Rotisserie chicken became my go to shortcut far later than it should have, and I still wish I had worked that out years earlier. A store bought bird costs less than the raw chicken, it is already seasoned, and it turns a real dinner into a twenty minute job with no quality lost anywhere. So I started collecting rotisserie chicken recipes, and these 34 are the keepers. Casseroles, soups you finish with cream at the end, tacos and enchiladas, a Panera copycat wild rice soup, a four ingredient skillet pot pie and a barbecue pineapple grilled cheese my kids rate as their number one meal. Most are on the table in half an hour. Perfect for a weeknight when nobody has planned anything, a freezer stash for later, or the Tuesday after you bought a chicken for Sunday and still have most of it!
1. BBQ Chicken Tacos
Two cups of shredded rotisserie chicken tossed in half a cup of BBQ sauce, but the shell is the clever part. Two white corn tortillas get griddled with a tablespoon of cheese between them, which glues them into one sturdy shell that will not tear when you fill it. Romaine, fire roasted corn, black beans, ranch, lime and cilantro on top.
Get the full tutorial at Lovely Little Kitchen.
2. White Chicken Chili
Everything except the sour cream and cheese simmers together for 30 minutes, then those two go in for the last 10. Add them early and the soup can break, which is the one thing that goes wrong with a creamy chili. Made for already cooked chicken, so a rotisserie bird slots straight in. It is a crockpot recipe with a stovetop version written out beside it.
Get the full tutorial at Like Mother, Like Daughter.
3. Veggie Loaded Rotisserie Chicken Casserole
A whole head each of broccoli and cauliflower and a whole rotisserie chicken, bound with Greek yogurt and cheese rather than a can of soup. About an hour and ten minutes, low carb, freezer friendly and genuinely meant for meal prep, so it is one of the few casseroles that is as good on Thursday as it was on Monday. Easy to modify with whatever vegetables are going soft in the drawer.
Get the full tutorial at Project Meal Plan.
4. Rotisserie Chicken Skillet
Thirty minutes, one pan: rotisserie chicken with orzo, vegetables, cream and a shower of Parmesan. The orzo cooks in the pan with everything else, so there is no separate pot of pasta to drain and nothing to time. One reader’s line about it is the best endorsement a recipe can get, that it is the only reason her toddler eats vegetables.
Get the full tutorial at A Family Feast.
5. Easy Chicken Taco Soup
Onion and red bell pepper softened in olive oil, garlic in for a minute, then broth, two cans of diced tomatoes with green chiles, black beans, corn and a full run of spices. Two cups of cooked shredded chicken and half a cup of sour cream finish it. The recipe says outright that leftover rotisserie chicken is what it is for. Crockpot or stovetop, both written out.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
6. 20-Minute Tuscan Chicken with Penne Pasta
Two cups of rotisserie chicken into a dutch oven with garlic, frozen spinach, onion and a 28 ounce can of drained diced tomatoes. The sauce thickens with half and half whisked smooth with three tablespoons of flour first, which is what stops it going lumpy when it hits the hot pan. Whisk that mix properly before it goes in and the sauce comes out silky every time.
Get the full tutorial at Gal on a Mission.
7. Shredded Chicken Parmesan Sandwich
The base is cheesy Texas toast baked from frozen, which is a much better vehicle than a soft roll because it does not collapse under sauce. While it toasts, simmer tomato sauce with garlic and herbs into a quick marinara and stir shredded chicken through it. Jarred marinara works if you have it. Three components, one of which is a package.
Get the full tutorial at Yellow Bliss Road.
8. BBQ Chicken and Pineapple Grilled Cheese
Butter one side of eight slices of bread and lay them all out butter side down before you start, because once the pan is hot there is no time to be organized. Quarter cup of cheese, a quarter of the barbecue chicken, three pineapple slices, more cheese, lid. Extra sharp cheddar is the right call against that much sweet sauce and fruit.
Get the full tutorial at Domestic Superhero.
9. Easy Buffalo Chicken Sliders
Two cups of shredded chicken mixed with buffalo sauce, ranch dressing, honey, garlic powder and onion powder, layered into twelve split dinner rolls with three cups of cheese around it. The honey is the detail: taste and adjust it, because it is what takes the edge off the buffalo sauce without muting it. Baked at 375F with melted butter and ranch seasoning brushed over the tops.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
10. Creamy Tomato Tortellini with Chicken and Bacon
Thirty minutes from starting to sitting down. Four slices of bacon crisped and lifted out, all but a tablespoon of the fat discarded, then garlic, half a cup of chicken stock, two cans of drained diced tomatoes and Italian seasoning. Eight ounces of cream cheese melts in to make the sauce, then frozen cheese tortellini and two cups of rotisserie chicken. Drain those tomatoes properly or the sauce stays thin.
Get the full tutorial at Taste and Tell.
11. DIY Chicken Salad
Chicken salad has to have grapes in it, and once you have eaten it that way there is no going back. This one uses cashew pieces where I would normally use pecans, and I tried it and liked it. I use less salt than the original calls for, and garlic sometimes and not others, which honestly makes very little difference either way.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
12. Easy Rotisserie Chicken Enchiladas
Ten minutes of prep and twenty in the oven. Shred the whole bird with a hand mixer for a few seconds instead of two forks, which sounds like a gimmick and is not. A third of a can of enchilada sauce spread in the dish first, a whole can over the chicken with drained tomatoes and green chiles, rolled into eight burrito size flour tortillas, baked at 350F.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
13. Creamy Chicken Tortellini Soup
Butter, onion, carrot and celery, then garlic and Italian seasoning, then a quarter cup of flour whisked until it browns lightly and a splash of dry white wine to scrape the pot. Six cups of stock, three cups of leftover rotisserie chicken, refrigerated three cheese tortellini, cream, peas and a tablespoon of lemon juice at the end. That lemon is what keeps a cream soup from sitting heavy.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
14. Baked Honey Lime Chicken Taquitos
Three cups of shredded chicken tossed with lime juice, a third of a cup of honey, chili powder, cumin and garlic powder, rolled into ten soft taco tortillas with cheddar, ends left open. Brush with olive oil, salt the tops, then bake five minutes and flip, five and flip again. Turning them is what makes the whole outside crisp rather than just the top.
Get the full tutorial at Dessert Now Dinner Later.
15. Chicken Cordon Bleu Creamy Mac and Cheese
A real roux, two sticks of butter and a cup of flour, four cups of low fat milk whisked in over high heat, then two and a half cups of sharp cheddar and two cups of Swiss. Cook the macaroni properly al dente, because it keeps getting stirred after this and soft pasta will fall apart. Diced ham and rotisserie chicken go in at the end. The recipe names rotisserie chicken as the shortcut.
Get the full tutorial at Yummi Haus.
16. Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
Orzo, chicken broth, cooked chicken, lemon juice and zest, five ounces of fresh baby spinach, onion, garlic, oregano and a bay leaf. Five ounces of spinach looks like far too much and wilts down to almost nothing, so do not cut it back. Use both the juice and the zest, since the zest is where the lemon flavor actually lives. The recipe names rotisserie chicken as the fast route.
Get the full tutorial at Persnickety Plates.
17. Easy Burrito Bowls
This is less a recipe than a system, and it is on the list for exactly that reason. Make the rice, put the add ins out on the counter, and let everyone build their own bowl. Shredded rotisserie chicken is the fastest protein for it. With picky eaters it is unbeatable, because they take what they want and nobody negotiates over a plate.
Get the full tutorial at Cookies and Cups.
18. Rotisserie Chicken Nachos
A four pound bird, refried black beans, two cups each of sharp cheddar and pepper jack, built in a twelve inch oven proof skillet rather than on a sheet pan so the edges do not dry out. The salsa is homemade, jalapeno, garlic, cilantro, canned tomatoes, cumin, coriander and chili powder cooked down. Feeds six to eight, which is more than most nacho recipes admit to.
Get the full tutorial at Amanda's Cookin'.
19. Easy Chicken Wonton Cups
Twelve wonton wrappers pressed into a greased muffin pan and baked at 375F, filled two ways from the same half pound of cooked shredded chicken: buffalo with melted butter, Frank’s and blue cheese, or barbecue with a third of a cup of sauce and Monterey jack. Leftover chicken is exactly what these are for. An appetizer that uses up what is left of Sunday’s bird.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
20. Easy Chicken and Couscous Skillet Dinner
Two cups each of diced onion and carrot sautéed in olive oil for five to ten minutes until they caramelize, garlic for 30 seconds, then a cup and a third of couscous stirred in, two cups of chicken broth, covered, ten minutes on low. Chicken goes in at the end. Under 30 minutes, one skillet, and the only real skill is letting the vegetables actually caramelize rather than just soften.
Get the full tutorial at Kevin and Amanda.
21. Magic Chicken Pie
The magic is that it makes its own biscuit top and its own gravy in the oven, from butter, two shredded cooked chicken breasts, two cups of vegetables and a can of cream of chicken soup. Ten minutes of prep, fifty in the oven, serves six. Add the layers in the order given and do not stir it once it is poured, because it looks wrong before it goes in and sorts itself out while it bakes.
Get the full tutorial at The Midnight Baker.
22. Grilled Avocado-Barbecue Chicken Naan Pizza
Naan brushed with oil on both sides, grilled about two minutes a side with the burners turned off, which stops it burning before it marks. Then barbecue sauce, fresh mozzarella, shredded rotisserie chicken tossed with more sauce, sliced avocado and red onion. Cook the topped pizza over indirect heat with the lid down, using the grill as an oven, about five minutes.
Get the full tutorial at Noble Pig.
23. One Pot Gnocchi with Spinach and Chicken
One pan, a cream sauce, cheese and gnocchi, which cooks in the sauce instead of in a separate pot of water. It is a full meal by itself and it is the kind of recipe worth learning if you are new to cooking, because there is no timing to juggle. Easy to change too: swap the meat, swap the greens, swap the cheese, and the base still works.
Get the full tutorial at Chew Out Loud.
24. Paleo Moroccan Chicken Stew
An hour and five minutes, serves six, and the base gets blended rather than chopped: onion, canned tomatoes, fresh ginger and garlic go in a blender until smooth. Cumin, cinnamon, paprika, coriander and turmeric fry gently in the pan for a minute before the liquid goes in, which is what makes them taste like spices instead of dust. Eight medjool dates give it the sweetness.
Get the full tutorial at A Saucy Kitchen.
25. Old-School King Ranch Casserole
Cream of mushroom and cream of jalapeno soup, Rotel, sweet onion, diced jalapenos, a pound of grated cheddar and crushed nacho cheese Doritos layered over tostadas. The recipe grills and chops chicken breasts, so a rotisserie bird slots straight in and saves you the whole first step. It feeds a crowd on canned ingredients, which is why it has lasted this long.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
26. Chicken And Broccoli Shells And Cheese
Eight ounces of medium shells, with the broccoli florets dropped into the same boiling water for the last two or three minutes, so there is one pot instead of two. The sauce is butter and flour cooked for a minute, then a cup of milk and a cup of chicken broth whisked in, then two cups of sharp cheddar off the heat. If it thickens too far, thin it with milk.
Get the full tutorial at Love Grows Wild.
27. Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bowls
Quinoa simmers covered for 15 minutes, then sits off the heat another five before you fluff it, and that resting step is why it comes out light instead of wet. Shredded chicken goes in with Frank’s Original and softened cream cheese, over the quinoa with green leaf lettuce, halved cherry tomatoes, avocado, red onion, cilantro and ranch. Meal prep friendly.
Get the full tutorial at Joyful Healthy Eats.
28. Million-Dollar Chicken Casserole
One shredded rotisserie chicken folded into cream cheese, ricotta, sour cream and a can of condensed cream of chicken soup with onion and garlic powder, topped with a cup and a half of crushed Ritz mixed with four tablespoons of melted butter. Baked at 350F. Toss the crackers with the butter before they go on rather than pouring butter over the top, or you get wet patches and dry patches.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
29. Chicken and Wild Rice Soup, Panera Copycat
A boxed Near East long grain and wild rice mix, and the flavor packet goes in with the flour and marjoram rather than being thrown away, which is the whole shortcut. Four cups of low sodium broth, three cups of water, then heavy cream and milk warmed separately before they are stirred in so they do not shock the pot. Serves four, about an hour.
Get the full tutorial at Fake Ginger.
30. Easy Copycat Costco Chicken Bake
Prepared pizza dough wrapped around chicken, creamy Caesar dressing, crumbled bacon, green onion, mozzarella or provolone and Parmesan, brushed with beaten egg and baked at 350F. Let the dough sit out for an hour before you try to work with it, because cold dough fights back and tears. Rotisserie chicken replaces the seasoned breasts the recipe starts with and skips a step.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
31. Creamy Risotto with Chicken and Spinach
One whole shredded rotisserie chicken, a cup and a half of arborio rice, a third of a cup of white wine and five cups of low sodium stock, simmered uncovered 18 to 20 minutes, then three cups of torn baby spinach and half a cup of Parmesan. Thirty minutes total and it makes ten servings, which is an unusual amount for a risotto and the reason it is on a weeknight list.
Get the full tutorial at Dash of Herbs.
32. Chicken Posole Verde
Tomatillos, poblanos and jalapenos, all seeded, cooked down into a verde broth with eight cups of low sodium chicken broth and hominy. An hour, eight to ten servings. Cooking the salsa verde on the stove rather than using it raw is what deepens the flavor, and it is the step that separates this from a green chicken soup.
Get the full tutorial at Yummy Healthy Easy.
33. Rotisserie Chicken Cheese Pasta
Built around a single leftover rotisserie chicken breast, which is exactly the problem this solves, because the breast is usually what gets left behind. Sliced onion and red bell pepper cooked five minutes, then the cubed chicken and halved cherry tomatoes five more, heat off, then a cup and a half of half and half with mozzarella and cheddar stirred in. Six ounces of pasta. Turning the heat off first keeps the cheese from splitting.
Get the full tutorial at Berry Maple.
34. Cast Iron Skillet Chicken Pot Pie
Four ingredients: a shredded rotisserie chicken, a can of mixed vegetables drained, a can of cream of chicken soup and a container of refrigerated buttermilk biscuits. Level the filling with the back of the spoon before the biscuits go on, then bake at 425F for 18 to 20 minutes. Level it and every biscuit sits flat and cooks through; skip it and the middle ones stay doughy.
Get the full tutorial at Just Plum Crazy.
