How I made 3 main dishes in 1 hour

This week I prepared 3 main dishes from one cooking session. It didn't take very long at all and I had a beautiful sense of satisfaction when I was done.  It took about 1 hour of my undivided attention. Overall it takes about 4 hours, but 3 of the hours is the chicken cooking in the crockpot. The three meals are Shredded BBQ Chicken, Chicken Tortilla Soup, and Chicken Fajitas

We are a family of 6 so meals typically don't last more than 3 days. You will need to adjust the portions for your needs.

Shopping list for the meals:

3 -4 packs of chicken breast

1 frozen bag of corn

1 can of black beans

1 Onion

2 tablespoons Garlic (minced)

Tortillas

Red, yellow, and green bell pepper

1 can of tomato paste or 2 cans of diced tomatoes

Fresh or dried cilantro

chili powder

cumin

paprika

cayenne pepper, optional

lime or lemon juice, optional

Seasonings of choice for chicken

2 gallon size freezer bags for soup

1-2 quart or gallon size bag for chicken.

Cook Chicken

I put the chicken breast in my crockpot, filled the crockpot with water just below the brim, and added seasoning. I seasoned with garlic powder, onion powder, salt, turmeric, parsley, black pepper, cilantro, oregano, sage, and cumin. I put the crockpot on high and let the chicken cook about 3 hours.

    *You can season with whatever seasoning you want. Just be careful of salt content.

    I typically don't follow a recipe and I add the seasoning according to my taste. If you are a person

    that needs portions they will be listed.

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon dried parsley

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon cilantro

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

1/4 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon sage

1/4 teaspoon cumin

I planned to have the BBQ Chicken the day I cooked and to freeze the Tortilla Soup and Chicken for Fajita's. 

During the last 30 minutes for the chicken I begin prepping for the Tortilla soup. 

Tortilla Soup

In a large pot add butter. Sautée a 1/2 of onion (diced) and 2 tablespoons of garlic (minced). Once sautéed set the stove for simmer.  

Add 2 heaping tablespoons of tomato paste or two cans of diced tomatoes and stir. By this time the chicken should be done.

Scoop the chicken broth from the chicken into the large pot for the Tortilla Soup. Stir until the tomato paste has blended with the chicken broth. 

    *I used tomato paste because I thought I had diced tomatoes but didn't. Tomato paste is a great                     substitute, especially if you are not a huge fan of tomatoes.

Add in lime or lemon juice, chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, paprika, cayenne, and cilantro

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 tablespoon chili powder

2 teaspoons cumin

2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon smoked paprika (regular paprika may be substituted)

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional and to taste

1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves, finely minced

Stir, let simmer while you shred your chicken.

I shred 1/3 of the chicken on a cutting board using two forks and add it to the soup. Stir soup, let simmer for 10 minutes.

If you are not eating the soup that night, let the soup cool, transfer to freezer bag, and freeze. When you are ready to eat the soup you can warm it in the crockpot on high  or low or in a pot over the stove. 

BBQ Chicken

Add 1/3 of the chicken to a bowl or storage container to toss with barbecue sauce

We had the BBQ chicken later the same day so I refrigerated it. When time to eat I lined a baking sheet with foil, spread the chicken on it, added more BBQ sauce on the top, covered with foil, and then put it in the oven on 400 to warm it quickly.

For my family I provided a choice of salad and steamed broccoli as a side. I ate my BBQ chicken without bread along with steamed broccoli and some left over corn.

If you are not eating your BBQ chicken right away you can refrigerate or freeze it.

Fajitas

Add 1/3 shredded chicken to a storage container or freezer bag for the fajitas.

I don't typically eat the fajitas the same day I make the chicken. I freeze the chicken in a freezer bag. When ready to eat the fajitas I thaw the chicken in the refrigerator the night before.

When ready to cook, I saute peppers and onion in butter using a skillet.

I then add chicken, water or chicken broth, and my homemade fajita seasoning to the skillet.

Cover and simmer to heat through. 

Spoon filling down the center of tortillas; fold in half. Serve with desired toppings.