{"id":2197,"date":"2015-03-02T17:19:37","date_gmt":"2015-03-02T17:19:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/?p=2197"},"modified":"2017-11-08T16:01:44","modified_gmt":"2017-11-08T16:01:44","slug":"recipe-slow-cooker-roasted-chicken","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/recipe-slow-cooker-roasted-chicken\/","title":{"rendered":"Recipe: Slow Cooker Roasted Chicken"},"content":{"rendered":"

After a recent post on storing<\/em> your slow cooker<\/a>, one reader asked why we didn’t include any ideas for using<\/em> a slow cooker.\u00a0 So here is one from Lauren, our long time volunteer adviser and the class assistant in our New Kitchen Cooking School<\/a>.\u00a0 I had always slow cooked chicken by submerging it in water and cooking on low for 8 to 10 hours–essentially poaching it.\u00a0 Then Lauren shared her method which essentially roasts the chicken. Guaranteed good results–and ridiculously simple:<\/p>\n

Slow Cooker Roasted Chicken<\/span><\/h3>\n

Step 1:\u00a0 Plop Bird into Slow Cooker, Breast Side Down
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Picture
Keeping the breast down helps it stay moister.\u00a0 The wide, shallow style slow cooker is better for roasting since it allows more air circulation around the bird, although the tall narrow style can work, too.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 2: Season Chicken<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"
You can be fairly generous with the salt and especially the pepper.\u00a0 If you want, be creative and toss on some herbs or spices, e.g., Herbes de Provence, Italian Herbs, a Moroccan rub . . . .<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 3:\u00a0 Cover and Cook on High ~ 3 Hours<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Slow
Timing is where things can be a little tricky, because of differences in cookers and bird sizes. So start monitoring after two hours, until you learn the right timing for your slow cooker and usual bird size.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 4:\u00a0 Uncover and Cook on High ~ 1 More Hour<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Browned
Even covered, the bird browns and crisps fairly well. Now, in an unusual twist, leave the cover off another hour to brown even a little more. Be sure to leave the temperature on high.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 5:\u00a0 Baste Every 15 Minutes<\/strong> (optional, but really adds flavor and moistness)<\/p>\n

\"Basting
Basting is what makes the chicken taste more like those succulent rotisserie chickens at the grocery store. I just baste as I pass by the chicken while doing things around the house, or while preparing the rest of the meal. IMPORTANT: Before serving, test the chicken for doneness (see Note below.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Step 6:\u00a0 Use the pan juices to make a delicious sauce<\/strong>, e.g., with just a little grainy mustard and Herbes de Provence, maybe a little wine.\u00a0 Try making it in the slow cooker, but if it’s too slow, scrape everything into a small skillet or saucepan.<\/p>\n

Fair Question:\u00a0 Why not use the oven?<\/strong> \u00a0 I prefer the slow cooker because of the “tolerance” and “visibility” factors.\u00a0 While an oven doesn’t exactly speed cook foods, the window between not quite done and overdone may be only 10 to 15\u00a0 minutes.\u00a0 Outside that narrow window, the chicken gets tough and dry, something I’ve experienced plenty of times because I’m not one to stand guard over food.\u00a0 With a slow cooker that window is much longer, maybe 30 to 60 minutes.\u00a0 And even if I go past that window, there’s a good chance the chicken will still be pretty good.\u00a0 It’s hard to ruin a dish completely in a slow cooker unless you completely forget about it.\u00a0 At the same time, it’s easier to monitor a chicken in a slow cooker sitting on the counter than one buried in a hot oven in a heavy pot.<\/p>\n

Note on Doneness<\/strong>:\u00a0 According to Joy of Cooking, chicken must be cooked to the point where the meat releases clear, not pink, juices when pricked to the bone with a fork.\u00a0 This correlates with an internal temperature of 170 (F) on an instant-read thermometer.\u00a0 However, for the breast meat, doneness is reached at an internal temperature of 160 (F).\u00a0 I usually slice between the thigh and torso of the chicken to see that the juices run clear and the meat is no longer red.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Want a nicely browned and crisped chicken that’s still moist and tender? Try the slow cooker! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,20,24],"tags":[471,489,529],"class_list":["post-2197","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-healthy-cooking-basics","category-recipes","category-basic-healthy-cooking-techniques","tag-recipe","tag-roasted-chicken","tag-slow-cooker-recipes","masonry-post","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2197","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2197"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2197\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2763,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2197\/revisions\/2763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2197"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2197"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2197"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}