Shredded Chicken - Natalie Anderson

This is the easiest way to be prepared for quick meals. Pre-cook your chicken! We eat chicken more than any other meat, so for us this is a no brainer and makes my live soooo much easier.

It couldn't be simpler..
1. Buy a bunch of bonless skinless chicken on a killer sale. (we go through it fast so I do like 20 lbs)
2. Thaw and prep chicken (cut off excess fat etc.)
3. Pre heat oven to 400 degrees
4. In a large roasting pan place your chicken, salt and pepper the breasts.
Now you get to decide - do you want plain chicken, herbed, or tomato?
I usually make all three (in different pans - of course)

For Herbed/Plain
use chicken stock or broth and cover chicken so it comes up halfway on the pile. Add any additional seasonings - for herbed I use a garlic and herb mix, or poultry seasoning. - for plain I use nothing more

For Tomato
use canned tomato's (crushed) and a little water. Still fill to the halfway mark. - no additional seasonings required. For a more potent sauce add tomato paste.

5. Now cover with tin foil and cook for several hours (like 3ish) just until the chicken falls apart with a fork.
6. Remove and shred with 2 forks. Once cooled you can scoop into freezer bags. Be sure to mark with kind of chicken it is AND when you prepared it.

I use the tomato chicken for italian dishes as well as mexican dishes. The herbed is great in soups, sandwiches & salads etc. It goes great on pizza, in pasta and more - the possibilities are endless. You can CAN chicken for a longer shelf life but I just like the flavor of this better. Another way to cook it, is to get some crock pots and cook it that way. Either way works great - the oven way just gets it all done faster.

You can do this with lots of different meats
(hamburger is nice to have on hand for meat sauces and sloppy joes)

Here's a breakdown on how long cooked meat lasts
                            |Refrigerator|Freezer|
Steaks and Roasts|3 or 4 days|6 to 12 months|
Ground Beef         |1 or 2 days|3 to 4 months|
Cooked Beef        |3 or 4 days|2 to 3 months|
Chicken (Pieces)   |1 or 2 days|1 year|
Chicken (Whole)   |1 or 2 days|6 months|
Cooked Chicken   |3 or 4 days|4 to 6 months|
Pork Chops/Roasts|3 to 5 days |4 to 6 months|
Cooked Pork        |3 to 4 days|1 to 2 months|
Sausage                 |1 or 2 days|1 to 2 months|
Sausage (Cooked) |3 to 5 days|1 to 2 months

note the picture above is not mine - but that is exactly how the plain looks when you're done... so there you go.