless pork chops
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can mushrooms
1 package of brown gravy
1/2 tsp sweet paprika
salt and pepper to taste (I don't add the salt because the gravy mix has plenty for me)

Cook on low until ready. 15 minutes before serving mix 2 T flour into a small amount of water, just enough to make a loose paste. Remove lid, turn crockpot up to high and add flour mixture. (This will thicken the gravy/sauce.) Serve with rice, potatoes, etc.

I was thinking of adapting it for chicken by using chicken and chicken gravy mix.
I love chicken

/Via

[autumnfantasy]

Nice!!! know anything I can use in place of Paprika? I'm allergic. I want to try that pork chop recipe! I think my slow cooker will be used a lot now!!! I may try other cream of -- stuff too... I see there is a slow cooker recipe section here, I'm going to sniff around more in there.

[Deleted]

My paprika is so old that it practically doesn't have any flavor so you're probably safe to just leave it out altogether.

/Via

[Kathy]

I looked online for a substitute and all they mentioned was using ground red pepper but honestly I don't think they taste anything alike. Plus the cayenne sure would 'kick it up' which might be ok in Cajun food but not in the recipe above.

I'm with Via, I don't think I'd be too worried about leaving it out.

[autumnfantasy]

Yeah. There is a cream of mushroom chicken & rice recipe that I have, I'll post it tomorrow if I remember, that had Paprika in it.. thats how I found out I was allergic lol After a few meals of it, I use to get horrible migraines while it cooked, worse when I ate it... took out the paprika and I was fine eating it. Tastes just as good.