7 Sauces That Will Give Canned Chicken A Major Upgrade

In our worst-to-best ranking of canned chicken brands, we proved that this canned meat variety is pretty delicious when you make the right selection. It's also possible to elevate the quality of canned chicken even further when you pair it with the right ingredients. When added to canned chicken, certain sauces can create a variety of appealing recipes and flavor profiles, allowing you to easily whip up a tasty yet convenient meal.

Canned chicken doesn't have to be bland, boring, and cold. Adding sauces like Alfredo, barbecue, tzatziki, Thai sweet chili, lemon butter, curry, and Buffalo can greatly enhance its flavor and simplify your meal-prep process on those busy nights when cooking seems like an impossibility. Chicken is a versatile meat, thanks to its somewhat neutral flavor, which means it pairs wonderfully with a wide range of ingredients and seasonings. And when canned chicken has a permanent spot in your pantry, there's no end to the appetizing recipes you can create.

Alfredo is a creamy, cheesy sauce that's often paired with chicken and seafood. This sauce typically features ingredients such as heavy cream, butter, olive oil; a blend of cheeses like mozzarella and Parmesan; and garlic plus other seasonings. While you can find lots of good jarred varieties in most grocery stores, you can also prepare an easy Alfredo sauce recipe on your own in about 10 minutes or so.

We wouldn't have buttery Alfredo sauce without fettuccine Alfredo, a pasta recipe supposedly invented by Alfredo di Lelio in the early 1900s. This Italian restaurateur was searching for a meal that would be palatable to his wife, who was ailing after having recently given birth. The dish was such a hit with his wife that Di Lelio added it to his restaurant's menu, and the rest is culinary history. While fettuccine Alfredo originally consisted of pasta and sauce exclusively, some recipes also call for chicken. When using canned chicken, you can create a decadent fettuccine Alfredo recipe in no time at all.

If you're like most people, your mind immediately drifts to Kansas City-style barbecue sauce whenever you think of the condiment. Thick, tangy, and slightly sweet, this variety of barbecue sauce owes its enticing flavor profile to a mix of ingredients like tomatoes (often in the form of ketchup), molasses, vinegar, garlic, onions, and various seasonings. While Kansas City sauce is ideal for a quick pulled (canned) chicken sandwich, it's not your only option.

Don't discount the many regional varieties of barbecue sauce when looking for a condiment to give your canned chicken recipes an undeniably bold flavor. For example, take the yellow mustard-based Carolina gold sauce, which is made with Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, ketchup, select seasonings, and sweetening agents like brown sugar and honey. There's also Alabama white sauce, which combines mayonnaise with apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, jarred horseradish, and other ingredients. If you want something spicy but with lots of tanginess, Eastern North Carolina barbecue sauce combines red peppers and apple cider vinegar.

Tzatziki sauce is a wildly popular Greek condiment that's often paired with gyros, although it can also be used as a dipping sauce. This creamy, tangy sauce starts with a yogurt base, which is then combined with mint, garlic, lemon, and cucumbers for added flavor and texture. Like most beloved foods, the origins of tzatziki aren't entirely clear, but the recipe may have been a riff on raita, an Indian condiment that includes ingredients like yogurt, cucumbers, and assorted spices. While tzatziki is most often associated with Greek cuisine, iterations of the sauce abound throughout the Middle East, the Mediterranean, and the Southern Balkans.

While Greek gyros are typically made with lamb, you can certainly swap out the meat for canned chicken. As for the condiment, creating a homemade tzatziki sauce recipe is a quick process that requires relatively few ingredients. You can also find pre-made brands in many grocery stores if you're looking for a fuss-free experience.

The name Thai sweet chili sauce is a bit of a misnomer, as this flavorful, well-balanced sauce actually originated in China. However, the condiment was eventually adopted by Thailand, where it was once referred to as Nam Chim Kai, or chicken sauce. While there are lots of variations, Thai sweet chili sauce usually includes ingredients such as red Thai chiles (or jalapeños if you can't track down Thai peppers), garlic, rice vinegar, sugar, salt, water, and cornstarch for thickening.

Thai sweet chili sauce is excellent for dipping, but that's not all it's good for. It's also an ideal dressing for Thai-inspired chicken salad with cabbage, carrots, green onions, cucumbers, and roasted peanuts (alongside canned chicken, of course). It also works well as a flavoring for lettuce wraps and tacos, as it infuses ingredients like cabbage, green onions, and chicken with the perfect combination of heat and sweetness.

Much like canned chicken, lemon butter sauce is appreciated for its seemingly endless versatility. In addition to chicken dishes, this bright and buttery sauce can be paired with roasted vegetables, rice, seafood, and many other dishes. Along with the core ingredients of butter and fresh lemon juice, adding garlic, salt, and pepper to the sauce can create a more complex flavor profile that elevates almost any dish.

The silky texture of this sauce makes it a perfect pasta pairing, and replacing skillet-cooked chicken with canned will save you a ton of time in the kitchen. However, cooking canned chicken in a pan makes for a sizzling upgrade, allowing you to create a world-class pasta dish in a fraction of the time. Because canned chicken is already cooked, it won't take long to heat up on your stovetop. You can also add a bit of water to the pan to prevent the canned poultry from becoming dry, which is key for maintaining a pleasing texture.

Used in a variety of cuisines, including Indian and Thai recipes, curry sauce is bursting with flavor. These sauces feature a range of appetizing seasonings, including turmeric, garlic, coriander, ginger root, cumin, and cinnamon along with many other fresh herbs and spices. Some curry sauces feature a base of tomatoes, while Thai varieties achieve silky smoothness, thanks to the addition of coconut milk. For example, our chicken curry recipe calls for coconut milk and fresh ginger, chili flakes, cloves, masala powder, spiced curry powder, and lots of other tasty ingredients.

These recipes only scratch the surface of the massive variety of curry sauces out there. When it comes to Thai curries, you have the option of red, yellow, and green, which range from spicy to savory to fresh in terms of flavor profile. There's also the popular tikka masala, which features a tomato base seasoned with a potent spice blend including cumin, garlic paste, garam masala, coriander, red chili powder, and other flavorful ingredients.

Buffalo sauce was tailor-made for pairing with chicken. The condiment was originally developed to bring a bit of heat to fried chicken wings. While recipes vary, Buffalo sauce typically includes ingredients like hot sauce, garlic powder, white vinegar, cayenne pepper, and Worcestershire sauce. These flavor elements combine a tempered, spicy kick with savory components for a sauce that infuses recipes with more than just heat.

If you're pondering convenient ways to use the sauce in meal preparation, canned chicken makes a wonderful addition to Buffalo chicken wraps. In this case, using canned white meat chunk chicken is perfect for replicating the meaty goodness of a baked or fried chicken breast. Buffalo sauce and canned chicken are also perfect for a quick and easy Buffalo chicken dip, which can be served with chips, pretzels, or veggies.