While I almost always cook fresh or frozen chicken, there are still times I turn to canned chicken recipes. These are some of my favorites when you’re working on pantry cooking.
I actually never heard of canned chicken before a few years ago, but I always have it in my pantry now. It’s a pantry staple that lasts and is great for quick meals to throw together.
Canned chicken is similar to canned tuna in that it’s already cooked, then held in water in a can so it stays good for a long time. It saves time when you don’t have to prep your protein!
Generally canned chicken tends to be chicken breast and already somewhat salted, so I don’t tend to add a lot of salt to my recipes with it.
Though I used to use it almost solely to make a quick and easy chicken salad for sandwiches, it’s versatile enough to use in many other recipes. I love the creativity of all of these.
As you make pantry meals, don’t forget about your canned chicken. And sure, why not go ahead and make it a staple in your house, too?
Delicious Canned Chicken Recipes
Whether you forgot to prep dinner, just need a quick snack, or you’re going through your pantry, you’re sure to find a recipe you love from this list of recipes that use canned chicken.
1
Easy Weeknight Chicken Empanadas
Empanadas can be a lot of work, but this quick weeknight version not only uses canned chicken as part of the filling, but puffy pastry for the crust. Don't have puff pastry? This works with pie crust, too.
Want to know how to make chicken salad with canned chicken? This is such an easy recipe, but it’s absolutely delicious. Enjoy it as a a snack on crackers or as part of your weeknight dinner on a sandwich.
Buffalo chicken dip is one of my favorite party foods. It turns into a meal when you make it as a filling for crescent rolls. It's so simple and so delicious.
Easy, fast, and delicious, this pasta uses canned chicken made, vine-ripened tomatoes, and green olives, and best of all, you need just 15 minutes to prepare it.
This super easy Warm Chicken Salad makes meal prepping easy. Enjoy it during the week with some crackers for lunch or on some lettuce leaves as low carb tortillas for dinner.
This pantry chicken spaghetti uses foods you have in your house to create a delicious and creamy dinner. It has plenty of substitution options to make it even more flexible.
This creamy Keto avocado chicken salad is an easy low carb recipe you can make for lunch or dinner! It’s made with avocado, chicken, green onions and bacon with a light lemon dressing.
Pesto Chicken Pasta is an easy, 20 minute meal that’s made with just five shelf-stable ingredients. Bow tie pasta and chicken are coated in a rich and flavorful pesto sauce.
And of course I make traditional buffalo chicken dip. Yes, it's technically an appetizer, but shhh there are times my husband has this with pretzels and carrots and calls it lunch.
This is one of my favorite fast and simple recipes that tastes so good. I love the color and light sweetness from the carrots, and the canned chicken is a perfect protein to add. Yum!
Easy baked artichoke and chicken dip is a fantastic party appetizer. Or enjoy it just because! Make this delicious dip to serve with pretzel crisps, tortilla chips, or crispy crostini.
This is an easy dinner recipe that is basically chicken chicken enchiladas and quiche combined in one. Using staples you have at home including canned chicken and salsa this chicken enchilada quiche is a huge hit at our house.
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I used canned chicken to make a pot pie. It was delicious!
Perfect – I’m so glad you enjoyed your pot pie!
I started using canned chicken for my dressing at Thanksgiving. There are so many other ingredients, you really can’t tell it’s canned.
There really are a lot of recipes where canned chicken works well. I’m so glad you’ve found a method that works well for you!
[…] you more of a chicken fan? Try my list of the best canned chicken recipes […]