• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
To Simply Inspire
  • About Me
    • Contact
    • Press
  • Recipe Index
  • Appetizers
  • Breakfast
  • Main Dishes
  • Desserts
  • On the Lighter Side Recipes
  • Salads
  • Side Dishes
  • Soups and Stews
  • Shop
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
menu icon
go to homepage
  • All Recipes
  • By Course
  • Holidays
  • Shop
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • All Recipes
    • By Course
    • Holidays
    • Shop
    • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
  • ×
    Home » Ingredient » Chicken Recipes

    Freezing Crockpot Cooked Chicken for Meal Planning

    Published: Jul 7, 2015 · Modified: Feb 8, 2025 by Sherri · This post may contain affiliate links · 17 Comments

    591 shares
    • Facebook

    chicken breasts in a pot, shredded chicken in a food processor, shredded chicken in ziplock bags

    Freezing Cooked Chicken

    This is the easiest meal planning tip and will save you TONS of time this Summer with planning your meals! Fill your freezer with pre-cooked chicken cooked in your crockpot and you will be ready to make your healthy dinners.

    I use it for chicken casserole, chicken salad, Rice bowls and adding it to my quinoa salad or this great tomato, avocado, cucumber salad and so much more.

    Be sure to buy your chicken on sale.  Stock up when it goes on sale for $1.99 / lb and then do this freezer cooking.  Huge savings!

    What you need to get started:

    Large package of boneless, skinless chicken breast.

    Slow Cooker

    Food Processor or Stand Mixer

    Freezer bags

    DIRECTIONS

    1. Place all the chicken in the slow cooker with about ½ cup of water.  I sprinkled a little pepper and garlic powder on top.  Add any spices you would like.

    chicken in the crock pot

    2. Cook for 6 – 8 hours on low or 3-4 hours on high.

    3. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and place one piece at a time in a food processor.  Pulse a few times to get the size chicken pieces you want for your recipes. Pulse for a count of 5 and the food processor will “shred” the chicken.

    chicken in food processor

    shredded chicken

    4. Place 1 or 2 cup portions in freezer bags. Be sure to label your bags with the date too.

    Freezer chicken

    5. You can also save and freeze some of the chicken broth left in the slow cooker too. It’s great to use for soups, etc.

    Another time saving tip is to freeze several packages of cooked ground turkey to use in other recipes too.

    More Chicken Recipes

    • A skillet filled with cooked diced chicken in a sweet chili sauce, garnished with green onions.
      Sweet Chili Chicken
    • Bowl of white rice topped with honey garlic chicken pieces, garnished with sesame seeds and green onions.
      Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken
    • A cast iron skillet filled with empress chicken garnished with chopped green onions and sesame seeds.
      Empress Chicken
    • A plate of baked lemon pepper chicken wings garnished with lemon slices and chopped herbs.
      Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Stephanie

      July 22, 2014 at 1:49 pm

      This is such a good idea! I love having cooked chicken on hand and this is a perfect solution. Thank you so much for linking up at Tasty Tuesday! Your recipe has been pinned to the Tasty Tuesday Pinterest board! Please join us again this week!

      Reply
    2. AmieJo

      July 21, 2014 at 9:46 am

      Great idea. I have beef in my freezer because we buy a 1/4 of a cow when ever we need it. We have venison because my husband hunts. So that is nice. I do buy and freeze chicken also but I love the idea of having it already cooked. I will have to try it. Thanks.

      Reply
    3. Becca

      July 20, 2014 at 12:56 pm

      I like the idea of using a food processor to shred the chicken! Thanks for sharing your post at the Healthy Tuesday hop. 🙂

      Reply
    4. Miz Helen

      July 19, 2014 at 4:01 pm

      Thanks so much for sharing a great tip and recipe with Full Plate Thursday. Hope you are having a fun day and come back soon!
      Miz Helen

      Reply
    5. ari

      July 19, 2014 at 12:03 pm

      Such an awesome idea! I’m new to cooking and this is helpful!

      Reply
    6. Anna @ family living on a budget

      July 16, 2014 at 11:09 pm

      Found you via the yuck stops here link up. I used to do something very similar with chicken, it’s great for making life easier.

      Reply
    7. Katie Ward

      July 16, 2014 at 12:24 pm

      This is so helpful! I am going to try this out as soon as possible! Thank you for sharing.

      Reply
    8. Kimberlee

      July 15, 2014 at 9:30 pm

      This is a great idea – I have done this in the past and it is a real time saver. I have not tried shredding them in the food processor though – I usually do it with a couple of forks but it takes a while – I am definitely trying this out soon – pinning.

      Reply
    9. Cheryl

      July 15, 2014 at 7:54 pm

      I found this ingenious recipe tip on In and Out of the Kitchen link party and I hope you’ll bring it to my recipe link party tonight! This week’s party starts tonight (Tuesday) at 8pm and goes until Sunday evening. You can find us at mommasangelbaby (dot) com. Hope to see you there! HUGS

      Reply
      • Cheryl

        July 15, 2014 at 11:58 pm

        So happy you stopped by! I have pinned and stumbled this post and hope you’ll bring another delicous dish or tip next week! HUGS

        Reply
    10. Kristi Rimkus

      July 14, 2014 at 10:56 pm

      I found you on a link up party. This is a terrific idea. You can do so much with pre-cooked chicken!

      Reply
    11. Daphne

      July 08, 2014 at 5:20 pm

      Good Evening Sherri, What a fabulous idea. I love how the minced chicken can be added to rice and salads….. so much easier for days when I am busy sewing and I don’t want to take too much time to make a meal.
      Thank you for the idea.
      Best Wishes
      Daphne

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Sherri Hagymas leaning on a counter with a white coffee mug

    Hi there! I’m Sherri I love creating a variety of easy recipes that anyone can make and enjoy! From healthy to comforting, I hope you find something that inspires you!.

    More about me →

    Easy Dinners

    • White bowl full of Egg Fried Rice with fork inserted.
      Egg Fried Rice
    • White skillet with tuscan chicken recipe with sun-dried tomatoes, spinach in a creamy sauce.
      Tuscan Chicken
    • four breaded chicken breasts in a cast iron skillet with lemon slices
      Creamy Lemon Parmesan Chicken
    • Butter Steak Bites and Potatoes
      Butter Steak Bites with Garlic Herb Potatoes
    • skillet full of creamy chicken with mushroom sauce topped with parsley.
      Chicken with Mushroom Sauce
    • bowl full of fresh cucumber slices, imitaion crab meat, and avocado with spicy mayo drizzles and topped with sesame seeds
      California Roll in a Bowl

    Popular Recipes

    • slice of coffee cake on a white plate
      Best Easy Coffee Cake
    • Bang Bang Shrimp Pasta recipe in a silver serving bowl
      Bang Bang Shrimp Pasta
    • closeup of several crispy chicken wings on white parchment paper.
      Oven Baked Chicken Wings
    • White bowl full of fresh mango salsa topped with cilantro and red onion.
      Mango Salsa
    • black bowl with cottage cheese dip with a carrot and celery
      Ranch Cottage Cheese Dip
    • closeup of shrimp corn chowder in a white bowl with spoon in it.
      Shrimp Corn Chowder

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    List of publications that have featured Tosimplyinspire.com. woman's day, southern living, delish, parade, Forbes, prevention, and parade.

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Disclosure Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Shop
    • Shop My Favorites
    Copyright © 2025 To Simply Inspire
    Discloure Policy | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use
    To Simply Inspire is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program
    designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.