This quick, easy, and simple crockpot whole chicken recipe is a great answer to, “What’s for dinner?” I’m sure you hear that age-old question in your home too. This has been the perfect way for me to add a delicious meal to our dinner table, but without spending hours in the kitchen.
Crockpot meals have become my go-to for getting a hearty meal for my family on those busy days of running kids around. But who am I kidding? I enjoy crockpot dinners on quieter days as well.
In full disclosure: I make this crockpot whole chicken every Sunday in my home. Since it only takes a few minutes to prepare, after church I get the crockpot going and then can forget about dinner for the afternoon. This has been a great solution as I try and give myself a little break on Sundays. But my teen’s appetites don’t go away simply because it is Sunday. And so, I’ll put together a couple quick side dishes {typically sweet potato fries and steam some vegetables} and we’re all set. It feels like a much more “extravagant” meal than it really is.
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WHY THE CROCKPOT?
I get asked often why I use a crockpot. My first reaction is: because I like my crockpot. Ha! That’s it. But honestly, I’ve been making crockpot meals for at least 15 years. Using a crockpot is just a part of the natural rhythm of my meal-making.
The real reason I cook dinners in a crockpot is to save me some time in the late afternoon hours. You know, the dinner prep crunch time. It can get a little crazy around my house as I get kids to and from various activities. And so, getting either the entire meal or a part of the meal going hours beforehand helps to reduce the busyness I tend to encounter.
TIPS FOR MAKING THIS CROCKPOT WHOLE CHICKEN
- I purchase a few whole chickens at once and put them in my freezer. This helps greatly as I generally cook one a week. Also, I enjoy knowing that I have a few extras on hand that can help out if I need to switch around some meals.
- If your whole chicken is in the freezer, move it to your refrigerator 3-4 days prior to cooking it. This will allow it time to thaw.
- Remove any giblets from the cavity of the chicken before placing it in the crockpot. Some whole chickens come with these and some do not. Always check though.
- Be sure to dispose of all the wrappings from the raw chicken appropriately. I place my kitchen trash can right next to the prep area to eliminate carrying dripping wrapping across the room. I also open my raw chicken in a pan inside of my sink. This keeps all the raw drippings together and makes it easier to clean and sanitize afterwards.
- Cook this chicken either breast up or down. It doesn’t matter! When the front is down, it will be quite juicy as it sits in the drippings from the rest of the bird. However, this crockpot chicken recipe results in incredibly juicy meat. In the end, it doesn’t matter which way you put the chicken in. Either way is fine!
- This recipe calls for one combination of spices and seasonings, but I left a few other ideas in the printable recipe card below. This makes the recipe unique as you can’t really go wrong. Any combination will result in a slightly different taste, but all should be great. In the end, mix and match and make any combination of them. There really is no way to go wrong with this recipe. But it sure is fun to try different flavors.
- As I just mentioned, this whole chicken recipe will result in very juicy meat. That is a really good thing. But be prepared for it to practically fall apart when you remove it from the crockpot. That is completely normal and to be expected.
- Serve this chicken with any sides that you prefer. If you are using this recipe to keep things simple at dinnertime, choose sides that will also be simple to prepare.
- Save your bones and the drippings. I have a bone broth recipe coming soon, which I’ll show you how to use the bones and everything left in the crockpot to make delicious bone broth.
TOOLS YOU WILL NEED
- Crockpot {THIS ONE is my favorite…I actually have two for those extra large crowd gatherings.}
- Knife set
- Meat fork
You may also enjoy these recipes and posts:
- Crockpot Chili
- Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Homemade Taco Seasoning
- Egg and Sausage Breakfast Casserole
- Staying Organized with a Weekly To Do List
Crockpot Whole Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp garlic powder
- 2 Tbsp parsley
Instructions
- Remove giblets and place whole chicken in a crockpot.
- Sprinkle salt, garlic powder, and parsley. {Feel free to experiment with other combinations including onion powder, oregano, paprika, cumin, etc. Always use salt though.}
- Cook on high for 4 hours.
- Remove from crockpot and serve.
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