At Plated, we’re all about cooking and learning new skills in the kitchen. In the summer, though, sometimes the idea of standing in front of the stove or turning on the oven is just too much to bear. We get it.

Enter: the grocery store rotisserie chicken—a totally delicious, ready-made base for a ton of delicious, easy weeknight dinners. Pick one up on your way home, and let us help you with rest. With a few, easy steps, you can turn this simple, humble protein into a wide variety of delicious meals—from salads and sandwiches to pasta and tacos—that will please everyone at the table and require minimal kitchen use.

Salads

This chicken and kale salad is a house favorite at Plated—we love the way the sweet peanut dressing balances the tart crunch of Granny Smith apple and the tender strips of chicken. The recipe calls for searing boneless chicken breasts, but it also works well with leftover rotisserie chicken, sliced into thick strips. The best part: salads mean minimal cook time, which means you can spare your home from that dreaded oven heat.

Sandwiches

There’s a reason why chicken salad is a deli staple—it’s hearty, tasty, and can be flavored and seasoned with all kinds of mix-ins and sauces. And nestling spoonfuls of this pesto chicken salad between slices of your favorite bread is a great way to use up that last bit of rotisserie chicken that you’ve been meaning to finish. And if you want to get really fancy in the sandwich department, try out this decadent chicken salad meets BLT. Plated Chef Elana is a fan.

Pastas

This creamy chicken and pesto pasta is rich without being heavy, and flavorful without overwhelming the palate—it’s the perfect dish to please even the pickiest eater at the table. Just swap heated, thinly sliced rotisserie chicken for the seared chicken in the recipe and voila! you have yourself a perfect weeknight summer meal.

Tacos

Baked Nachos

Nachos are the perfect dish to bring out when you need to feed a big group. The basic formula is the same here as with the tacos, but it’s a less structured format that can be scaled up easily to feed 4, 8, or 20+ people. Just shred and heat your rotisserie chicken, layer up your ingredients, and warm it all up until the cheese melts.

Baked Chicken Nachos
Base Layer: tortilla chips (homemade or store-bought)
Protein Layer: shredded rotisserie chicken
Cheese Layer: cheddar, mozzarella, queso fresco
Toppings: black beans, avocado, sour cream, salsa, jalapeños, roasted peppers, etc.

Pizzas