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Leftover Shredded Italian Chicken Sandwiches

Cheesy, delicious, and so, so easy: Leftover Shredded Italian Chicken Sandwiches are a great way to turn leftovers into something new!

Don’t you just love making your leftovers into something completely new? These melty-delicious Leftover Shredded Italian Chicken Sandwiches are so easy to throw together with leftover pulled chicken, and proved a huge hit with everyone here.

cheesy pulled italian chicken sandwich on a plate with chips and coleslaw

You can create your own Italian chicken sandwiches either with leftover slow cooker Italian pulled chicken, or (as shown here), with this newer shredded Italian chicken recipe. Most any leftover tomato-y based shredded chicken should work well in these sandwiches, though, which are reminiscent of meatball subs — but, I think, even better! Toasty bun, melty cheese, tangy chicken… what more could you ask for, really.

Leftover Shredded Italian Chicken Sandwiches

leftover italian chicken sandwiches ingredients

Ingredients

6 deli, sub, or jumbo brat rolls
4 cups leftover Italian chicken (see Notes)
1 cup shredded mozzarella (4 oz)
Giardiniera to taste (optional)

Directions

Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Place the rolls on the prepared baking sheet and open them up.

fill rolls with shredded chicken

Fill each roll with leftover shredded Italian chicken.

top sandwiches with cheese

Add optional giardiniera (see Notes) — which I did chop small, so that it would spread out better under the cheese. Top with shredded mozzarella.

finished italian chicken sandwich on a plate

Bake your sandwiches at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, then broil on high for 1-2 minutes until both the cheese and the rolls are browned.

Note: Use either leftover slow cooker Italian pulled chicken, or, as I did today, leftover shredded Italian chicken. I topped half of mine with giardiniera for the adults and left half plain for the kids — We think they’re awesome with the added pop of heat from the peppers, but if you or your kids are sensitive to heat, you might wish to omit.

How’s that for simple?

shredded italian chicken sandwiches with coleslaw and chips

This recipe makes six sandwiches, so, depending on your family’s appetites, it will serve 4-6 people. The hungry husband and teenage boy over here each somehow downed two, so six sandwiches fed our family of four today, along with coleslaw, fruit, & potato chips as a hearty & kid pleasing summer dinner.

Here’s hoping you enjoy these as much as our family did! The mild mozzarella, toasty buns, and flavorful chicken come together beautifully, and I really enjoyed the extra punch of heat from the giardiniera on these.

Leftover Shredded Italian Chicken Sandwiches, printable recipe

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5 from 1 vote

Leftover Shredded Italian Chicken Sandwiches

Course dinner
Cuisine sandwiches
Keyword italian chicken, italian chicken sandwiches, leftovers, leftovers recipe, sandwiches
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 22 minutes
Servings 6 sandwiches

Ingredients

  • 6 deli, sub, or jumbo brat rolls
  • 4 cups leftover Italian chicken see Notes
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella 4 oz
  • Giardiniera, to taste optional

Instructions

  • Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Place the rolls on the prepared baking sheet and open them up.
  • Fill each roll with leftover shredded Italian chicken.
  • Add optional giardiniera (see Notes) — which I did chop small, so that it would spread out better under the cheese. Top with shredded mozzarella.
  • Bake your sandwiches at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, then broil on high for 1-2 minutes until both the cheese and the rolls are browned.

Notes

Use either leftover slow cooker Italian pulled chicken, or, as I did today, leftover shredded Italian chicken. I topped half of mine with giardiniera for the adults and left half plain for the kids — we think they’re awesome with the added pop of heat from the peppers, but if you or your kids are sensitive to heat, you might wish to omit.

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Recipe Rating




Elise

Thursday 21st of March 2024

Made this with my boyfriend after he had some leftover Italian-seasoned chicken. It was amazing, we both loved it! If you're vegetarian like me, use seitan instead of chicken, just as amazing. A very interesting way to use leftovers. Would eat again.