We all know that Costco rotisserie chicken is the star of easy dinners. It’s versatile, juicy, flavorful and, best of all, requires no effort on your part! While this Fauxtisserie Chicken is not 100% hands off, it really is so easy, and delivers that same delicious, flavorful, tender chicken you love.
You can slice it up like a turkey and eat with traditional sides like mashed potatoes and a salad. You can could make a big chef salad and toss the chicken on there. Throw it in chow mein, fried rice, or pretty much any casserole recipe. Chicken noodle soup, enchiladas, pot pie, BBQ chicken pizza. The possibilities are endless!
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
- Whole chicken – You can use whatever size chicken you want, just make sure it will fit in your slow cooker.
- Salt-based seasoning – Seasoning salt, Cajun seasoning, Lemon Pepper with salt in it, etc. Just be sure salt is one of the first ingredients on the label. I like to add a good sprinkle of paprika to my chicken as well, to help give it a nice golden color, since the skin won’t really brown when cooked in the crock pot.
- Optional extras
- whole garlic cloves, peeled
- fresh herbs
- lemon
- Aluminum foil – You’ll need either some aluminum foil to ball up and keep the chicken off the bottom of the crock pot, or something else that serves the same purpose. Stainless steel condiment cups work really well!
How to Make a Fauxtisserie Chicken
- Start off by placing 3 balls of aluminum foil at the bottom of your slow cooker. This just lifts the chicken off the bottom so the hot air can circulate around it while it cooks.
- Next you’ll prep your chicken. It gets a quick rinse and pat dry, then you can prep it as desired with seasonings. I recommend separating the skin from the meat and sliding some garlic cloves and fresh herbs in there, but you don’t have to.
- You’ll cover that bird with liberal amounts of your chosen salt-based seasoning and then pop it in the slow cooker to slow roast to perfection!
Storing and Other Tips
- After the chicken is done cooking, it’s easiest to remove the meat from the bones while it’s still warm. Store any leftover cooled chicken in an airtight container and enjoy within 2-3 days for best results.
- Nitrile gloves: If you’re at all squeamish around raw meat, but even if you’re not, I highly recommend keeping some nitrile gloves in your kitchen. They make both handling raw meat and pulling the cooked meat off the bones later much easier and less messy!
- Cooking time can vary based on the size of your chicken and your crock pot. If you’re worried your chicken is getting too done and drying out, pop a thermometer in the deepest part of the meat to check it. Here’s what to expect at different temperatures:
- 165°F – Fully cooked, but sliceable and firm.
- 175-185°F (breast) – More tender and juicy.
- 185-195°F (thighs/legs) – Connective tissue breaks down and you get that juicy, fall-apart texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
Use them to make gravy or in any recipe that requires chicken broth!
You can use a metal roasting rack if you can find one that fits in your crock pot. Oven-safe ramekins could also work, although I have not tried this.
It’s not a good idea to cook a whole chicken from frozen in the crock pot. The meat will be in the “danger zone” temperature-wise for too long and bad bacteria could grow and make you sick!
Fauxtissery chicken is just a fun name for a chicken that’s been cooked to resemble rotisserie chickens you would find at Costco or your grocery store. Although it’s cooking in a slow cooker instead of an oven, and there’s no rotating involved, the end result is amazingly similar!
Nope. Just a crock pot!
Nope. The chicken will release some juices and that will help create steam.
No, the slow cooker traps moisture, keeping everything soft. You can place the chicken under the oven broiler briefly before serving if you’d like some crispy skin.
Fauxtisserie Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken small enough to fit in your slow cooker
- Salt-based seasoning Seasoning salt, Cajun seasoning, lemon pepper with salt in it, etc. Just make sure salt is one of the first ingredients on the label.
- OPTIONAL:
- Whole garlic cloves peeled
- Fresh herbs
Instructions
- Make 3 balls of aluminum foil and place them in the bottom of your slow cooker. These hold the chicken off the bottom so the hot air can circulate all around the chicken and so it’s not stewing in its own juices.
- Rinse chicken, including the cavity, and pat dry with paper towels. Place the chicken on its back so the breast is facing up. If you want (and I actually strongly recommend that you do UNLESS you’re looking for a neutral flavor), pull the skin up all around the chicken. This does involve sticking your hand between the skin and the breast. Slice a few garlic cloves in half lengthwise and stick them under the skin. You can also arrange a couple sprigs of fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme, and/or sage under the skin. This makes a very pretty chicken when it’s all cooked and adds a lot of flavor.
- Rub salt-based seasoning VERY liberally onto the skin of the chicken. Place chicken breast-up on the foil in the slow cooker, cover, turn heat to low, and leave it alone for 7-8 hours. Try it with steak fries or Sara’s Stuffed Bleu Cheese Potatoes.
Notes
- After the chicken is done cooking, it’s easiest to remove the meat from the bones while it’s still warm. Store any leftover cooled chicken in an airtight container and enjoy within 2-3 days for best results.
- Nitrile gloves: If you’re at all squeamish around raw meat, but even if you’re not, I highly recommend keeping some nitrile gloves in your kitchen. They make both handling raw meat and pulling the cooked meat off the bones later much easier and less messy!
-
Cooking time can vary based on the size of your chicken and your crock pot. If you’re worried your chicken is getting too done and drying out, pop a thermometer in the deepest part of the meat to check it. Here’s what to expect at different temperatures:
-
165°F – Fully cooked, but sliceable and firm.
-
175-185°F (breast) – More tender and juicy.
-
185-195°F (thighs/legs) – Connective tissue breaks down and you get that juicy, fall-apart texture.
-
Questions & Reviews
I found this recipe about a month ago, and have made it once a week since then, for chicken salad, instead of buying (as I usually do) a rotisserie chicken with a tiny bit of white meat on it.
I can buy a very large chicken breast for under $3 at my store, and have heaps of perfectly-cooked and tender chicken meat, and I do get the crock pot full of broth out of it, too, for chicken soup. So, I’m saving $$ on the chicken and lots of money on the broth, which is quite expensive at the store.
McCormick sells a “rotisserie spice” now, which has the same mix as the stuff they sprinkle on the rotisserie chickens at the grocery store.
And happy ending – my dog loves the little chicken bits I pull off the bones after I make the broth. 🙂
Great work!
This is EXCELLENT!
So, do you do anything with the juice in the bottom of the crock pot? Or just throw it out?
You can use it to make gravy, save it and use it with the bones to make chicken stock, or just toss it. Totally up to you. 🙂
My husband stumbled across your website recently and since then I have made this twice. I did find that cooking the chicken leaves the breast dry, so for next time I think I will cut the cooking time down to maybe six hours. It was delicious! Thank You for making my busy weeknights easier 🙂
Kate, thank you for the kind reply 🙂 After I posted I was afraid it was rude of me to bring it up in the comments instead of just trying to e-mail you. I trust your judgment and am excited to try cooking a chicken this way soon!
I know this is like a year later, but just a heads up for anyone concerned about the safety… I checked out the government site that the HEB link said the info was from, and it does not actually say that you should not cook whole chickens. It does say to check your crockpot manual for the recommended sizes of meat for your particular crockpot. I know my crockpot manual has recipes for cooking whole chickens. http://www.fsis.usda.gov/FACT_SHEETS/Focus_On_Slow_Cooker_Safety/index.asp
I love this. Like others I have many chicken “issues”. This solves all of them, Thanks!!
Here’s my problem – I have a 10hr time span from when I leave my house for work and make it home. I reeeaaally want to try this recipe but I am so worried about over-cooking. Should I try it frozen?
Get a programable outlet timer like what is used to turn lights off and on when you are on vacation. You can find it in the hardware/electronic department of many stores, Wal-mart, Target, Wal-greens, ect. Set it to come on at a time say, 4-5 hours before you get home, so it won’t be completely cooked by the time you get home.
I have the same problem, what a fantastic idea!
I can honestly admit that before now, I refused to cook whole chickens because I did not know how or want to spend the time carving all the meat off of it. What was I thinking!? I was missing out on the easiest thing ever. When the chicken is done, it simply falls off the carcus and there is literally no effort involved. I am so glad that I steped out of my comfort zone and tried this. I cook this all the time now.
I made this chicken today and it is the best chicken I’ve ever made! I used cilantro and lemon grass along with the garlic and salt. DELICIOUS! Thanks.
I made this last weekend and it was a bit hit! Thanks for sharing. 🙂