Do you have little time, but still want a nutritious, delicious and easy meal everyone in your family will enjoy? Chicken in a Crockpot only takes minutes to prepare and basically cooks itself.
Every Sunday at our local farmer’s market, I buy a whole chicken from the great folks at Healthy Family Farms (we also get our eggs from them). I like to make a Simple Roast Chicken every Sunday, but several weeks ago the farmer that sells the chickens asked if I had ever tried cooking a whole chicken in a slow cooker. I had not. I listened as she told me just how easy it was to prepare, but I was still in disbelief at how simple her description was. No oil? No butter? No broth? Just a few herbs, lemon and salt? Really?! I immediately went home that afternoon and with practically no effort, prepared a chicken that was about as good as any I had ever tasted. My whole family was wide-eyed as we took our first bites — the chicken was moist, tender and juicy and the consistency is almost like pulled pork because the meat literally falls off the bone.
This recipe is embarrassingly simple and incredibly healthy, but the best part is that it essentially cooks itself. There’s almost no work involved, and I love that I can cook a whole chicken and then keep the meat in the fridge to make Mac, Chicken and Cheese Bites, Chicken, Bean and Cheese Quesadillas or Chicken and Rice Burritos throughout the week!
Not only did Kenya, our friends, my hubby and I fall in love, but guess who ate more then her fair share of chicken? That’s right, baby Chloe. She was like a little chicken eatin’ machine, putting piece after piece into her mouth.
If cooking a whole chicken in the oven has always seemed daunting to you, try this crock pot version. It’s so simple, you’ll have a hard time finding reasons not to. Check out the video if you want to see how we did it!
Chicken in a Crock Pot
Ingredients
- 1 4-pound whole chicken
- 2-3 thyme sprigs
- 1 lemon, cut in half
- kosher salt
Instructions
- Stuff the chicken with the thyme and lemon halves and sprinkle the outside with salt.
- Cook on high for 3 hours (increase time to 4 hours for a 5 pound chicken).
- Using a meat thermometer, make sure the chicken is cooked to 160 degrees (the times on different slow cookers may vary).
- Allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes before cutting it into pieces (this allows the juices to redistribute and the chicken to remain extremely juicy).
- Note: The skin on the chicken won’t be golden because this is more of a steaming method, but the meat will be outrageously moist, tender and juicy.
Frozen chicken pieces will work in this recipe. They will cook faster than a whole chicken.
Hi, thank you… I am kitchen challenged… Can this be done with frozen chicken pieces in crock pot? Love lemon 😉 such a cute family, blessings 😉
I just made this last night for my family and I got RAVING reviews! Words like “best chicken ever” and “mom, this is awesome” were a part of our dinner conversation! I also get similar reactions to the Pulled Pork Tacos! Thanks Weelicious! Your site is quickly becoming my dinner planning go-to!
whole chicken in CROCK POT
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[…] – Roasted Broccoli – Crockpot Chicken – http://b12.ba4.myftpupload.com/2010/03/16/chicken-in-a-crock-pot-2/ – For the mac and cheese, I used some corkscrew veggie […]
BusyBee74, I throw a frozen whole chicken in the crock the night before, turn on low and absolutely falls apart.. Really, put it in the crock in the morning (still frozen) and is ready by dinner time. Falls completely apart. My family gets so excited when they see me pulling out the crock pot and a whole chicken! I’m excited because I don’t have to spend time shredding left over chicken for the next day’s meal!
Yes you can! It will take a few hours longer!
May be a dumb question but… can you cook a frozen chicken in a crock pot?
[…] -Chicken in a Crock Pot […]
Just made this today and it turned out great. My 18 month old twins were shoveling it in! Thanks for reminding me how awesome the slow cooker is. Your site is fantastic.
[…] just discovered this incredibly easy way to prepare a whole chicken! Seriously, no prep AT ALL! Love it. The chicken is tender and great for […]
[…] can’t turn last night’s dinner into today’s lunch. Turn chicken fajitas into a quesadilla, chicken in a crock pot into slices of chicken with a dipping sauce, or last night’s brown rice into a beans and rice […]
Love, love, love this super easy way to cook chicken! I wish I had thought to try it out months ago!
Is it just me or does that look like an orange in the photo?