If you haven’t notice by now, whenever I talk about food, it usually revolves around convenience. And one of the most convenient food items available at your local supermarket is the rotisserie chicken.
Getting enough protein in your diet is important when you are trying to lose weight. It takes your body longer to digest protein than carbs. You feel full far much longer when you include protein in your meal than you would with just carbs alone. Chicken is a better source of protein than beef.
A rotisserie chicken has only 120 calories (1.5 grams of fat) in 3 oz of breast meat (without the skin) and 130 calories (4 grams of fat) in 3 oz of dark meat (without the skin).*
At around $5 a rotisserie chicken, I can make at least 3 meals out of this purchase.
Meal #1: For dinner I can make some steam rice and some vegetable to supplement the chicken. Half a chicken breast for me and half a chicken breast and leg for my husband.
Or if I am really lazy, then I open up a couple cans of vegetables and heat them in the microwave to supplement the chicken.
Meal #2: Pick the leftover meat from the carcass to put on top of a salad the next day for lunch. When we were in college, we used the leftover chicken meat on top of the ramen noodles the next day.
Meal #3: Put the carcass in the crock pot with some water before I leave for work. Throw in some vegetables like celery, carrots, potatoes, and some rice. Pick up a loaf of artisan bread on the way home and dinner is ready.
Each meal is about 500 calories and take less than 30 minutes in the kitchen. The rotisserie chicken is better for my budget and waistline than any fast food I can pick up on the way home from work.
According to Betty Crocker, the average chicken is 2 pounds, yielding 2 cups of white meat and 1 cup of dark meat. One cup = 8 oz. If you do the math, there are approximately 640 calories of white meat and 347 calories of dark meat. That is a total of 987 calories for the entire rotisserie chicken without the skin.
Interested in more meal ideas that are under 300 calories? Then you’ll want to check out Betty Crocker’s 300 Calorie Cookbook.
Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.
*Nutrition information from “The Abs Diet: Eat Right Every Time Guide” by David Zinczenko.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
But the skin is what makes it taste SOOOOOO good…….
Lynn – I know. Do you know how many times I removed the skin off a piece of fried chicken only to have my husband quickly stab it with his fork to claim it? It’s about priorities. What is more important to you – your health or your tastebuds? Thanks for the comment!