4 HOUR JUICY Slow Cooker Whole Chicken recipe. This easy complete meal makes a 6 pound chicken in the the crock pot with potatoes and vegetables! You’ll love how simple it is to cook a HEALTHY Rotisserie Chicken!
Slow Cooker Whole Chicken Recipe
I’ve been really big on Slow Cooker recipes lately. Just last week I shared with you my Slow Cooker Bread, and this week I’m sharing the main course to go with it – a whole chicken!
This chicken is juicy, full of flavor and is so easy to make! The key to a juicy chicken in the crockpot is that you cook it in chicken broth! Serve this with Green Bean Broccoli Casserole, roasted Carrots and Mushrooms, for a full dinner meal.
Here’s the recipe video to help you cook it!
How long to cook a whole chicken in a slow cooker?
Close the lid and cook the chicken on high for 4 hours. Now sit back and relax while your kitchen starts to smell amazing! This is one of the many bonuses to owning a slow cooker! Alternatively you could set it to 7 hours on low if you want it to cook longer – sometimes this is easier for work days!
How to Make a Juicy Chicken
The key to making a juicy chicken in the slow cooker is that you want to give it some liquid to become moist, but you don’t want it to sit in the liquid. The solution is that you cut up a bunch of vegetables so the chicken has a “bed” to be placed on, keeping it above the liquid for the majority of cooking time.
And then you place the whole chicken in crock pot with chicken broth. Chicken broth in my opinion keeps the flavor in the right pallet but you could however play around with it! Do you want a citrus zest? Add some orange juice. Apple juice will add some sweetness. Just remember your veggies are cooking in it as well.
This Slow Cooker Whole Chicken recipe is going to give you a very tasty chicken but you need to help it out with some seasoning! Rub 1 teaspoon paprika and 1 tablespoon chicken poultry seasoning all over the chicken, top and bottom.
This seasoning includes sea salt, garlic, pepper, and spices and herbs. So there is no need to add any extra salt or pepper. This one-shot seasoning has everything you need for great flavor!
At the end of the cooking time use a meat thermometer to make sure the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees.
After the chicken is finished cooking, remove it from the slow cooker and cut it up. This should be fairly easy as it will be very tender. This cooking method allows the chicken to stay nice and juicy too.
How To Make Chicken in Crockpot
What that also does is provide you a full meal, so you have your whole chicken and vegetables! I cut up potatoes, celery, carrots and onions to place in the bottom of the slow cooker.
Place your chopped up vegetables in the slow cooker first. Try to place denser veggies, like carrots or potatoes, on the very bottom, where it will be the hottest and sitting in the liquid. They will better tolerate the longer cooking time without becoming mushy. and then place your seasoned whole chicken on top.
It’s good to use thick, dense veggies so that they don’t get too soft and mushy sitting in the crockpot for hours. Thinking about a low-carb option? Use cauliflower instead of potatoes.
After 4 hours is up, the potatoes are perfectly cooked, you can slide your fork right into them. They’re delicious too! The veggies catch all the run-off juices, sit in the added liquid, and even take some of the seasoning you applied to the chicken. This means they are tender and full of flavor.
Serve them as a side dish and you have an easy chicken meal for your family. I hope you enjoy this 4 HOUR Juicy Slow Cooker Whole Chicken recipe!
More Chicken Recipes
Here’s some of my family’s favorites:
Oven Roasted Whole Chicken with Cabbage
How to make a Rotisserie Chicken in the Oven
Easy Chicken Pot Pie
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Chicken Schnitzel
Cast Iron Chicken with Mint Chutney
Chicken Dumpling Soup
Pin for later:
4 HOUR Juicy Slow Cooker Whole Chicken
PrintIngredients
- 4 cups vegetables potatoes, carrots, celery, onions
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 6 pound whole chicken giblets removed
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon chicken poultry rub
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- This recipe calls for 4 cups of vegetables. It’s up to you how you want to divide it up. I like to do 2 cups of potatoes and 2 cups of carrots, celery and onions. For the potatoes, peel and quarter. Fo the carrots, peel and chop up. For the celery and onions, chop. Place the vegetables in the bottom of your slow cooker.
- Pour chicken broth on top of the vegetables.
- Rinse your whole chicken under cold water. Make sure you take the giblets out of the cavity. Pat your chicken dry with paper towels. Rub paprika, poultry rub and salt and pepper to taste all over the chicken – top and bottom.
- Place chicken on top of the vegetables in the slow cooker. Close lid.
- Cook on HIGH for 4 HOURS or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
Mavis says
Lol. I could never fit one of my farm chickens in my slow cooker. I could put cut pieces on it. Would that work?
SandyToes says
You’ll want to reduce the cooking time to about 4-5 hours on low, checking the temperature after 4 hours. Place thighs/legs on top of the breasts to prevent the breast meat from drying out and becoming stringy. Make sure to include the veggies on the bottom of your slow cooker.
Sisterbliss says
Would adding butter to the crock pot be alright ?
Pamela says
Hello! Adding butter wouldn’t ruin the recipe, but I don’t think it’s necessary! Hope this helps!
Jess says
What a neat idea! Pinned!
I would love for you to share this with my Facebook Group for recipes, crafts, tips, and tricks: https://www.facebook.com/groups/pluckyrecipescraftstips/
Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!
Amber says
Hi there! This sounds amazing and I’m super excited to try it out, as I LOVE crockpot recipes. One quick question first though. Would it be possible to keep this on low for 8 hours rather than high for 4? Thank you in advance!
Christina Makri says
OMG! This looks so yummy! thank you for sharing at Sweet Inspiration Link Party 🙂
Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook says
This sounds so tasty!! Thanks for sharing at Fiesta Friday party!
Eclectic Evelyn says
I pinned this so I could make it later. I love my slow cooker and this looks so delicious. I found you over at the Pit Stop. So glad I did. Yum!
Lily says
I’ve never tried roasting a chicken in a slow cooker before. Love that you can set it and forget it. And I’m with you, dark meat all the way! Thanks for sharing at Fiesta Friday!
Judith Graber says
I love to use my slow cooker(s) all year long – such a handy kitchen appliance to have. The chicken looks great – I have only tried breasts not a whole chicken. Thanks for sharing with Fiesta Friday!
Sue from Sizzling Towards 60 & Beyond says
I love my slow cooker and usually make Beef Cheeks in Red Wine or Lamb Shanks. Now I’ll be adding Chicken to the list. Thanks for sharing with us at #BloggersPitStop.
Leslie says
The slow cooker is so useful…especially on busy school nights. This recipe will definitely come in handy. Thanks so much for sharing at the #happynowlinkup!
Natalie A says
This looks so delicious! I love that it only takes 4 hours to cook! I love all the ingredients that go into this recipe, also! Thank you for sharing!
Mother of 3 says
That looks wonderful. I have raised my chicken up by placing balls of tin foil under it but I honestly never though to put a bunch of veggies in there and make a whole meal out of it. I’ll have to try that next time for sure. Pinned.
Debbie says
I just bought a whole chicken that I’m planning on cooking tomorrow. I’m going to try your way. Thanks for sharing.
Stefanie says
I’ve never cooked a whole chicken in the crockpot, but it looks simple and delicious! Thanks for sharing!
Corina Blum says
I love my slow cooker but I’ve never cooked a whole chicken in it like this – It’s definitely something I’d love to try. It’s great that all the veggies and potatoes can get cooked at the same time too.
Gretchen Fleming says
This looks fabulous and have saved to try ASAP 😉👍
Marion Askildt says
When you put bread dough in slow cooker, do you have to let it rise again before turning on cooker??
Pamela says
Hey Marion, here’s my recipe with full instructions for slow cooker bread: https://brooklynfarmgirl.com/2018/01/02/2-hour-slow-cooker-bread/
Cathy S. says
I can’t wait to try making a whole chicken this way. Sounds easy and delicious!
Colleen Zucco says
I would like to try this but one other time my crock pot was just full of grease from the chicken. Then my husband said it was like eating boiled meat . How did you prevent that?
Pamela says
Hey Colleen, I’ve never had that problem with this slow cooker chicken. If you see lots of grease coming out of the chicken remove liquid from the slow cooker with a turkey baster so there’s not excess. Hope this helps!
sharron says
this looks wonderful! Do you have a suggestion for a homemade seasoning rub?
Pamela says
Hey Sharon, I like this recipe for seasoning rub: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/17446/hughs-dry-rub/. Enjoy the chicken!
cakespy says
Oh man, love how tender chicken is when cooked in a slow cooker. This is simply wonderful!! Aromatic and juicy and oh my.
Jess @ Gas Stove Girl says
What’s the texture of the skin like? I love a crispy skin, but as long as the skin isn’t rubbery this sounds like an amazingly easy meal (plus great for meal planning!)
Gwendolyn Poliszczuk says
I made this with 2 Cornish hens. I took them out of crock pot and put them in oven for ten minutes at 450 degrees. They were perfect! Love this recipe.
Pamela says
Hey Gwendolyn, thanks so much for commenting! I’m so happy you liked this recipe!
Cindy says
I was wondering if you ever tried & if you did, how did the skin turn out on the chicken?
Hena Tayeb says
wow that looks great..
http://www.henatayeb.blogspot.com
Brooklyn says
I tried your crock pot bread last week and we loved it! As a new “cook” I am looking forward to trying this one this week! Thank you!
Suzanne says
I am all about slow cookers! I love this recipe and will be perfect to come home to on Tuesday. The veggies lifting the chicken up out of the broth is a really good idea.