Foodie Friday: How to Make Rotisserie Chicken in the Crockpot

I love rotisserie chicken but have no rotisserie. (sniff) Imagine how excited I was to learn that I could make my own rotisserie chicken in the crockpot. (I have this crockpot, which is the perfect size for a whole chicken.)

If you enjoy eating the skin, you can put the cooked chicken in the oven on broil for a few minutes after it’s thoroughly cooked to get it crisp.

Why make it yourself?

While the grocery store rotisserie chicken is yummy – and way better than hitting a drive-thru – making your own allows for a lot more control:

• You can get better quality chicken – we use organic chicken we raised in our own backyard.
• You are assured that your food isn’t covered in “flavor enhancers” like MSG.
• You know that it hasn’t been sitting there in a warmer for 8 hours, possibly taken out by a customer who changed his mind and returned it to a shelf. (Clearly, I have trust issues.)

Give the homemade version a try. You’ll love it!

Recipe: Rotisserie Chicken in the Crockpot

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken, rinsed and patted dry, innards removed
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• Seasonings of choice (I use salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, a dash of cayenne, and 1/4 tsp of sugar)
• Onions and/or lemons (optional)

Directions:

1. If you have a roasting rack for your slow cooker, insert it. If you don’t, wad up 6 balls of tinfoil for the bottom or slice onions and/or lemons in half. You want to raise your chicken up a little to let the juices run down and steam it. If you don’t raise it up, your chicken may be more of a stewed texture from sitting in the juices.
2.  
3. Rub the chicken with oil and seasonings.
4.  
5. Place the chicken in the crockpot and cook it on low for 6-8 hours. Do not add any other liquid. When it’s done, it will be tender and practically falling apart in its deliciousness.
6.  
7. Because I grew up in the South, gravy is essential in our household. If you, too, are of the gravy persuasion, you can use the drippings and some flour or cornstarch to make gravy on the stovetop while you brown your chicken in the broiler.

That’s it. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.

Use all your leftovers.

After the first meal, you can use the leftover meat (if there is any) in soft tacos or on sandwiches. Go a step further and return the carcass to the crockpot to make a rich stock for soup. (You do this just like you would with the Thanksgiving turkey carcass, but scale it down – you won’t get enough for canning. Find the instructions here for making broth from a carcass.)