Wondering what to make for dinner? Check out my family’s favorite crock pot recipes for great dinner ideas!
Update: If you have a minute, read through the comments, my readers have added some awesome tips and ideas for cooking whole chickens. I have also posted a whole chicken in a crock pot video tutorial for those who are interested.
I am convinced that buying a whole chicken is one of the best values for your grocery budget. I regularly see whole chickens on sale at various grocery stores for under a dollar a pound.
The problem with whole chickens is that no one wants to touch them, or mess with them once they are cooked. I was once like that too, but then I realized how much money I could save by buying whole chickens and I quickly got over my “whole uncooked chickens give me the heebie jeebies” thing and got cooking.
Cooking a whole chicken in the crock pot
After rinsing the chicken place in a crock pot that has been sprayed with non-stick.
You do not need to put any liquid in the pot, just the chicken.
Then sprinkle your favorite spices on the chicken. I usually sprinkle garlic and paprika.
Place the lid on the crock pot, set on low, and walk away for about 7 hours.
7 hours later you will have a beautiful cooked chicken ready to serve for dinner.
Remove the chicken from the crock pot, cut and serve. Do not throw away the liquid in the crock pot.
If you do not want to serve the chicken for dinner, allow the chicken to cool and then remove the meat from the bones. You can use the meat like you would any other cooked chicken, in casseroles, chicken salad, chicken pot pie, pastas, etc.
Once you have removed all the meat from the bones, put the bones back in the crock pot and add about five cups of water. I also put the skin back in the crock pot since my kids won’t eat it.
Set the crock pot
Strain out the bones and you have homemade chicken broth for free!
Not only is it free, it is free from all the preservatives, salt, and other junk you find in some of the store bought chicken broth. I store my broth in large yogurt containers.
I got about 50 ounces of broth from one chicken. After you put the broth in a container, place in the fridge to cool. When the broth has totally cooled a layer of fat will be on the top.
Scrape the fat off with a spoon and the broth is ready to be used or can be stored for up to six months in the freezer. Don’t throw away the fat, it can be used in other recipes.
Whole Chicken in a Crock Pot Meal Ideas
Meal #1 (served 7)
Chicken and Mashed Potatoes
- Chicken $4.00
- Mashed Potatoes $1.50
- Veggies $0.79
- Biscuits $1.00
Total cost $7.29 or about a $1 per person
Meal #2 (served 7)
Chicken and Rice Casserole
- Chicken Free from leftovers
- Rice $0.50
- Cream of Chicken Soup $0.75
- Veggies (I used chopped broccoli and carrots) Free from leftovers
- Spices $0.25
- Cheddar Cheese $.50
Cook rice according to the directions. Chop leftover chicken, and veggies. Mix with cream soup and add spices. (I used garlic, minced onion, and red pepper flakes). Combine the cooked rice with the chicken mixture. Spread in a 9×13 casserole dish, sprayed with nonstick. Bake covered for 15 minutes at 350 degrees, then uncover, top with cheese and bake until the cheese melts.
Tip: If you want to use brown rice for this recipe, replace half the water with your chicken broth. Even your pickiest eaters will love it.
Total cost $2.00 or $.30 per person.
By purchasing one chicken I was able to make two meals and get about $3 worth of chicken broth from a $4 chicken.
My chicken turned out fabulous, but when I went in the fridge to get the broth it was like gelatin!! Aaah! What’d I do wrong?!
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe and your awesome advice. I made this today and it was just awesome when I got home from school. It was so good, in fact, that my husband had already eaten half of it! We raised our own free-range birds this summer and they are delicious – we are enjoying them in so many ways. I’ve got the bones cooking for stock right now – a great smell on a cold and blowy Halloween night
Thanks for the great recipe! My 5 lb chicken turned out beautifully after 7 hrs on low, just like you suggested!
I hate wasting anything; so, I was wondering what I could do with the chicken “sludge” I had left over after cooking the chicken and making broth. Dog treats! I love making homemade dog treats but there are very few recipes out there that aren’t mostly fillers and offer any real protein. I had great luck and wanted to share if anyone was interested in making the chicken go just a little farther.
Recipe:
1 cup Chicken Sludge*
2 cups Brown Rice Flour if you want it to be gluten-free (I actually ran out and used 1 cup Brown Rice Flour and 1 cup Whole Wheat Flour)
1 cup Rolled Oats
2 eggs
2 Tbsp Flaxseed Meal
2 Tbsp Pumpkin puree
Mix everything together. I recommend doing it in a stand mixer because the consistency is thick, like peanut butter cookies. But the mixture is so easy to work with while shaping. It’s not sticky at all and no extra flour required.
Bake 375º for 15-20 minutes depending on how crunchy you want it and also the size. I baked mine, approximately 3/4″ square) for 15 minutes -crunchy edges and a slight chewy texture on the inside. But it doesn’t matter for my dogs because they usually don’t chew.
Here’s a picture. http://flic.kr/p/dqF8xq
* The remains after cooking a whole chicken in the slow cooker and making broth with the bones. I removed all the bones and most of the skin. There were lots of meat bits that had fallen off the chicken when I deboned it. Also, I cooked and added the organs and neck that were stuffed in the chicken. I just broke everything up a bit with a spoon. I had about 2 cups worth.
@Kelsey You didn’t do anything wrong. In fact, if you got a gelatin stock then you will have the finest most nutritious stock you can get! I always try to cook the bones long enough to produce a gelatin stock. It doesn’t always happen – I don’t know why. Gelatin stocks are perfect for making chicken soup. The soup will have a rich flavor and aroma, and will cure whatever ails you!
when I am cooking cicken I fill up a pot of very cold water and add salt to it about 1/4 to 1/2 cup rinse off the chicken real good then rinse in cold water you will be surprised how much cleaning the chicken needs check for your self
Just wondering how long you would cook a 2 1/2 or 3lb chicken?? I’m worried 7 hours may be too long since it is smaller..
Definitely reduce the cooking time. Depending on your crock pot, it could take 4-5 hours or even less.
Second this. This is one of the best-kept secrets to a cheap/easy/tasty meal ever. Sometimes I just put a few dashes of salt and pepper on top, but you can add various other things of course. It’s just me so I can get several meals off of this….the bones aren’t a big deal, I just put them in a freezer bag before throwing away (to minimize chance of insects, mice etc – hey I live in the country). I wasn’t sure how long to cook though, which is why I looked this up – thanks!
I always add the potatoes and carrots in the crockpot at about half the cooking time, adds flavor to the veggies and makes it one simple meal, and no dishes!
Can I stuff a chicken and do it the same way, just increase the cooking time some?
Can’t wait to try this recipe!
Trying this tonight! Thanks everyone for the great ideas and tips!! Can’t wait!
@Kelsey: you didn’t do anything wrong. The gelatin is from the chicken bones and is very good for you. You didn’t mess up – you made really good nutritious broth. It will go back to liquid when you heat it up.
Kelsy, you are not doing anything wrong, just heat up your chicken gelatin and add some water and any spices you want and you are ready to go.
I’m new to crock potting and haven’t had a lot of luck so far but I keep trying. Does it matter if my chicken is about 3 lbs and my crock pot is 7 qt? I feel like that’s way to much empty space!?
The breast meat was a little dry. I think next time I’m going to make sure to cook it breast side down. Maybe that will help. I also had to cook it for 8 hours, rather than 7 because 8 and 10 hours are the only settings on my crock pot.
Just wondering if you defrost the chicken first??? Or can you cook in the crock pot frozen??? If so, how much longer would you need to cook the chicken???
Kelsey, your chicken broth was normal. This kind of chicken broth is supposed to be that way. When you heat it up, it gets runny/liquid again.
how long should I cook 2 4lb chickens in the same crockpot?
It should be fine.
I seasoned with 1 onion, 4 cloves garlic, 1 lemon + juice, thyme and salt and pepper. I put olive oil over it too, like someone suggested. Also took the other suggestion to put chicken under broiler for 5 min or so after it was done. Great flavor! I like yr website’
Thanks! Putting one in tonight for tostadas for dinner tomorrow. Going to try the dog treat recipe too. Caution…..don’t make dog treats if you cooked your chicken with onions. Onions are toxic to dogs.
I have a whole chicken that I am planing to cook in the crock pot and googled it. I was set with the recipe that I was cooking it with and I have now changed my mind. This sounds awesome. I can’t wait to try it for dinner tonight. Thank you. I am also psyched about all the other recipes for the planned overs.
Thanks for this recipe! I love how this recipe was very straightforward and easy to follow. I’ve decided to start cooking a whole chicken more regularly not just for the cost but it also makes me feel better about the number of chickens we are “killing”. Normally I would buy about 5 chicken breasts a week which means 3 chickens. But by cooking a whole chicken we get about the same amount of meat but from only one chicken! Plus now I don’t have to touch icky raw chicken breasts every night, just once a week. Then we eat the meat in different recipes throughout the week.
@Mark – I cooked my 4lb chicken breast-side down (for 7 hours) the second time and it worked out perfectly. So it’s worth a try to see if that fixes for your 8 hour problem. You could also try buying a slightly larger chicken (5+lbs) that would take a bit longer to cook.
I made this tonight, but just sprinkled with some lemon pepper seasoning. It literally fell off the bone and was so good. I have the bones and skin going right now for the stock! Thanks so much!