One of my favorite ways to prepare chicken is to to slow cook a chicken in the crock pot. If you haven’t roasted a chicken in your crock-pot yet… try it!
Not only is slow cook chicken the easiest and least expensive way I’ve found to prepare it, but you get a couple quarts of chicken broth from it too! It is great on a busy day (every day) and an easy dinner meal.
Ingredients and Tools
- A whole chicken (Usually available for under a reasonable price for even organic)
- 1 tbsp butter
- Favorite herbs and spices (I add 1 tsp garlic granules or powder, 1 tsp sea salt, and about 1/2 tsp each of basil, oregano, thyme, and rosemary.)
- Crock Pot (here’s the one I have)
Slow Cook a Whole Chicken
Prep
Cook
Total
Yield 4 +
Ingredients
- A whole chicken (Usually available for under a reasonable price for even organic)
- 1 tbsp butter
- Favorite herbs and spices (I add 1 tsp garlic granules or powder, 1 tsp sea salt, and about 1/2 tsp each of basil, oregano, thyme, and rosemary.)
Instructions
- Rinse chicken and make sure innards are removed.
- Put butter in bottom or crock pot and turn on low (butter is to prevent sticking, can use coconut oil).
- Once butter melts, put chicken in crock pot (putting breast-down will make it cook faster).
- Sprinkle with desired spices. (I've also heard of stuffing the chicken with an onion, apple or orange for more moistness and great flavor).
- Put lid on and cook on low for 7-8 hours or until well cooked.
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The chicken goes great with roasted brussel sprouts!
How to Make Broth
- Remove chicken and pull meat off the bones but leave all the juices in the crock pot.
- Put the bones back in the crock pot and add 1 small chopped onion, 2 ribs of celery, 1 chopped carrot and a little more sea salt.
- Add 2-3 quarts of water (depending on what your’s will hold).
- Cook on low overnight.
- Strain bones and vegetables out.
- Use within 3 days or freeze for later use.
Note: This makes a thick broth which can be frozen in ice cube trays for “instant” chicken broth when needed in recipes. Also, view my in-depth broth tutorial here.
Some other ideas for using your whole roasted chicken:
- Put a small colander on top of the chicken when almost done cooking and fill with veggies. It will steam them so you have the whole meal ready to serve.
- For the last few hours, put some medium sized sweet potatoes on top of the chicken and put the lid back on. Both will be ready for dinner.
- After making the broth, remove the bones, add some chicken back in along with a few cups of favorite veggies and you have an easy chicken soup (with tons of nutrients)
How do you cook a chicken? Do you make broth too? What’s your secret? Share below!
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