Chicken is such an easy protein to work with and, if you're anything like us, there's a ton of it in your freezer. The good news is that not only is chicken tasty, but the world's most common type of poultry–which has been consumed for thousands of years–is also quite good for you. It's not only rich in protein, but it's also packed with vitamins and minerals, including Vitamins A, B and D, as well as iron and the electrolytes sodium and potassium. All these valuable nutrients help in controlling blood pressure, potentially helping to diminish the chances of getting cancer, reducing cholesterol levels, and even helping to fight the common cold. (There's a reason your mom gave you chicken soup when you were sick and home from school)!
So unfreeze some of that poultry goodness because there's just so much tasty deliciousness you can make with chicken.
Here are 10 chicken recipes that prove chicken is indeed the true hero of your freezer.
1. Hungry Fan's Barbecue Chicken
Years ago, we decided to help make game day entertaining significantly easier by coming out with a line of spice blends that, when combined with a protein such as chicken, would be all you'd need to make a delicious dish. One of those delectable spice blends is America's favorite flavor: Barbecue. With this recipe, you don't have to wait 'til summer to get on the BBQ train. All you need is a little packet of our spices, some pantry items you've probably got at home, an onion, a lemon, and that chicken in the freezer and you're good to go!
Get The Recipe Here: Hungry Fan's Barbecue Chicken
Recommended Products For This Recipe:
Hungry Fan BBQ Spice Rub
Lodge Cast Iron Dutch Oven
2. Buffalo Chicken Quesadillas
Buffalo chicken anything (wings, tenders, tacos, we could go on and on and on) is our favorite dish on game day and basically any day. Combine that scrumptious flavor with cheese and we're sold! Achieving the Buffalo chicken flavor is easy with some solid store-bought condiments but it's worth noting you can also get the same result with our own Hungry Fan Buffalo Chicken Spice Blend.
Get The Recipe Here: Buffalo Chicken Quesadillas
Recommended Products For This Recipe:
Una Casa Cast Iron Tortilla Press
Hungry Fan Buffalo Spice Blend
3. Chicken à la Coke
Chicken à la Coke is basically a fancy way of saying chicken cooked in Coca Cola. But really any brown soda will do for this recipe. (Use whatever you've got)! The beauty of this dish is that you probably have the majority, if not all of the ingredients in your fridge or pantry, plus that chicken in your freezer. We used chicken thighs but feel free to use whatever kind of chicken you have on hand.
Get The Recipe Here: Chicken à la Coke
Recommended Products For This Recipe:
Chefman Electric Glass Hot Plate
GrillHogs Chef-Grade Grill Tongs
4. Pigskin Wings
Pretty much anything wrapped in bacon is good in our book. Chicken wings (our favorite game day dish) wrapped in bacon? It's almost too good to be true! This recipe is delicious for any carnivore out there–and it also happens to be very Keto-friendly, if that's your thing. (We did, in fact, come up with this recipe while experimenting with a Keto diet).
Get The Recipe Here: Pigskin Wings
5. Healthy Fried Chicken
Sure, it sounds oxymoronic, but there is a way to make fried chicken healthy–or at least healthier than what you're used to. This particular recipe utilizes a combination of gluten-free flours, which we found provided a yummier taste than regular all-purpose flour. (You can also just buy one single kind of gluten-free flour that will work just as well). But if you aren't down with GF or if you just don't have these in your pantry, go ahead and sub in all-purpose flour.
Get The Recipe Here: Healthy Fried Chicken
Recommended Products For This Recipe:
Hungry Fan Chef-Grade Silicone Basting Brush
Wilton Cookie Sheet + Baking Rack
6. Classic Tailgate Pasta Salad
This is like a meal unto itself. You've got your chicken, your veggies, some cheese, and some pasta. Game day or any day, this dish is always a solid go-to. Also great? This dish is just as good served hot as it is cold. Win-win!
Get The Recipe Here: Classic Tailgate Pasta Salad
Recommended Products For This Recipe:
Squish® Collapsible Colander
7. Sweet & Sour Popcorn Chicken
This dish is quite easy to make because it's semi-homemade. So there's really only so much you have to do to achieve a delicious result. This Asian-inspired recipe calls for store-bought (freezer section) popcorn chicken, but you can just as easily swap in frozen chicken tenders, wings or even patties! No matter what cut of chicken you pick, the dish packs a ton of flavor and will have your game day buddies asking for more!
Get The Recipe Here: Sweet & Sour Popcorn Chicken
Recommended Products For This Recipe:
Perdue Breaded Popcorn Chicken
8. Buffalo Chicken Pizza
No, we're not suggesting you try making pizza crust from scratch. But hey, if that's your thing, we support you! To make this recipe, we grabbed some chicken tenderloins (chicken breasts work great too) out of our freezer, along with frozen pizza crust and our Hungry Fan Buffalo Wings blend, and this puppy came together beautifully. When you combine two of our favorite foods–Buffalo chicken and pizza–it's frankly pretty hard to go wrong.
Get The Recipe Here: Buffalo Chicken Pizza
Recommended Products For This Recipe:
Emily Smooth Pizza Stone (set of 2 — because you can't make just 1)
Family 3-Piece Pizza Kit with Pizza Board, Rocker, and Crisper (with personalization available!)
9. Chicken Cashew Lettuce Wraps
If your Chinese takeout order usually includes chicken lettuce wraps, then this recipe is for you. This dish is on the lighter side and features a nice blend of protein and veggies (without the complex carbs). And depending on what kind of hoisin and soy sauce you use, it can also be fully gluten-free as well!
Get The Recipe Here: Chicken Cashew Lettuce Wraps
Recommended Products For This Recipe:
Calphalon Non-Stick Stir Fry Pan
10. Barbecue Chicken Dip
No chicken recipe roundup would be complete without a solid chicken dip recipe. We've tasted and cooked many. But this one is probably our favorite (followed closely by our Buffalo chicken dip…spotting a trend here?). This recipe has all the requisites for proper, fattening, "cheat day" eating: Sour cream, cream cheese, ranch dressing, cheese, and the list goes on. Fair warning: This dip is a gut bomb, but every bite is just absolute heaven on a chip or cracker!
Get The Recipe Here: Barbecue Chicken Dip
Recommended Products For This Recipe:
NuWave Crockpot
Hungry Fan BBQ Spice Mix
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