The Best Whole Chicken in a Slow Cooker Recipe
My friend piqued my curiosity when she told me about her co-worker bringing in a slow cooker to work with just a whole chicken and slow cooking it for an entire day. She often brought her slow cooker in with some kind of concoction so she could bring dinner over to her friend’s house who was going through chemotherapy treatment. What a great friend, I’m sure her friend appreciated it. My friend told me their office often smelled really good during these days.
So when I was on the hunt for a chicken slow cooker recipe, I googled and found this one. It’s incredibly simple and the chicken goes into the crockpot in minutes. I added my own twist to it and guess what? The chicken is wonderfully moist and it’s very simple. After the chicken is done, you can throw it in your broiler to crisp up the skin. Carving the chicken is so easy because it just wants to fall apart. The breast comes right off the bone and is very easy to cut up. The chicken is really tender and flavorful and much easier than roasting a chicken in the oven.
I use a 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 pound chicken and it fits just fine in my slow cooker. I added the carrots and vegetables and the chicken rests nicely on them. Also, I added garlic and lemon. My favorite roast chicken recipe calls for garlic and lemon inside the chicken so I do the same when I make it in the slow cooker.
This makes a wonderfully easy meal you can serve with mashed potatoes or rice and your favorite vegetable alongside the carrots and celery if you wish. And wait until you see what I make I make chicken pot pies with the leftover chicken.
Add the rub to the outside and inside of the chicken.
I put the vegetables in the slow cooker first before laying the chicken on top.
I use turkey lifters to remove the chicken from the slow cooker carefully. Place chicken in an oven safe dish or roasting pan & in the broiler for just about 4-5 minutes.
Whole Chicken in a Slow Cooker
Yield: 6
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 8 hours
Total Time: 8 hours 10 min
It's incredibly simple and the chicken goes into the crockpot in minutes.
Ingredients:
Rub Ingredients
4 tsp salt
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 1/2 to 4 1/2 lbs roasting or fryer chicken
1 cup chopped onion, approx 1 medium to large onion
4-5 carrots, scrubbed, no need to peel, chopped in halves or thirds
4 celery stalks, cut in thirds
2 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
1 lemon quartered
Directions:
Combine rub ingredients in a small bowl.
Remove chicken from packaging and remove neck and pouch with organs. Discard or reserve for later use in another recipe. Rinse chicken and pat dry with paper towels.
Rub garlic all over outside of the chicken. Put garlic inside the chicken. Rub the rub all over the outside and inside the chicken. Add quartered lemon to the inside of the chicken.
Place onions, carrots and celery inside the slow cooker. Place chicken on top of the vegetables. Cover slow cooker and cook chicken on low for 4-8 hours. (When I used a 4 lb chicken, it took about 6 hours. The time will depend on the size of the chicken and your slow cooker.) Cook until the internal temperature of the leg is at 160 degrees F or use a pop-up thermometer as the original recipe calls for.
Remove chicken and place in a 9x13 glass baking dish. Place baking dish in the oven under the broiler for about 4-5 minutes. Allow chicken to rest after removing it from the broiler for 5-10 minutes.
Modified and adapted from food.com.
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I have made this recipe so many times now that I can’t even count. It seriously is the best recipe for making a whole chicken in a crockpot! I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to blog about it. Be sure to check out next week what I do with the leftovers!
Disclosure: There are a couple of affiliate links in this post – that means if you click on the link and make a purchase, I make enough for a cup of coffee or two. Thanks!
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Hi, my name is Julie and I love to share the cooking and baking adventures from my little kitchen. Cooking and baking is in my blood, thanks to my Mom! 
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kitchen newsletter:
I have made this recipe a few times now and it has always turned out fantastic! I use a little less cayenne so my little ones will eat it but otherwise follow the recipe- which is very unusual for me. I now use the slow cooker for chicken every time. Thank you for the recipe!
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I’m making a list of crockpot recipes for the winter and this is HIGH ON THE LIST!
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This recipe is amazing. I actually doubled the seasonings because I had a larger chicken, and it was perfect. There was a ton of juice that was created and I used it to make gravy. Some of the best gravy I’ve made. Also when you are done eating the chicken, save the bones and put them back in the crockpot and cover with water and cook them again to make actual chicken stock. For me the “stock” that is made the first time is too rich to want to use as a chicken stock in a specific recipe, but like I said it makes great gravy. If you haven’t tried this recipe yet, you must definitely do so!
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I am going try this recipe soon! The one thing I can’t believe, is that you had leftovers. Maybe you don’t have a teenage son at your house.
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Hi. I want to make this for Christmas dinner tomorrow so my question is ; I don’t have any vegetables to put at the bottom so do I put the chicken in there alone (no water) or is this recipe only if you use vegetables? I will be using the recipe for the rub, garlic and lemon but no vegetables. Also, what temp do I use med, high? Thanks for the advice.
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JulieD replied: December 24th, 2011 @ 9:51 pm
Hi Debbie,
It’s 4-8 hours on low. No need to add water at the bottom, it’s much better with veggies so the chicken isn’t sitting in the broth that is accumulates as it cooks.It may fall apart on you but I think others have done it without the veggies. Let me know how it goes & happy holidays!
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Do you mince the garlic and rub it on outside and inside of chicken? And for the quartered lemon do you squeeze the lemon juice inside the chicken or you just put the unsqueezed quarter lemon in the chicken?
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JulieD replied: December 27th, 2011 @ 3:54 pm
Hi there, no I just smash the garlic (remove the peel) & then I rub it on the chicken. I quarter the lemon but I don’t squeeze it before putting it inside the chicken. Hope you enjoy it!
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Do you know how removing the skin would affect the cooking process? I’m not a health nut or anything, I just don’t really enjoy the skin and have seen other recipes remove it.
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JulieD replied: December 30th, 2011 @ 9:06 pm
I’m not really sure, I think the skin helps seal in the moistness of the chicken. But it’s a worth a try!
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Hi! This is probably a silly question – but I’m pretty new to cooking. I just made a roasted chicken in the oven and trussed it with butcher’s twine. Is the trussing not necessary if you use the slow cooker?
Can’t wait to try your recipe in the slow cooker!
Thanks!
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JulieD replied: January 2nd, 2012 @ 10:03 pm
Hi Tasha,
Not a silly question at all! No need to truss the chicken for this slow cooker recipe. You do want to bend back the chicken wings so they are underneath the the chicken…see how the wing doesn’t stick up in the picture? Hope you enjoy the recipe & thanks for visiting!!
~Julie~
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Thanks, Julie! Can’t wait to try it!
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I am just starting this right now! It really looks GOOD and TASTY!! hopefully i made it right!!
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JulieD replied: January 6th, 2012 @ 11:35 am
Hi Mark,
I hope you enjoy it!!!
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I just got a slow cooker last week and have been looking at recipies on the internet for the last two days. Your’s is the one. I’ll have it in the pot in about an hour. Wish me luck.
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JulieD replied: January 8th, 2012 @ 12:39 pm
Yay, Mike! Congrats on the new slow cooker…I love mine and there are a few recipes on here that are family favorites. Hope it goes well! I can’t wait to hear what you think!
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THE most flavorful, moist, tender chicken we’ve ever had. The wife made chicken salad with the leftovers today. It’s awesome too. I know what I’m having for lunch tomorrow. Heck, I might have a sandwich for dinner tonight. Thanks, Julie. You’re the best.
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Love, love, love this!!!
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does it matter the size of your slow cooker. Mine is your typical large pot size?. I have seen some that the chicken can rest like it does in a pay. In my slow cooker it would need to stand up.
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JulieD replied: January 13th, 2012 @ 1:33 am
Hi Andrea,
I don’t know if it will work exactly the same way since you have a large pot sized slow cooker but I think it’s worth a try. Let me know if you do and how it turns out. Just for your information, I have an oval-shaped slow cooker that’s 7 quarts.
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No liquid??
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JulieD replied: January 18th, 2012 @ 2:57 pm
Are you asking if liquid needs to be added? If so, the answer is no. If you keep the lid closed, it actually makes a ton of liquid.
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saw your recipe last night and i have it in my slow cooker at home now! can’t wait to see how it come out!
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After browsing around, this one looks the closest to what I’m after, so charlie the chicken is in the slow cooker today, and I hope he turns out as good as your pictures look. Great recipe, thanks!
I especially like the idea of stuffing with lemon & garlic, and then putting under the broiler when it’s done to crisp up the skin. Very nice touch.
For what it’s worth, my substitutions were rosemary instead of thyme (and a lot of it – I’m a big fan), and leeks instead of onions in the veggies underneath.
I guess it’s onto your other slow cooker recipes after this!
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Hi! I’ve had this in my crock pot today and I will be eating it in literally the next 30 mins….my excitement is so strong I can hardly wait for my husband to get home! Will let you know my thoughts later
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and it was DELISH, I will definitely be making more of your recipes
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JulieD replied: February 4th, 2012 @ 7:27 pm
Yay, Megan! Thanks for letting me know and for your sweet comments! We love this recipe and make it least once a month.
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Gonna try tomorow for superbowl! sounds yummy!
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For someone who loves cooking but sucks at cooking chicken, I was a little skeptical that I could pull this off. I had a whole chicken in my freezer that needed to be cooked so after some googling I found your recipe and holy cow! I can’t believe this masterpiece of poultry came out of my kitchen.
As a semi-single (husband is stationed over-seas), pregnant, working mom, easy is a plus for me and that’s just what this is. Easy and oh so good. This recipe will be used in my kitchen for a long, long, time. Thx
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JulieD replied: February 7th, 2012 @ 8:47 pm
Hi Ema! So glad you enjoyed it!! We enjoy this recipe all the time! I cannot go back to regular roast chicken…it’s so easy! Thanks for stopping by to tell me!
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Saw & bookmarked this link awhile ago!
Finally making it. 10 minutes for prep time may be true for you, but it took me about that long to get the spices measured out, since I was grinding rather than pouring salt, the veg took a few or several minutes to cut, and washing & rubbing the chicken took another five minutes.
I didn’t have thyme or white pepper, used poultry seasoning instead. Starting to smell good already! (2+ hours into cook time.)
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Julie, do you set the slow cooker on high or low?
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JulieD replied: March 8th, 2012 @ 5:04 pm
Hi Carrie-
From the recipe: “Cover slow cooker and cook chicken on low for 4-8 hours”. I usually cook it on low. Hope that helps!
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I tried this, and you’re right! At the end I had about an inch or more of juice from the chicken that was bubbling when I got home from work. The chicken looked great and it was so tender it was falling off the bone, BUT…it was DRY! So dry that we had to come up with some sort of gravy to finish it.
How can you keep it from drying out so bad? We cooked it on low for about 5 hours and it was about a 4 lb bird.
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JulieD replied: March 11th, 2012 @ 9:58 pm
Hi Russ,
I’m not sure…hmm, I usually have between 2 and 4 inches of juice at the bottom of the crockpot. Did you put a lemon quartered up inside the cavity of the chicken? There was one time when we didn’t have a lemon and I still made it…the meat was a little bit dry but is definitely not when I use the lemon. I hope that helps!
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Hi Julie: Dumb question. Are the vegetables at the bottom of the pot usable, or are they too “greasy” from the chicken fat that drips off?
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JulieD replied: March 19th, 2012 @ 8:36 am
Hi there! They are a little greasy and soggy but we love them! Don’t judge us!
Hope you enjoy the chicken if you make it.
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hi i have a Question for this chicken recipie can the chicken be a frozen one that u put in crockpot?
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JulieD replied: April 12th, 2012 @ 5:54 pm
Hi Kara, I haven’t tried it with a frozen chicken but I would think it would at least 2-3 hours if not more on to your cooking time. I would check the temperature with a meat thermometer to be sure it’s ready. Let me know if you try it and how it works for you!
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Thank you for posting this recipe. I have been resisting buying a slow cooker because I just love being in the kitchen cooking my favorite recipes – the ones that take so long to cook – like roast beef, roast chicken, or beef stew. But, I just remembered while reading this page that I went to the garden center yesterday and bought some seedlings of tomatoes, red peppers, some herbs, and two sacks of vegetable soil. The weather here in the Bay Area is so beautiful now; I think I should really be spending more time in the garden instead of the kitchen. So, before the day is over, that slow cooker will be in my kitchen!
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JulieD replied: April 23rd, 2012 @ 4:11 pm
Eva, you’re reminding me to start my herb garden! I hope you enjoyed this recipe as much as we do!
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Going to try this. However, I wish it was easier to print out these recipes. I ended up having to copy and paste it to Word Pad in order to print out the last part of the recipe without printing the whole article. Since buying a new PC my printer can not be set for manual two sided printing so have to tweak a lot. Believe me, I have communicated with the manufacturer to no avail. It is a good printer so I live with it.
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JulieD replied: April 29th, 2012 @ 2:19 pm
Hi Eloise, hope you enjoy it! Did you try the print button on the top right of the recipe? That should work, that way you don’t have to print out the entire article.
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Ohhhhhh…I can’t wait to try this out! What a fabulous idea!
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Is there another vegetable I could use instead of celery? Looks delicious!
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JulieD replied: May 1st, 2012 @ 11:27 am
Hi Bethany, thank you! You certainly can, maybe potatoes? You want a whole layer of veggies on the bottom so you can certainly up the amount onions and carrots. The chicken needs to be resting on a bed of vegetables.
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Could you use this recipe with boneless, skinless chicken breast. I have a pace and would like try it.
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JulieD replied: May 1st, 2012 @ 11:36 am
Hi Linda, I’m not sure how moist it would turn out using boneless, skinless chicken breast. You can try roasting your chicken breast in the oven with some freshly squeezed lemon and fresh thyme since that’s what you have. I would only do this recipe with a whole chicken. Hope that helps!
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I made this the other night, except I didn’t have all of the spices, but just substituted with whatever I had in my cabinet… and it turned out sooooooo good! thank you for sharing this!
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JulieD replied: May 31st, 2012 @ 9:32 pm
Hi Mary Rose, that’s so awesome to hear! So glad you enjoyed it
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You really can’t go wrong with this recipe… will have to try out your spice mixture on chicken in my slow cooker:)
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