Winner, Winner Sunday Chicken Dinner

I am not a fan of chicken usually, it's boring, dry and well, just eh.  However, I do love rotisserie chickens!  I am particularly fond of Whole Foods' rotisserie chickens, but at $9 a pop for a 3 or 4 lb roasted chicken, it's not exactly worth it on a regular basis.  

I recently upgraded my pathetic little 3 quart $14 Crock-pot that I bought 5 years ago, with a nice big 6 quart Crock-pot just for this occassion.  While looking for recipes I kept running across rotisserie chicken recipes and I decided that I had to give it a go.  

First I made a paste with spices that I had on hand and a little olive oil.  Then put some foil balls to hold the chicken up.  This keeps it from cooking in it's own fat and juices - but it makes for a great au jus later!  


Then I gave the chicken a good massage with it over and under the skin.  I shoved an onion in the cavity (I also wanted to add a lemon, but I was out - next time) and we were good to go.  I placed the chicken on the foil balls and set it for 5 hours on high and let it rip!

While the chicken was cooking, I decided to make some home made italian bread and an apple fennel slaw to go with dinner.  Not too shabby, I know!  I later roasted some butternut squash as well.

The results of this were fantastic!  The chicken was juicy and tender and I got twice the meat off of this chicken than I ever do from a store bought rotisserie chicken.  The flavor was terrific and it made for a delicious dinner.  I look forward to making some chicken salads and sandwiches this week as well.  

Next time I might brine the chicken first or marinate it overnight, just for some added flavor.  But otherwise it was fantastic.  I think this will be how I do my rotisserie chickens from now on, sorry Whole Foods!

Slow Cooker "Rotisserie" Chicken
1 5 - 7 lb roaster Chicken, giblets removed, rinsed and patted dry
3 Tbsp Seasoning Salt
2 Tbsp Black pepper
2 Tbsp Garlic powder
1 Tbsp Hot Smoked Paprika 
1 Tbsp Sweet Smoked Paprika
4 Tbsp Herb de Provence
Olive Oil
Onion, peeled, whole
Rosemary sprigs (optional)

These spices are what I had on hand.  I'm pretty sure you could do an array of spices and they would be good.

Make 4 foil balls, about the size of small fist.  Put them in the bottom of the slow cooker.

Mix all of the dry ingredients together (this is going to make more than you need - I used it as needed and kept the rest for next time).  Add a few tablespoons of olive oil until it's a nice paste a little on the wet side.  With your hands, loosen the skin from the breast.  Rub a little of the spice mixture down both sides of the breast under the skin.  Coat the rest of the chicken well with the paste.  Put the onion in the cavity of the chicken.  

Place the chicken on top of the foil balls.  Place the rosemary on top of the chicken and cover with the lid.  Cook on high for 4 - 5 hours, depending on how big your bird is.  You want the internal temperature of the chicken to be 165 degrees.  Serve anyway you like it!  Pour a little of the juice over the chicken when serving - it's really good!!