Comments on: Cooking Whole Chickens in a Crockpot

By: maggie craig

maggie craig — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 07:33:57 +0000

Thank you so much everyone for all your tips. I now have 3 sizes of crock pots and can’t wait to try one out. I love chicken and dressing and this would be easy with my crock pot to fix the chicken and have the broth needed.

By: Perfectly Moist Turkey, Every Time | GNOWFGLINS™

Perfectly Moist Turkey, Every Time | GNOWFGLINS™ — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:36:41 +0000

[...] a week prior to cooking a 12 to 14 pound Heritage turkey, I cook two chickens in order to make chicken stock. I use a big pasta pot (mine is 11 quart). In the pasta insert, I [...]

By: Wardeh

Wardeh — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 23:18:12 +0000

Marg – I believe my chickens are usually around 4 pounds. How big is your crockpot? Mine is one of the largest – at 6.5 quart. If the birds are defrosted, two will fit. If frozen, only one.

That’s a good tip to pat the skin dry – thanks!

By: Marg

Marg — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 22:40:20 +0000

I cooked one of my chickens in the crockpot yesterday. It was 4 1/2 lbs and it bearly fit in my crockpot. How big are the ones in your pic? I forgot to pat the skin dry before cooking it but read that it will help the skin brown if you do. Doesn’t matter if you are removing the meat from the bone but nice if you are serving it as a roast chicken for dinner.

I love how you use every bit of it, cook the bones and save the juices. A woman after my own heart. I usually call it “the carcass” but I know that term is less appealing. lol
Marg´s last blog post… Turkey freedom!

By: Moist Roast Beef In The Crockpot: GNOWFGLINS™

Moist Roast Beef In The Crockpot: GNOWFGLINS™ — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 16:00:57 +0000

[...] crockpot is not only conventiently hands-off, but it yields the most moist roast beef (not just chicken). It works every [...]

By: Wardeh

Wardeh — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 14:13:56 +0000

Susan, thank you for sharing that. While it wouldn’t be necessary for local, free-range birds, and perhaps not industrial organic birds, this is a helpful idea to suggest for those people that don’t have access to or can’t afford the more naturally raised chickens (or other meats).

Regarding the glutamate and excitotoxicity… this has to do with MSG. Meat tenderizers are notorious for containing MSG or one of its forms.

By: Susan Collins

Susan Collins — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 13:35:33 +0000

I am DEFinitely going to try this two-bird crockpot thing. Yayyyyyyy – more time for other things. I just wanted to share something I read from The Blaylock Wellness Report for those of similar thoughts. He was talking about how expensive nitrate/nitrite free bacon was and how the expensive stuff doesn’t keep well once the vacuum seal is broken. He bought the less expensive kind and soaked it for 10 minutes, drained it, resalted it, and then cooked it. Apparently, this gets rid of the nitrates/nitrites. He went on to say that…”Other meats should be soaked in distilled water to remove toxins and contaminants. This is especially true for commercial poultry, which is often soaked in bleach. Do not use meat tenderizers or other enzymes, since they release the glutamate and expose you to excitotoxicity.” Whoa, I know–I know. Dr. Blaylock’s a neurologist. I know this post isn’t about bacon but it is the lead-in for the soaking poultry idea. Lots of us do not eat meat and especially not fatty meat but for an occasional treat, this could be a healthier idea for the ones who still do.

By: Wardeh

Wardeh — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 03:23:18 +0000

Thanks for sharing your experiences with frozen chickens. I actually have done this myself. Similarly to you, with all the same problems and even the same solutions.

By: Mommaroo2

Mommaroo2 — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 17:57:35 +0000

Did you know you can cook a frozen chicken in a crockpot, too?

One day I realized at lunch time I forgot to take out the chicken to thaw, and it was already halfway through the day. It would NEVER cook on time! Or so I thought. I figured I’d try it, see what happened. I put one whole frozen chicken into the crockpot (I have a very large, round crockpot, and the chicken was a large one).

There were three problems. One, the giblet bag was still in the bird. Two, the chicken had been packaged with a plastic-covered card as a label placed inside the plastic bag that encased the chicken…I got the plastic off, but the corners of the card were embedded in frozen chicken. Three, the lid ALMOST went down over the chicken, but the edge stuck up just a bit. These were easy to solve. I positioned the chicken the best I could, and pressed gently down on the lid–once the chicken softened, the lid closed fully. Then, when the chicken had softened enough, I removed the label and pulled out the giblets, added any spices, and continued to cook as usual.

I don’t remember exactly how long it cooked, but I think I had in on high for a round five hours. Could have been longer. Anyway, it came out great! My husband has tried it again since then, and it worked for him, too.

As long as you can get the bird into the crockpot while frozen, and have the lid mostly closed, you’ll be fine. Maybe if the lid won’t close enough, you could cover the crockpot with a tin foil tent until you can fit the lid on? Worth a try. But you’d want to make it so that the steam ran down the foil into the pot, not onto the counter, where the wire is laying. Not safe, lol.

By: Chicken in the Crockpot Today « The Collie Farm Blog

Chicken in the Crockpot Today « The Collie Farm Blog — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 18:02:38 +0000

[...] me-how to cook a chicken in a crockpot in the most trivial fashion imaginable. I learned this from Wardeh’s blog post on crockpot chickens. It turns out, you just throw an entire chicken (or two, if they’ll fit in your crockpot), [...]