40+ Leftover Rotisserie Chicken Recipes

Rotisserie Chicken – the secret to easy dinners!

Rotisserie chickens from the grocery store or Costco can be a total lifesaver. Yes, you can totally make a homemade rotisserie chicken or an air fryer rotisserie chicken. But sometimes the convenience of buying one already cooked is worth it. Plus, the ones at Costco are HUGE. For our family of four, we can easily have a roast chicken dinner with a couple of our favorite sides and a second dinner using the leftovers. Sometimes there is even enough to make chicken salad for the week or to put on top of some salads with Greek Yogurt Ranch Dressing or Creamy Balsamic Dressing.

Though if I feel like grabbing one from the grocery store, sometimes I will even grab a second since these are usually smaller. I’ll spend a few extra dollars just to be able to make another dinner or meal prep some school lunches!

Is rotisserie chicken gluten free?

Generally, rotisserie chicken is gluten free. You can avoid all concerns by roasting the chicken yourself so that you know what you put into the seasonings. However, the ones from Costco are typically gluten free (do be sure to confirm this at your local Costco).

I have gotten them from several different grocery stores and all have been gluten free, but check the labels to be sure that there are no gluten ingredients added in the seasonings they use.

As I said, the first meal is usually a more traditional “chicken dinner” when I don’t have time to roast one myself. I may go classic and serve it with Cheesy Mashed Potatoes with Bacon and Corn Pudding. Sometimes we will just slather it in barbecue sauce along with some Easy Baked Beans. And either way, you can’t go wrong with Balsamic Roasted Vegetables.

But as soon as the meal is done, I’m thinking about leftovers.

Things to Make with a Rotisserie Chicken

• Easy dinners – chop or shred that chicken and use it for tostadas, enchiladas, salads, fried rice, and more.
• Appetizers and snacks – using chicken that is already cooked saves time when making party dishes like dips and other finger food.
• Soups – whether you use storebought broth or make homemade chicken stock from the carcass, you have the base of a simple and comforting soup recipe. And since you usually don’t need a lot, this is a great way to use up that last bit of meat.
• Chicken salad – this is always the obvious choice, so we can’t leave it off the list. But there are so many more ways to make chicken salad than just adding mayo. Fruits, nuts, other veggies, and different seasonings and flavors make your chicken salad sandwich (or wrap or lettuce wrap or salad greens) anything but basic.

And you don’t just have to use rotisserie chicken. These recipes can be made with any leftover chicken, like:

• Oven-roasted chicken or slow cooker roast chicken
• Grilled chicken breasts
• Instant pot chicken breasts
• Crockpot shredded chicken

Really, you could even use your leftover roast turkey from Thanksgiving or a crockpot turkey breast, too! So let’s go…

40+ Recipes with Leftover Rotisserie Chicken

Start with a grocery store rotisserie chicken and turn it into a family-favorite quick and easy dinner. Those leftovers get reinvented into soups, salads, nachos, tostadas, sandwiches, pasta dishes, and so much more. It’s dinner made easy when you start with leftover chicken.

BBQ Chicken Tostadas

These are sure to be a family favorite, especially on busy nights. There's nothing to lose with shredded chicken, your favorite barbecue sauce, and cheese piled on corn tortillas plus a few minutes of prep time.

GLUTEN FREE

Get The Recipe