Slow Cooker Whole Chicken & Gravy! A complete Sunday meal made easy in the crockpot. While it takes only minutes of prep, this tender, juicy crock pot chicken & gravy tastes like you’ve been in the kitchen all day.
This makes the perfect easy weeknight meal served alongside Garlic Ranch Mashed Potatoes and our favorite Cheesy Broccoli Cauliflower Casserole! Your whole family is going to love this easy slow cooker whole chicken & gravy!
©SpendWithPennies.com
If you’ve never cooked a whole chicken in the slow cooker before, you are going to LOVE this recipe! I wish I could tell you in words how amazing this chicken is! It’s literally minutes of prep for a meal that tastes like you’ve been slaving in the kitchen all day long!
Chicken is my dinner time go-to… we love it grilled, baked and stuffed with cheese or even shredded for tacos but I have to admit, this whole chicken in the crockpot is one of my Sunday supper favorites! It is a perfect family dinner served with mashed potatoes and veggies but it’s also a great way to effortlessly cook a chicken in place of rotisserie chicken!
How to Cook a Whole Chicken a Slow Cooker
A quick homemade rub is added to a chicken which then cooks up tender and juicy in the slow cooker.
I prepare this in a 4QT slow cooker and I add balled up foil to slightly lift the chicken off the bottom of the pan but if you have a little rack that fits in your slow cooker you can certainly use that too! Adding a few onions and some celery to the bottom of the crockpot along with the foil makes the most flavorful and fabulous gravy!
If you like a crispy skin, broil it about 6″ from the broiler for a few minutes before serving.
Most of the time the chicken produces plenty of drippings for gravy but if you want extra, just add in some chicken broth. Mixing together a quick slurry of cornstarch and adding it to the slow cooker while the chicken rests creates a rich flavorful gravy. I sometimes add a can of mushrooms to the gravy (or add fresh mushrooms to the slow cooker before cooking).
You may be wondering if it is safe to cook a whole chicken in your crock pot and the answer is yes, it’s safe as the crockpot is intended to cook meat low and slow. Ensure your lid is on well to keep the heat in. I would definitely NOT recommend using frozen chicken in the slow cooker, if using whole chicken you’ll want to make sure it’s thawed.
As with all slow cookers, cooking times can vary slightly, you’ll want to make sure your chicken reaches 165 degrees in the thigh.
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken about 4lbs
- 2 slices onion
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- cornstarch
- chicken broth optional
Seasoning Mix
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon seasoned salt (or to taste)
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
Instructions
- Combine all seasoning mix ingredients in a small bowl.
- Brush chicken with olive oil and rub seasoning into chicken.
- Roll up balls of foil and place in the bottom of the slow cooker with 2 thick slices of onion. Place chicken on foil, breast side up so it is slightly lifted off the bottom of the slow cooker. (You can use onion and carrot chunks instead if you prefer).
- Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours or high 4-5 hours. (165 degrees)
- Remove chicken and place on a small pan. Broil 3-4 minutes to crisp skin (optional). Rest 10 minutes before slicing.
Gravy
- Remove foil and onion from slow cooker and turn onto high. If required, add broth to create about 2 cups of liquid.
- In a small bowl, combine 4 tablespoons cornstarch with 4 tablespoons water to create a slurry.
- Whisk about ⅔ of the cornstarch into the drippings/broth and let cook on high. Depending on the amount of liquid you may need to add more of the cornstarch slurry to reach desired consistency. Let cook at least 5 minutes before serving.
- Taste and season with salt & pepper.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Main Course
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
More Recipes You’ll Love
Apple Glazed Baked Ham
Cheesy Bacon Chicken
One step left out is to dry your chicken inside and out with paper towels, then brush with olive oil and rub. We have made this many times and it always comes out moist and delicious. This is a wonderful recipe.
Thank you for sharing, I’ll have to give the olive oil a try!
If I use an 8lb. Chicken, do I have to change any of the cooking times. I have a huge family, so my chickens are also huge…..LOL!
I would suspect it would take longer to cook but to be honest I can’t say for sure how much longer (maybe an hour?). I would suggest using a meat thermometer and check it at the suggested time in the recipe to gauge how much longer you’ll need.
I personally use a thermometer that can read the temperature and stay in the meat (in the oven or slow cooker) so I don’t have to open the lid, they’re about $20 and most places have them or you can get them online at Amazon for a great price. You’ll want to make sure the breast is 165°F or the thickest part of the thigh is 175°F-180°F.
Please let us know how it goes!
Tried this recipe today. Turned into falling off the bone, succulent chicken. Awesome recipe!
Glad you loved it! We do too :)
This is incredibly bland. I’m amazed at all the rave reviews. I must be the minority in wanting my actual meat to have the flavor and gravy be an optional addition. Not a necessity.
I will definitely be seasoning my chicken much better if I make this again.
Sorry you didn’t enjoy this, we find it delicious and flavorful! You can most certainly change the seasonings if you prefer!
Put the seasoning under the skin and it will be great.
Just tried this slow cooker chicken and was delighted how how it turned it; just delicious. I tweaked a little and didn’t use foil balls, but balanced the chicken on a small quartered onion, otherwise everything else was the same. It was lovely to place the chicken in the slow cooker, go to work and come back to delicious succulent meat and a base for gravy…no basting and burning my wrists whilst trying to cover the chicken either…win win! Thank you :)
Glad you loved this chicken Zelda!
I tried your recipe and it was delicious! Thank you for sharing.
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
every thing turned out great, must warn you that aluimin foil can cause cancer when heated with food, so i don’t use, works great with just thick onion and celery layer on the bottom
Adding veggies to the bottom is a great idea Wendy!
I think a turkey roasting pan is basically aluminum foil and is cooked in non stop ?
Super recipe but no need to cook aluminum with your food. Some carrots or thick sliced potatoes along with the sliced onions are perfect for keeping the chicken from cooking in its juices. I threw in some celery too with just a bit of chicken stock.
Easy and fantastic!
Didn’t have smoked paprika but it was delicious and so tender. Next time I will add the smoked paprika and see if we like it better.
I can’t wait to make this tonight. I usually play with recipes, but I think I’ll leave this one alone.
This sou d wonderful with not a lot of prep. Will be our Sunday dinner.
Enjoy it Isabel!
I would recommend not skipping the broiling part if you want to get a real rotisserie-style chicken texture with the crispy skin. The spice rub works well – great recipe! Will definitely make this simple no-fuss recipe again.
This was just as easy and delicious as it claimed . I cooked mine on high for 4 hours and finished in the broiler. Its definitely a keeper!!
So glad you loved it Rochelle!
Thanks a lot.i made it.
It was really great.I rubbed soya sauce and Worcestershire sauce on chicken before oil.
Can I make with no skin whole chicken
Sure you can!
Delicious recipe! I will be making again! Thank you!
I made this for the very first time, my husband and kids loved it! I used potatoes and carrots on the bottom instead of foil. I did not use paprika or thyme. My husband doesn’t like those seasonings. I also used onion powder instead of an onion and mixed it with other dry seasonings. I didn’t have olive oil so I used vegetable oil. Also didn’t have chicken broth so I made my own with chicken bouillon cubes. My dinner was awesome. Thanks!
Sounds great Elizabeth! Happy to hear that your family loved it.
Foil?!.. balls of foil?!! How about vegetables? Celery, onions, carrots, potatoes. No foil.
I’m sure they’ll add great flavor to the gravy! You may need to remove them from the slow cooker before mixing.
Quite possibly the best slow cooker chicken recipe I have tried. The gravy is the bomb!! I substituted Emeril’s Essence for the smoked paprika as I did not have any, and it was perfect!
I’m so glad you loved it Erica!
Will I still be able to make the gravy if I use celery, carrots, potatoes, and oinions at the bottom?
I’m sure they’ll add great flavor to the gravy! You may need to remove them from the slow cooker before mixing.