One Farm Raised Chicken, Three Weekday Lunches
When you buy a whole pasture-raised chicken from Blessings Ranch, you’re holding multiple meals in the palm of your hand.
If you don’t want to waste a thing, then you’re in luck. It’s easy to respect both the chicken and your grocery budget by preparing zero-waste meals.
How Do I Make the Most of a Farm Raised Chicken?
Roast the chicken whole on Sunday. By doing so, you preserve the juices and keep the meat tender for the days ahead.
Rub the skin with olive oil and sea salt. Roast at 375°F until the internal temperature hits 165°F.
Enjoy a drumstick or a thigh for Sunday dinner. Then immediately strip the carcass while it’s still warm. Separate the meat into light and dark meat.
Save everything. The skin, the wingtips, and the skeleton are not trash. They’re the basis for your third lunch.
Add pan drippings to apple cider vinegar and Dijon mustard to create a vinaigrette. You’ll use the animal’s natural fats to flavor your greens.
From Here, You’ll Make Three Lunches
A chicken salad. You don’t need much meat for this. Pasture-raised chicken is denser and more nutrient-rich than store bought chicken, so a smaller portion will keep you fuller. Try it with local greens, Texas pecans, and seasonal berries.
Dark meat tacos. Dark meat is resilient and stays juicy even when reheated, and it takes taco seasoning well. You can of course make tacos a variety of different ways.
Create a bone broth soup. Take the bones, skin, and scraps. Simmer them in water with a splash of vinegar for 12 hours. This extracts the collagen and minerals and creates a liquid gold bone broth. Strain the broth and add any meat fragments that remain. Toss in with noodles, rice, or any wilted vegetables you find in your crisper drawer.
Why Go Zero-Waste?
Food prices are only getting higher. When you use the whole bird, you save money.
By choosing farm-fresh chicken for your zero waste goals, you also get double the Vitamin E and higher Omega 3s than you would with pasture-raised poultry.
Looking for other ways to honor the animal and use every part of it? Pick up another chicken to round out your week, ask us how to buy beef in bulk, or pick up one of our hamburger patty boxes!
Food doesn’t have to be a struggle. It can be a slow, steady joy that preserves resources.
Ready to Pick Up Your Whole Chicken?
Stop by our farm in Tomball every Thursday through Saturday from 12 PM to 3 PM, or, if you live within 50 miles of our farm, order online for free delivery!