Categories: Chicken

Ingredients

• 3 chickens (4-5 lbs. each), giblets removed
• 3 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temp
• 2 lemons, zest and juiced
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 18 garlic cloves

Directions

1. Position racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven; preheat to 425. Grease two large baking sheets.

2. Let the chickens stand at room temp 30 minutes; pat dry. In a small bowl, mix the butter, 1 tbsp. zest, coriander, garlic powder, 2 tsp salt, and 1 tsp pepper; rub over the chickens. Stuff each chicken with 6 garlic cloves. Using kitchen twine, tie the legs of each chicken together and tuck the wings under the breasts. Drizzle 1/2 cup lemon juice over the chickens and place 1 chicken on one baking sheet and 2 chickens on the other.

3. Roast the chickens, switching baking sheets halfway through cooking, until reaches 165, about 45 minutes. Cool completely.

4. Keep the light and dark meats separate as you work, remove the thighs, drumsticks and wings from the chickens; shred the meat to measure 5 cups, discarding the skin and bones. Cut the chicken breasts from the bones, discarding the skin; diced enough to measure 4 3/4 cups. Slice enough of the remaining chicken breasts to measure 1 1/2 cups.

5. Portion the meat into freezer bags labeled by recipe:

6. 1 1/2 cups diced breast (chicken salad)

7. 1 1/2 cups sliced breast (chicken Parm)

8. 2 1/4 cups shredded chicken (shephard’s pie)

9. 1 3/4 cups diced breast (risotto)

10. 2 3/4 cups shredded chicken (enchiladas)

11. 1 1/2 cups diced breast (chicken soup)

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