S.A.’s Canned Chicken Recipe
A well-tested recipe adapted from another Air Force wife at England AFB, Louisiana, a base now long-closed. Even picky eaters like this one.
If things do ever go as predicted, knowing how up use your stores efficiently and effectively will be important. The current way of eating with a separate large meat serving, servings of vegetables piled on a plate might become a memory. Cooks will revert to traditional peasant and poor people foods that stretch ingredients, such as soups and casseroles. (Don’t worry, in my home we are never without homemade soups, a pot of beans, and casseroles in the fridge. This is how I was raised.)
Are you using your canned chicken stores? Those chickens take some getting used to, but it is possible to cook with them and mask the tinned flavor and stringy texture. It’s like canned tuna: very different from the fresh product, but with a good recipe can be made palatable. Learn to cook with your stores now in order to be happier in an uncertain future.
The following cold salad recipe is easy, tasty, and uses few ingredients.
Chicken Rice-a-Roni Salad
(a pasta dish using a bit of chicken)
serves 10-12
1 box Chicken Rice-a-Roni
1 13 oz can of chicken (like those from Sam’s Club or Wal-mart)
6 green onions
1bell pepper
1 bunch of celery (as many ribs as you like. I use five ribs, since I like celery.)
1medium jar marinated artichoke hearts
Mayonnaise
Butter
Drain artichoke marinade into a bowl.
Open chicken can, drain, give can juice to the dog, rinse, break chicken pieces up with your fingers. Cover with marinade, stir to cover and coat the chicken well, and let sit while you prep the other ingredients.
Cook Rice-a-Roni according to package. (Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a skillet, add Rice-a-Roni and brown vermicelli pasta pieces until golden. Add 2.5 cups of water, the seasoning packet, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, cook 15-20 minutes until rice is tender.) Allow to cool.
Dice the green onions, bell pepper, and celery. Put the chicken and marinade mixture in a small electric chopper and pulse in batches until not so stringy. Do not turn this into a purée, it should still have some texture. (This step could be done manually with a knife or other piece of kitchen equipment.)
In a large bowl, mix the cooled Rice-A-Roni, chicken and marinade, onions, celery, bell pepper, and artichokes. Stir well. Add mayonnaise as needed to flavor and bind. You may or may not need much or any, depending on the size of the marinated artichoke jar you used. Cover and refrigerate this the night before to allow flavors to meld.
Chef’s Notes:
This is a good and flavorful bad times recipe which can utilize a small can of chicken; fresh, dehydrated, or freeze dried vegetables; pasta/rice package; and a jar of marinated artichokes. Omitting the mayonnaise would make this a good grid down recipe as you probably have bell pepper and onions from your own garden.
Some might not like the sodium load, but we don’t eat this daily. This recipe is just another defense against appetite fatigue.
Useful Recipe and Cooking Links:
Start With Canned Chicken–Quick and Easy Recipes
Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? Please send it via e-mail. Thanks!