Whole Slow-Cook Chicken

By Addie

"Tender, fall-off-the-bone chicken! Skip the overnight refrigeration if you are in a hurry. For variety, eliminate the onion and substitute a quartered lemon or two, stuffed into the chicken cavity. Chef Shapeweaver had a good suggestion: Use Fajita Seasoning Mix #28011 as another variation. Thanks! The standard size slow cookers are a bit too small and a whole chicken won't fit. You'll need a 6-quart slow cooker for this recipe."

Ingredients

• 4 teaspoons salt ( per recipe reviews, 2 tsp is better)
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 large roasting chickens ( with pop-up timer if possible)
• 1 cup chopped onions (optional)

Preparation

Step 1

In a small bowl, combine the spices. Remove any giblets from chicken and clean chicken. Rub spice mixture onto the chicken.

Place in resealable plastic bag and refrigerate overnight. (I usually skip this step because I'm always in a hurry).

When ready to cook, put chopped onion in bottom of crock pot. Add chicken. No liquid is needed, the chicken will make it's own juices. Cook on low 4-8 hours.


Note: I highly recommend a pop-up timer in the chicken because some crock pots cook faster/slower than others (my crock pot cooks this recipe in 4-5 hours).
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REVIEWS:

I have been making chicken this way since 1999 when I got the recipe from a recipe loop I was in. It is the best!! I usually prepare it the "original" way which calls for roasting it at 250 degrees for 5 hours but when I'm not able to be home I put it in the crockpot. The only other thing I do when I cook it in the crockpot is to transfer the chicken to a baking dish and put it under the broiler to crisp up the chicken a bit. Delish!!

This is absolutely the best way to make a whole chicken. It doesn't get any tender than this. I used a little wine the third time and then saved the stock to make chicken soup. It was incredible. I have given this recipe to all of the girls at work because most of them only cook out of a box and they LOVE IT!

Scrumptious! Spice mix gave a great color to the chicken and the amount of cayenne just the right 'kick'. I've noticed how white chicken meat becomes when cooked in a crock pot, very appealing.

A very wonderful recipe. I followed the recipe without making any changes. My crockpot specifically says NOT to cook a whole chicken in it, so OF COURSE I had to try it! The spice mixture was really great; I may use it in the summer when I grill chickens on the kettle grill.

Outstanding recipe!! I made it with the lemon adaptation and it was wonderful. I'm diabetic so the left overs have been made into chicken and cheese quesadillas for my evening snacks. the absolute best seasoning mixture. I will try the under the skin method next time. No doubt there won't be any more oven time!!

This is a deliciously moist and flavorful chicken recipe. I don't think it could get any more tender than this! We enjoyed our supper so much this evening! I prepared the rub the evening before and put the chicken in the refrigerator over night. The house smelled heavenly all day while the chicken cooked in the crockpot. I thickened the juices for gravy to serve over mashed potatoes as a side and served with egg twist rolls and a zucchini casserole side dish. It just doesn't get any easier than this! Thank you for posting this simply delicious recipe! I will be making this one again!

This is a great recipe. For lack of time, I bypassed the refrigerator step. The chicken was falling off the bone tender. The juices were defatted, strained, thickened and used as gravy-delicious and oh so easy! Thanks a lot! It's a keeper.

Not only is this chicken the best I've had, it was so simple to prepare. I used the spices listed and put some under the breast skin. Cooked on low for 10 hours. This is the first I've done in a slow cooker and I'll never use the oven again. Keeper for sure.

I don't have a crock pot, soooo I used my oven I used your exact recipe, placed the chicken in a Waterless Dutch oven. I placed the pot i na 200 F oven and cooked it overnight. It is simply delicious. I have never had such soft tender meat all over. I have not served it yet. but I tasted it. I think its a "keeper" I'm serving it for dinner tonight.

The spices gave the chicken a delicious flavor! The chicken was very moist, in fact, I had a hard time pulling it out of the crockpot because it was falling apart. However, the taste was wonderful. We had leftovers, so my DH and I will be enjoying it again today as a chicken salad sandwich. I'll be making this chicken recipe again!

This is a fool-proof recipe. Love it. I transfer the chicken to a cookie sheet to brown under the broiler for a couple of minutes (it eliminates the most of the "greasy" parts that people complain about). Also, the gravy from the sauce is amazing! Pour the juices into a small pot on the stove. Add 2 Tbs cornstarch to about 1/2 cups COLD water, let it dissolve, and then slowly pour it into juices on medium heat, so the gravy starts to bubble and thicken. (Don't pour too much in too quickly or it'll turn into cement!) :)

My boyfriend and I always have this with mashed potatoes, corn and biscuits! Also, quesadillas with the leftovers are highly recommended! We also like to use the chicken for deluxe salads.

Yes, it was moist, yes it was tender, but it just was sort of blah and the texture was odd. I'll use the remainder for casseroles.

I thought this was an easy to make, spicy recipe, that was really good! I took the skin off my chicken and rubed the sprices on the meat before cooking because I'm always trying to cut down on fat for health reasons.

I have made this twice now and it is WONDERFUL! The meat is fall off the bone tender, juicy and so flavorful! Instead of putting onion in the bottom of the crock, I used an aluminum foil packet filled with cubed potatoes seasoned with salt, pepper and butter. Oh my gosh, the potatoes were soooo good. I used the leftover chicken breast to make Easy Homemade Chicken Salad the next day. Yum!!! *Update* - I've discovered if you add the bones and skin back into the liquid that was left in your crock pot, add 5-6 cups of water and whatever vegetables you have on hand (carrots, celery, onion) and cook overnight (12 hours) on LOW, it will make a WONDERFUL stock. Filter the bones and veggies out, and store the stock in containers in the fridge. After a few hours the fat will solidify on the top and can be removed. The stock can then be frozen until needed.

This is a great recipe! I made it exactly as written and it was very good. I polled my family as to whether or not they thought it was a 'keeper' and my daughter wouldn't stop chewing to answer, she just quickly nodded her head. Thanks for a great crock pot recipe!

WOW!!! I never thought something so simple could turn out so amazing. First time cooking a whole chicken in the crock. Made just like recipe instructed. It really was hands down the BEST chicken I've ever had.

I used bone-in chicken breast instead of a whole chicken and I reduced the cooking time to 4 1/2 hours. This was excellent. The best chicken I have ever made in a crockpot!!!!

I made this with the hope that it would be moist enough to feed to my 9 month old baby. And it WAS! He loved it. It's moister than Rotisserie chicken and so flavorful. I don't agree with the others about going overboard on the salt. We don't eat the skin so really how much salt are you getting when just eating the meat?? Also one of the comments below said the breast meat was a little dry, that's hard for me to believe unless it's cooked without the skin to hold in the moisture OR the lid was removed during cooking. It's pretty difficult to overcook in a crockpot, so I don't think that was the issue. I did also stuff it with garlic cloves and lemon wedges. I was able to use the leftovers in many other recipes for the rest of the week. Great way to save money and it's the BEST whole chicken recipe ever! Thank you!
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By kfraz

on March 20, 2003

Absolutely delicious. The meat just fell off of the bone and the aroma in the house was wonderful. I sprinkled a little onion soup mix on top of the onions for a little added flavor. I will definitely make this again and again!!

The chicken was so moist. My family ate almost the whole chicken~still have some for lunch to take to work. The spices gave it just the right flavor. Thank you for a great chicken recipe for the crockpot.