2 Healthy leftover chicken recipes that can be made in under 30 minutes

Martha M. Henze, MPH, MS, RDN - Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Global Public Health Epidemiologist

Did you enjoy a rotisserie chicken and are now looking for some healthy leftover chicken recipes? Using leftover chicken is not only a good way to stretch your food budget, but it is a great way to create a hearty and delicious meal with a variety of low calorie vegetables.

Using leftovers from a rotisserie chicken or baking or grilling a few extra chicken breasts or thighs, can make meal prep the rest of the week easier. Dice the cooked chicken into small pieces right away and you can quickly put together delicious and healthy meals after a busy day.

Try these two healthy leftover chicken recipes that you can cook with little to no effort

Spicy Chicken Enchiladas and Chicken & Vegetable Fried Rice

What I like most about both of these healthy leftover chicken recipes is that many substitutions and additions can be made depending on what you have in your refrigerator. You can easily increase your vegetable intake by adding a few more chopped vegetables when sauteéing the vegetables that are already in the recipe. Both of these recipes are very flexible. I have added an additional two cups of vegetables, such as chopped celery, zucchini, garlic, kale, and corn, with delightful results. No, I'm not the sneaky chef by adding vegetables on the sly. I just don't get hung up on having all the ingredients, but trust that the sauce, chicken, and spices will pull it all together. With these two mouth-watering recipes, it works like a dream.

Spicy Chicken Enchiladas

Yield: 6 servings
Nutrition facts per serving (287 grams)
1 serving = 2 tortillas
Calories: 328, 8.3g fat, 32g carbohydrate, 32g protein, 6.1g dietary fiber

Ingredients:

• 6 sprays, about 1/3 second each spray vegetable cooking spray oil
• 1 cup chopped onions, raw
• 1 cup chopped sweet green peppers, raw
• 4 oz green chili peppers, canned
• 1/2 cup chicken broth, reduced sodium canned
• 2 cup hot green pepper chili sauce, canned
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp chili chipotle powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 clove garlic, raw
• 16 oz chicken breast, roasted meat only, skinless
• 12 corn tortillas
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, part skim milk low moisture

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.


2. Coat a 13" x 9 " baking dish that is oven-safe with spray oil. A Pyrex baking dish works well.


3. Combine onion, green pepper, green chili, chicken broth, and 1/2 cup of the green chili sauce in a large nonstick skillet and cook for 5 minutes.


4. Add chili powders, pepper, garlic, and cooked chicken to skillet. Stir, then cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Check to see if you need to add a little more chicken broth to keep the mixture moist, not dry. It's a happy medium because you also do not want it soupy because then your tortillas will become mushy.


5. Warm tortillas in the microwave so that they are easier to roll. You can roll in damp paper towels or use a microwavable tortilla warmer.


6. Spread about 1/3 cup of chicken mixture on each tortilla, roll, and place seam down on a baking dish (this helps prevent the tortilla from unrolling).


7. Spread the rest of the green chili sauce over the tortillas.


8. Top with shredded mozzarella cheese.


9. Bake for 20 minutes so that cheese is browned.


10. Cool for 15 minutes and then serve.

Tips:
Garnished with sliced fresh green onion in recipe photo.
Green enchilada sauce or green chili sauce works well in this recipe.
If you use flour tortillas instead of corn tortillas, consider using the low carb style to control calories, carbs, and possibly sodium.

This is one of 200+ dietitian-approved recipes that is now available with the Premium membership. With Premium, if you want to add this recipe to your food diary, just type in "Spicy Chicken Enchiladas". It is already entered and analyzed for you.

Chicken and Vegetable Fried Rice

Yield: 4 servings
Nutrition facts per serving (170 grams)
Calories: 314, 8.3g fat, 33g carbohydrate, 27g protein, 3.8g dietary fiber

Ingredients:

• 2 cup medium grain brown rice, cooked without salt
• 1 tbsp canola oil
• 1 cup, chopped green spring onions or scallions, raw
• 1 cup peas and carrots, frozen
• 2 tsp garlic, raw
• 1 tsp ginger root, raw
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 3 tbsp soy sauce, reduced sodium
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 2 cup, chopped or diced chicken breast, roasted meat, skinless

Instructions:

1. If you do not have any leftover brown rice, then cook 1 cup medium brown rice according to package directions but do not add oil or salt. You can use regular or instant brown rice.


2. While rice is cooking, put canola oil in a large nonstick skillet and heat to medium-high.


3. Add green onions and frozen peas and carrots to skillet and saute for 3 minutes. To avoid splattering, pat-dry the green onions and thaw frozen vegetables before adding to the pan or use a splatter screen when you cook.


4. Mince garlic and ginger then add to the pan and continue to saute for another 1-2 minutes.


5. Mix sesame oil, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, and rice vinegar in a small bowl and have ready near the skillet.


6. Add cooked brown rice to skillet and saute for 2 minutes while continuing to stir.


7. Add sauce mixture and 2 cups of chopped cooked chicken to the skillet and stir for another 1-2 minutes so that the entire mixture is heated through. Turn off heat and serve immediately.

Tips:
You can save time by using packaged garlic or ginger paste.
Toasted sesame oil is especially delicious in this recipe.
Sake can be substituted for rice vinegar.
Peanut oil is a great tasting substitute for canola oil for sauteing.

This is one of 200+ dietitian-approved recipes that is now available with the Premium membership. With Premium, if you want to add this recipe to your food diary, just type in "Chicken and Vegetable Fried Rice." It is already entered and analyzed for you.

Still new to MyNetDiary? Learn more today by downloading the app for FREE.

Please share with us your favorite healthy leftover chicken recipes.

Foods & Recipes->Chicken & Turkey Meal Planning & Diets->Dinner

• Share this post: