This slow cooker whole chicken is a rotisserie style seasoned chicken made with the help of the crock pot. It’s a super easy dinner option and the leftover chicken can be used in countless other dishes!
I love rotisserie chicken, but it can be pricey and is often filled with sodium and sometimes even preservatives and other questionable ingredients. This slow cooker roasted chicken has just a few minutes of prep time, you can set it in the morning and come home to have dinner waiting for you!
For the longest time, every time I went to Costco I’d pick up one of their rotisserie chickens for a cheap and easy meal. Then one day I read the ingredient list, and there are some additives in those chickens that I’d rather not feed my family. This slow cooker whole chicken is SO easy to make, and you can have a fresh cooked rotisserie style chicken any time you want with more natural ingredients!
Can you cook a whole chicken in a slow cooker?
Yes you can! The first step is to choose your chicken, I like to use organic whenever possible. You want to make sure that your chicken will fit inside your crock pot, I use my larger oval crock pot for this task which is big enough to accommodate almost any sized chicken. If you’re using a smaller round slow cooker, opt for a smaller bird.
The chicken gets coated in a simple spice blend, then placed in the slow cooker atop a ring of foil. The foil acts as a rack to keep the chicken from steaming in its own juices as it cooks.
Is it safe to cook a whole chicken in a slow cooker?
It is safe to cook a whole chicken in a slow cooker, but it’s typically recommended that you cook the chicken on high heat for at least one hour for food safety purposes. This recipe calls for cooking the chicken on high heat for the entire cook time.
How long will it take to cook a chicken in a slow cooker?
It typically takes 3-4 hours to cook a chicken on high heat in the slow cooker, and 8 hours to cook on low heat. As mentioned above, if you plan to cook your chicken on the lower heat setting, be sure to let it cook at high for one hour before you switch to low to make sure the chicken is at the correct temperature for food safety purposes.
At the end of your cook time, you’ll have a juicy and flavorful bird!
At this point, your slow cooker chicken is just missing one thing: that golden brown skin normally associated with rotisserie chicken. I transfer my chicken to a baking pan and broil it for about 5 minutes to get that beautiful golden brown skin that everybody loves.
When I cook a 5 pound chicken for my family, we typically end up with plenty of leftovers which I use to create dinner for the next night.
Once you try this slow cooker whole chicken, you’ll never want to go back to store bought rotisserie chicken again!
Ideas for your leftover chicken
- Chicken Taco Soup
- Chicken Ranch Tacos
- Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
- Buffalo Ranch Chicken Dip
- Chicken Taquitos
Slow cooker whole chicken video
Slow Cooker Whole Chicken
Ingredients
- 5 lb whole chicken neck and giblets removed
- cooking spray
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and smoked paprika.
- Coat a large slow cooker with cooking spray. Roll a piece heavy duty aluminum foil into a ring shape to fit into the slow cooker as a rack.
- Place the chicken on top of the foil ring. Rub the spice mixture all over the chicken.
- Cover and cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours or until thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers at 165 degrees or higher.
- Transfer the chicken to a sheet pan or baking dish and broil in the oven for 4-5 minutes or until chicken skin is brown and crispy. Serve.
Notes
- Nutritional facts assume calorie and fat counts for skin. If you're looking to cut calories, remove the skin before eating.
Ruth says
The chicken fell straight off of the bone. I was amazed by how easy it was to pull this off. My son prepared the rub and once I put it on I walked away. 4 hours later and I had a chicken that tasted better and was much healthier than the Costco rotisserie chicken. Thank you for this recipe.
Laurette says
I made this first time today.
It dies not disappoint!
I will make many times again.
Thank you for this recipe
Laurette says
It does not dissapoint! 😄
Bret says
I have made this twice now. First time I did the foil ring, and used the spices/herbs listed and it was great. I did crisp it in the oven also. The juices made a great gravy by adding some flour and corn starch and simmering.. Second time I made it with my own likes in a spice blend, more a lemony garlic with some poultry seasoning and put the chicken on top of a pop open metal steamer basket instead of foil. Again it was great. Seasoning are versatile, its the method she has here that makes it good and cooks it right. You can really do whatever seasonings you like. I plan on doing a Mojo next and marinating it first. And I plan on doing a cajun style, or old bay. Thanks for the recipe the whole family enjoys it!
Louise says
Instead of a foil ring, I put chunks of potato on the bottom with the chicken on top. No extra seasoning needed on the potatoes. Yummy! I also added the woody stems of asparagus around the chicken for a little different flavor (threw the asparagus away after because they were too woody to eat). I have made this twice and am amazed at how easy it is and how juicy the chicken is.
Lynnette says
I made this today and it was so perfect! I’ve done whole chickens before but too soggy, the foil ring was magic! Broiled to finish yum! It’s now in the weekly line-up
Laurie says
I must say I did get some push back from my mother who insisted that this would not be as good as if we baked the chicken in the oven. I loved the idea of easy prep and not turning on the oven in this heat. I broiled it for 7 minutes on each side at the end to give it that nice crisp skin. The meat was flavorful, tender and juicy. The family loved it! Including my picky mom.
Monique says
Hello I’m going to make this sometime this week, but do I need to add water or anything to the slow cooker so the chicken can have some juice and be moist ? I never used my slow cooker before so I’m just concerned if I don’t put water or something in the pot the chicken may burn, especially cooking for 4 hours. Or should it be just fine without water ? Please let me know your opinion.
Sara says
I don’t add liquid, the chicken generates its own liquid!
Suzanne says
Hi, can I cook this on LOW and get the same effect?
Sara says
It needs to be cooked on high for food safety purposes!
Seth says
Would it be fine to cook the chicken from a frozen state or does it need to be thawed first?
Sara says
It should be thawed!
jessica says
I cooked it from frozen and it was fine- most meat I cook is frozen. I think the must thaw guidelines are outdated. Should be fine if you have a newer slowcooker as they get hot and stay at temp. If you are still concerned then you can use smaller pieces of frozen meat, instead of a whole chicken or a bigger roast. My crockpot booklet does say to use longer cooking time if meat is frozen.
Britney says
Going to try this tonight. Do you ever stuff anything inside the chicken? I was thinking some mushrooms and/ or potatoes.
Sara says
You could do mushrooms but I don’t think potatoes would work, it would change the cook time!
Britney says
Thank you! I ended up stuffing it with some baby portobellos seasoned with garlic and parmesan. Everything turned out great!
Misty says
Hi… can I put it in the air fryer last for the browning?
Sara says
I haven’t tried it this way so I’m not sure, my guess is that it could work!
Michelle says
How do i place the chicken, like wings down or wings up? Thanks! Will try this tomorrow on mother’s day!
Sara says
Wings and breast up!
Laurie says
What size crockpot works best for a whole chicken-but not too large? I need to buy a new one. The 7qt one I had was too big.
Sara says
I use an oval 6 quart!
April says
Just prepared this today and it came out absolutely delicious! Thank-you!
Kim says
My broiler is broken, but my oven works. Will it brown in there and not dry out? What would you suggest for oven temp?
Sara says
You could try cooking at 450 degrees F for a few minutes. You can also skip this step if you don’t care about crispy skin, that’s what I do when I’m in a hurry!
Ashley Drye says
I’m out of aluminum foil. Can this be done right in the crockpot?
Sara says
Yes, you can even set it on top of a few veggies like carrots or potatoes for a rack effect.
Allie says
This sounds delicious!
I have a 3lb chicken should I still go 4 hrs on high or go less?
Laurie says
Thanks!
Bret says
I did a 5 pd bird twice now. Mine didnt take quite the cook time listed in the recipe. It was more like a little over 3 hrs. And the internal temp was more than high enough for safely cooked poultry, and the legs and wings were wiggly loose which is also a good indicator its done if you dont have a thermometer. A 3lb is going to take at least 2hrs and start checking after that. If you not in a hurry going longer on cook time is fine too, its forgiving since the slow cooker doesn’t really dry things out you will simply have a more tender bird that can be pulled apart easily..
Effie Shaw says
my chicken is 7.32 lbs. how long do you think it needs to cook? Can I do it on low for 8 hrs?
Thank you
Sara says
I would cook on high for 5-6 hours!
Desiree' says
I have a 3.15lb chicken would you go a full 4 hours?
Thanks!!
Sara says
Yes that should be fine!
keeta says
Perfect. Thank you!