The Frozen Roast Chicken My Chef Dad Always Buys at This Gas Station (He Bought a Deep Freezer to Stockpile Them)

There’s a lot of things that make my dad who he is: He’s an avid MMA fighter (he says getting punched in the face by 20-year-olds keeps him young) and an excellent chef. He loves our dog, Bean, dearly. Above all, he is absolutely and utterly obsessed with Buc-ee’s. Although it’s technically a convenience store/gas station, stepping inside a Buc-ee’s is more like entering a roadside amusement park.

I’ve always known my dad to be a generally calm man, but Buc-ee’s is the one place where he acts like a kid in a candy store. Each year, my family goes on a road trip to South Florida, and every time my dad makes sure we stop exclusively at Buc-ee’s for gas and snacks. I’m not kidding! 

He strategically maps out the drive to hit the ones in South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida to fill up the tank with gas and our stomachs with legendary barbecue and snacks. He loves everything about Buc-ee’s: the adorable beaver mascot, beef brisket sandwiches, hand-cut fries, chocolate … and his favorite? The frozen Chicken Stuffed with Dirty Rice. 

Back in 2021 we were walking around the Buc-ee’s aisles when my dad saw another shopper stuffing their cart with frozen chicken after frozen chicken. My dad was immediately intrigued, and added one to his cart just for fun. That night he tried it and has been raving about it ever since. 

Now he packs a cooler to buy as many as he can possibly fit. He also bought a deep freezer to store them. So he has at least half a dozen on hand at any given time.

The chicken comes pre-seasoned with a blend of Cajun spices, and the real highlight is that it’s stuffed with seasoned rice. The rice contains pork, gizzards, roux, yellow onion, celery, green bell pepper, green onion, chopped garlic, salt, and black and red pepper. In the words of my dad, “it’s the greatest thing to ever happen.” 

The rice is baked inside the chicken, making it a complete meal on its own. “The rice soaks up all those savory chicken juices and makes it unbelievably delicious,” he says.

His praise means a lot. He’s a chef himself, and hardly ever buys frozen meals or even any shortcuts. Most of the time, he’d rather debone a chicken himself and then cook it entirely. So that just goes to show just how good Buc-ee’s chickens are. 

The instructions say to bake the chicken in the oven and cook covered for about 90 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. My dad sometimes cooks it this way, but when he’s feeling fancy (which is most of the time), he’ll par bake it in the oven and then finish it off in his Ooni pizza oven to get the skin crispy and golden-brown. 

Once the chicken is cooked, it’s already partially deboned so just cut down the center and serve. Next time you’re at Buc-ee’s, go ahead and take a page from my dad’s playbook and grab half a dozen. You won’t regret it. 

Find it in stores: Buc-ee’s Frozen Chicken Stuffed with Dirty Rice, $17.99 for 46 ounces at Buc-ee’s

What’s your favorite food to pick up at Buc-ee’s? Tell us in the comments below!