Slow Cooker Market Style Chicken

Have I mentioned lately how much I love my slow cooker?  If I haven't, let me tell you that next to my Dyson Animal vacuum, the crock pot is my favorite household tool -- I would marry my Dyson if I could, but I think this is neither the time or place to discuss it. Back to the slow cooker. When I'm making my weekly meal plans, I always be sure to include at least one slow cooker meal, sometimes two. Even on the days I don't work it's nice to have dinner ready on time and the only tasks I have to worry about is adding a side dish I can zap in the microwave and a salad I can grab out of a bag. It is also nice that it's nearly impossible to over cook a meal in a slow cooker and the food is always served hot.

When deciding on a slow cooker recipe my number one is that all the cooking needs to be done in the pot.  None of this brown the meat, sauté the vegetables separately, add an ingredient later business. What is the point of that? The beauty of a slow cooker is to toss the ingredients in the pot and forget about it. This chicken recipe is easy, inexpensive and delicious. You really could use any herbs or marinades you like, but this recipe is pretty tasty and in my opinion rivals the rotisserie chickens sold at the market. 

Ingredients
4 to 5 lb whole chicken, skinned

5 large garlic cloves 

1 medium yellow onion
2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon paprika

Directions.

• Get out your 6 quart of bigger slow cooker.
• Remove the skin from the chicken. This is a little time consuming, but in my opinion the result in the taste is much better if you remove the skin. Also note that is why the chicken may look a little rough in the above photo. The skin isn't there to keep it all together so the meat just falls off the bone. May look gross, but so delicious
• Peel the garlic and leave whole. Peel and quarter a medium sized onion.  Set both aside.
• In a bowl, combine all of the seasoning. Rub the seasoning mixture all over the chicken, both inside and out. Stuff the onion and garlic inside the chicken.
• Place the chicken inside the slow cooker breast side down. You do NOT need to add any water. See picture below to see how it fits perfectly in the slow cooker.
• Cover and cook on high for 4 to 5 hours, or on low for 8 hours.
• Since the skin was removed and slow cooking the chicken will make it very tender, the meat will easily tear off the bone. See photo below.

Before: Chicken nestled in the slow cooker.

After: Chicken cut and ready to serve.

Servings
4 to 6

A Broken Oven Tip
If you have a smaller slow cooker or don't have a whole chicken in the freezer, use whatever bone in chicken you have on hand.  While I've never tried using chicken pieces I would reduce the cooking time by an  hour or so. Just check a piece or two before serving to make sure it is completely cooked through.
.