You read that right. You can absolutely toss a whole chicken in the Crockpot or slow cooker for 4-5 hours on low, and VOILA, you’ve got a dinner suitable for a busy weeknight, or impressive enough for guests. If you don’t want to do a big turkey for the holidays, this even makes a terrific dinner for a smaller crowd.

Roasting a chicken can seem daunting, but once you give it a go, you’ll be astonished how easy it is. You can, of course, put this in a dutch oven, and roast it at 325 degrees for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, instead of using your slow cooker. If you do it in the oven, add a little liquid to the pan (dry white wine, chicken stock, or water all work fine). It’s still just as easy.

Either way, check the internal temperature; it should read 170 degrees when it’s done.

You’ll need:

1 whole chicken, 3-4 lbs

A bunch of carrots, cut into thick sticks

1 potato, sliced in half lengthwise, per person

1-2 onions, sliced thick

2-4 cloves of garlic

2 lemons, quartered

Olive oil, for drizzling over the bird

Salt and Pepper

Herbs of your choice – I like a combo of any of these dried herbs: dill, thyme, taragon, rosemary, and/or parsley. I use about a half tsp of each, depending on which flavor I want to highlight. Use too much taragon or rosemary, and it can be overpowering. You can also just grab a jar of Herbs de Provence, and use a tsp or two of that.

OR

You can do a tsp (ish) of Slap Ya Mama seasoning, one of my favorite spice blends, for a slightly spicy, cajun flavor profile; go easy on the salt and pepper with this spice blend, because it contains both. You can also opt to skip the potatoes and serve it with dirty rice, if you go this route.

Method:

Remove any giblets/neck from the internal cavity of the chicken, and put some of the lemon quarters, onions, and garlic inside. Place the remaining onions in the bottom of the pan, and lay the chicken on top, breast side up. Arrange the remaining garlic, lemon quarters, carrots, and potatoes around the chicken. Drizzle the olive oil over everything, and sprinkle whichever herbs/spices you’ve chosen on top (I like to rub the mixture into the chicken a bit). Put the lid on your slow cooker, set it on low, and walk away for 4-5 hours. As stated above, the best way to know if it’s done is to check it with a meat thermometer; it should be at 170 degrees.

There will be no leftovers.