These 3-Ingredient Meals Start With Costco's Fan-Favorite Rotisserie Chicken

Of all the fan favorites housed within the hallowed halls of a Costco warehouse, the rotisserie chicken might just reign supreme. Sold for a price that's too low to be profitable, the retailer is banking on customers buying more than just a rotisserie chicken to make sales profitable, similar to the food court's famed hot dog. Costco fans hate the packaging redesign of the rotisserie chicken, but the company's move from plastic clam shells to commonly seen zip-top, handled plastic bags is an environmentally friendly decision. No matter what packaging it comes in, bringing home a rotisserie chicken is a fantastic and incredibly easy way to get dinner on the table. With just two additional items from Costco, there are countless ways to transform a rotisserie chicken into a full, vibrant meal. 

It's easier to shred a rotisserie chicken while it's still hot, so we recommend shredding the chicken into smaller pieces or cutting it into cubes as soon as you get home from your Costco trip. Once you've gotten all the meat off the carcass, let it cool off a bit before placing the meat in a sealed container in the refrigerator. Make sure to save any bones for homemade chicken stock by throwing them into a freezer-proof, zip-top bag for later, along with vegetable scraps like onion, carrot, and celery. 

For a Costco-sanctioned chicken Caesar salad wrap, you'll need to pick up a Kirkland Signature Caesar salad with Caesar dressing & croutons and the largest flour tortillas you can find, ideally 12" or 14" tortillas. The larger the tortilla, the easier it will be to roll up your Caesar salad wrap. The salad kit comes with chopped romaine lettuce, shredded Parmesan cheese, two packets of Caesar dressing, and garlic & cheese croutons. The kit even comes with a couple of lemon wedges to bring a bit of extra brightness to the salad. We recommend squeezing the lemons over the shredded rotisserie chicken for a bit of added flavor.

To assemble, toss the romaine lettuce with a bit of the Caesar dressing, but make sure to also save some dressing to drizzle over the chicken too. Start by laying out the tortilla on a workspace, then add a handful of two of dressed lettuce (depending on the size of your tortillas) in the center of the bottom third of the tortilla, followed by a sprinkling of the parmesan cheese and a smattering of the croutons. Spread out some shredded rotisserie chicken over the salad ingredients and then drizzle with a bit more Caesar dressing to finish. Gently pull the bottom edge of the tortilla over the ingredients and firmly roll upward, tucking in the sides as you go, to create a burrito-like shape. Go the extra mile by grilling the exterior of the wrap quickly in a hot pan for a bit of crunch. Get more inspiration with our easy chicken Caesar wrap recipe.

Kirkland Signature Imported Basil Pesto is one of our favorite sauces to stock up on from Costco due to its low price point as well as its rich flavor. The pesto will last for weeks in the refrigerator, and you can use it for anything from grilling chicken breasts to frying eggs sunny-side up. Costco sources the basil for it's pesto directly from Italy, making it authentic and vibrantly flavored. 

Pick up a jar of pesto and then hit the prepared foods section for the second step in your meal. Kirkland Signature tortellini pasta salad with mozzarella pearls and dressing is an ideal pasta salad to use with rotisserie chicken as an added protein for a complete and filling meal. The pasta salad uses rich five cheese tortellini as a base and also includes salami, black olives, tomatoes, and small pearls of mozzarella all tossed in an Italian dressing.

To incorporate the Kirkland Signature imported basil pesto, we recommend tossing cubed or shredded rotisserie chicken with a generous amount of pesto before topping the pasta salad with the dressed chicken. If you have some already at home, a couple of handfuls of arugula would be a great addition to the pasta salad for some fresh, peppery notes. 

Kirkland Signature's grain & celery salad with apple cider vinaigrette is a wholesome and delicious item that's easy to turn into a well-rounded meal. The grain salad is a hearty, substantial mix of chickpeas, quinoa, and bulgur wheat, combined with dried cranberries for sweetness, sliced almonds, celery, onion, kale, cabbage, and carrots, all tossed in an apple cider vinaigrette. Adding additional nuts gives this salad an extra boost of crunch as well as added protein.

There are a plethora of nuts at Costco to choose from, but our favorite pairing for the grain and celery salad would be Kirkland Signature Pecan Halves. Pecans have a subtle sweetness to them that would go well with the tart, crunchy elements of the grain salad. Of course, you won't go through the entire bulk-sized bag for a single meal, so you can use the leftover pecans in any of our sweet and savory pecan recipes.

To assemble, toss the grain salad and celery salad in a bowl with some of the apple cider vinaigrette that's included. Add some shredded rotisserie chicken on top of the salad and drizzle a bit more of the vinaigrette over the chicken to impart a bit of zesty flavor. Top with a scattering of chopped pecans and a squeeze of extra lemon juice. If you have any herbs lying around in you refrigerator, this is a great opportunity to roughly chop and sprinkle them all over the chicken and grain salad for an added bit of freshness. 

There's something especially satisfying about the juicy crunch of a perfectly ripe, in-season snap pea, and a bag of Costco's organic sugar snap peas embodies that springtime feeling perfectly. Although they're naturally enjoyable on their own, the sugar snap peas make a great base for a crunchy salad. While you could keep things light and fresh with a delicate rice wine-based vinaigrette, we recommend leaning the opposite way into something creamy and satisfying.

Made from egg yolks rather than whole eggs, Kewpie mayo is a step above regular mayonnaise, and it also makes a superior salad dressing. Costco's Kewpie deep roasted sesame dressing is reminiscent of old-school sushi bars and homey Japanese restaurants in the best way. Not only is it a delicious salad dressing, but it's also great as a marinade and perfect for brushing on meats as you grill. 

This light and refreshing meal couldn't be easier to assemble. Start by trimming the snap peas by removing their strings on both sides, then slice them thinly on a diagonal. Toss shredded rotisserie chicken in a bowl with the Kewpie deep roasted sesame dressing to coat well, then add in the sliced sugar snap peas and toss again to lightly coat the peas. Top everything with thinly sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds if you happen to have any handy. Use the leftover sesame dressing to marinate tofu overnight or as a dip for sliced vegetables.

Costco's bags of Via Emilia organic riced cauliflower are an excellent choice to keep in your freezer, saving you the trouble of ricing an entire cauliflower on your own, which can be tedious and time-consuming, not to mention extremely messy. An alternative to vegetable-based rice is Bibigo's cooked sticky white rice bowls, which are conveniently pre-portioned into individual servings. As the name implies, the rice is already perfectly cooked, letting you avoid the hassle of cooking rice at home, which sounds simple, but it's often easy to make mistakes while cooking rice. 

Like the riced cauliflower, Kirkland Signature stir-fry vegetable blend is another great item to have on hand in your freezer. The blend contains broccoli, sugar snap peas, green beans, carrots, mushrooms, bell peppers, onions, and water chestnuts, which keep a satisfying crunch even after cooking. This glorious mix of vegetables is just waiting to be turned into a stir fry with either cauliflower or regular rice. Saute the vegetables in a large skillet with a bit of oil on high heat until tender, then add your shredded rotisserie chicken to the pan to warm through. Pour in the sauce from this vegetable stir fry recipe and toss everything to coat well. Finally, add in your cooked rice or cauliflower rice to the pan and toss a few times to heat everything evenly. Serve with fresh scallions on top for a wholesome, satisfying meal.