Slow Cooker Whole Chicken

One of the easiest meals you can make on a weekday is a Slow Cooker Whole Chicken. You literally drop a whole chicken in the slow cooker, season it, turn it on, and forget about it. Maybe it’s a bit more involved, but trust me it’s easy.

This Slow Cooker Whole Chicken recipe is a favorite of mine in the fall and winter, especially on those days when I’m working from home. The chicken always comes out tender & moist, and it’s never dry.

Preparing The Chicken

I say this recipe is a bit more involved, since I don’t just drop the chicken in the Slow Cooker. We try to eat healthy, so the skin from the chicken has to go. It only takes a few minutes to remove the skin, and it removes most of the fat without sacrificing taste. You don’t need to be a surgeon and get every bit of skin off, but it’s easy enough using a paring knife to get the majority of it cut away.

Once I have the skin off the chicken, I transfer it to the slow cooker. Add some chicken broth, chicken stock, or chicken bouillon. You’ll need some liquid to help with cooking, and this will keep the chicken from drying out. To help with clean-up, use a slow cooker bag that you can purchase from any grocery store.

Season to your liking. I typically use a BBQ rub, any will do, but my preference is Yardbird Rub. This gives you the right amount of salt, sweetness, and just a touch of heat. Apply liberally to give this little guy some flavor. If you don’t have a BBQ Rub, you can use poultry salt, season salt, and onion powder.

If you want a quick vegetable to include with the meal, add some baby carrots to the bottom of the slow cooker before adding the chicken. The combination of rub and broth will give you tender and seasoned carrots without any additional work.

Slow Cooker Whole Chicken

This is an easy slow cooker recipe that will yield a delicious, moist, and tender whole chicken for a super easy dinner.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 6 hours hrs

Servings: 4 people

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 Whole Chicken
• 1/2 Cup Chicken Broth
• 1 tbsp Chicken Rub
• 2 cups Baby Carrots

Equipment

• 1 Slow Cooker

Method

 

1. Rinse carrots and transfer to slow cooker
2. Cut excess fat away from chicken and transfer to slow cooker
3. Pour chicken broth over chicken and carrots
4. Season liberally with rub or other seasons
5. Cook on high for approximately 4 hours, or cook on low for at least 6 hours.

Notes

My slow cooker seems to cook quick, so I’ll cook on high for the first hour before reducing the heat to low, and cook on low for an additional 4 hours.