I’ve tried a ridiculous amount of crock pot recipes, and this is by far the best (and easiest) way to slow cook a whole chicken until it is falling-off-the bone delicious. And if you have a well-stocked spice cabinet you’ll hardly have to buy anything to make this
dish. Once the chicken is done it is flavorful enough to eat by itself, or you can incorporate it into another dish like pasta, chicken salad, or a casserole. We use a very basic crock pot that can purchased on Amazon for about $25.
Another great trick (that I learned from a friend!) is that after you pick off the good chicken meat you can leave the bones in the crock pot to make some stock. I usually start the chicken stock after dinner by filling it to the top with water, and then adding whatever I have on hand…bay leaf, carrot, celery, onion, parsley and/or thyme. Even if I am missing parsley or celery I still make it anyway, and it always turns out just fine. I keep it on low all night, and then in the morning I strain it into 1 or 2 cup Tupperware containers to store in the freezer. It works great and couldn’t be easier!
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne (red) pepper
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 onion
- 1 large chicken
- Combine the dried spices in a small bowl.
- Loosely chop the onion and place it in the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Remove any giblets from the chicken and then rub the spice mixture all over. You can even put some of the spices inside the cavity and under the skin covering the breasts.
- Put prepared chicken on top of the onions in the slow cooker, cover it, and turn it on to high. There is no need to add any liquid.
- Cook for 4 – 5 hours on high (for a 3 or 4 pound chicken) or until the chicken is falling off the bone. Don’t forget to make your homemade stock with the leftover bones!
What can be used instead of thyme?
Hi Pat. You can really use any spices you like. You can try rosemary perhaps…I sometimes do that with some fresh squeezed lemon. Jill
Just made this for dinner. Absolutely DELICIOUS! And so easy!
[...] I now do dried beans in the crockpot. Instead of pre-cooked rotisserie chickens, I make fabulous whole chickens in the crockpot [...]
I just made this for the first time, as my family is making a conscious effort to stay away from processed food. It is delicious! I really thought it needed liquid…I was wrong! Excited to make stock for the first time! Thanks for your site.
I ditched the paprika and garlic/onion powder. Used 3 cloves of pressed garlic, added a tablespoon of olive oil and made a paste of the spices and rubbed it all over. It was so damn good!
it is in the crock pot as I type…I will check it out tonight when I get home.
The spices smelled good. Did not have garlic powder…had a frozen cube..I defrosted and mixed with other spices.
My chicken is almost 7 pounds. How long do I cook it? High or low setting?
Hi Debbie. On high. I might just add an hour to the original time. I would just watch it closely towards the end. Jill
[...] Chicken in the slow cooker, Roasted Brussels [...]
Have made this chicken several times. Loved the chicken stock. Made Chicken tortilla soup with it and the chicken! Fabulous.
I wasn’t sure if it was 4-5 hours on high or low from the recipe, so went with high since that made sense. Hoping it turns out okay! Fingers crossed.
Yes, it’s high. It’s in step 4. Jill
So put chicken and flavorings in slow cooker and plug it in…Are there really people that cannot make this happen without a recipe? I was hoping for some interesting new ideas but this is utterly mundane. What’s next, a toast recipe? ‘Put bread in toaster, wait 30 seconds’.
Ha, so true. The level of amazement is exactly that.
Sometimes the obvious is easy to forget when you’re trying to set a menu for your family…I’m grateful for the reminder and plan to make this!
This recipe may be utterly simple to
You but some of us have never really cooked much so this simple
Chicken is new to us. Everyone has to start somewhere to get healthy and this is my first time making a whole chicken. So thanks from us Utterly mundane ppl who need help!
[...] it simmered in a 50/50 mix of (my first attempt at) crockpot chicken stock and [...]
I will NEVER make chicken in the oven again…I mean this couldn’t be easier or tastier! I cannot thank you enough for this!!
This recipe was delicious. The idea of making the soup afterwards was great.
Great recipe! The rub provides wonderful flavor. I added 1 teas. Italian seasoning, 1/4 teas. of cayenne, and a dash of chili pepper. I nested the chicken on half of the onion and two chopped garlic cloves. I then placed the other half of the onion and two more chopped garlic cloves on top.
The chicken looked beautiful after five hours on high. I was so surprised how easily it just fell off the bone. I agree with others, this is the only way I will “roast” a chicken.
I just had a baby and am trying to cook healthier now. I work fulltime and was worried about the cook time. Could I cook this on low for 8 hours???
Hi Haley. You could give it a try. Does your slow cooker switch to warm once it’s done? I’m not sure how long you are gone, but, that might be an option as well. Jill
I cooked this yesterday for dinner. I did it for 10 hours on low since I had to go to work. It was great! Next time I think I will add more seasonings because I like more spice, but it was really good and fell right off the bone. I also made a brown rice dish to go with it. I just used 1 cup of brown rice and 2 cups of chicken stock, then threw in some onion, celery, peas, carrots, thyme, onion powder, garlic powder, and pepper. It came out great and went well with the chicken. I’m going to make chicken salad with the leftovers. So easy I will do this dish at least once a month.
Thank you for posting how 10 hours on low works for us people that leave early in the morning and do not get home until 6:00 at night.
So mine was dry- I think I overcooked…
Hi Dina…yes, I’m guessing that was it. I actually sometimes cook mine about 30 minutes less, especially if my chicken is a little smaller. Jill
Hi, can legs and thighs be used instead of a whole chicken? Looking forward to trying this.
Hi Mari. I’ve not tried it with just the legs and thighs, but, you could give it a try, I think it would probably be ok. You might need to decrease the cooking time a little. Jill
Hello,
I’m late coming to the comments, so thi shas probably been addressed: please consider striking thorugh the Tupperware recommendation and really urge the use of glass for storage. Don’t trust plastic…esp in the freezer or with hot foods.
Isnt’ it amazing to watch what our grandmothers knew and taught come full circle and be “discovered” again?
S
My mom always told me not to do a whole chicken in a slow cooker for food safety concerns. Her understanding was that it took so long to get the ‘whole bird’ hot (since it is much larger than pieces of a whole chicken) that it gave time for bad germs to grow.
Curious if anyone knows whether this is a valid concern or old wives tale?
Old wives tale. once the min temp is reached (165) in the center, all germs die.
Any large chicken will do? Does it need to be bought at a Trader Joe’s? Or will any ol’ grocery store chicken do? Thanks!
Hi Kelly. I would try and get an organic chicken or at least one that was raised without antibiotics or hormones. If you are able to get something local, that would be even better. Hope you enjoy the recipe. Jill
Will it cook the same if I don’t use onions on the bottom? Should I place the chicken ontop of something so it cooks evenly? Wanting to make tonight. Thank you.
Hi Steffanie. I find the onions give it a lot of flavor, so, if you don’t include them you might miss out a little on the flavor. As far as cooking, it should still be fine. Jill
OMG!!! I cooked this recipe today for the 1st time. At 1st, I was a little afraid that it wouldnt turn out like how it’s described, like the last crock pot recipe I tried. But it was delicious!! It was so juicy and full of flavor! I’m not the “World’s Best Cook”, but I have to give myself a pat on the back for a job well done with this one. My kids and my husband loved it! This meal has joined my list of “Favorite Family Meals”. Thank you so much for posting this recipe and making my life a little less hectic when it comes to dinner time! God bless!!