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
My friend cooks chicken this was but builds a little rack of celery to keep the chicken out of the fat and add flavor
So I made my very first fauxtisserie chicken this weekend and I was so excited with the way it turned out! (Never thought I’d be this excited over a chicken!) It was juicy and flavorful and just fell off of the bone + it was pretty just like a rotisserie chicken! I took a shot at this recipe b/c whole chickens were on sale and I like to keep a supply of cooked, cut up chicken in my freezer for soups, enchiladas, casseroles, etc. When I roast them in the oven the white meat is dry, and anytime I tried them in the crockpot they were less than flavorful and looked rather sickly. But this is my new “go-to” recipe for whole chicken – and it’s pretty enough to serve as the main course! Only thing I think I’d try differently would be to spray my foil balls with a little non-stick spray before placing the chicken on them…nothing worse than sticky chicken foil balls! 🙂
Tried making this today. The chicken came out juicy and delicious. I just discovered your site today, and I’ve found tons of recipes (and recipe ideas) I want to try.
I made this (first but NOT the last time) today, and had to tell you a funny story. Last night, I got the crockpot ready and set the herbs and spices out so I’d be all ready to go this morning. I took the kids to school, came back to get everything going, and found a note from my husband taped on the lid: “Yum, tinfoil soup! My favorite!” Ha!
Also, thanks for the VERY forgiving recipe. I accidentally had it on High nearly eight hours, and it was still tender, juicy and delicious. Thanks!
Eating this right now… Never had a chicken de-bone itself before, talk about fall off the bone, finger-licking good! used the juice to make a gravy over mashed potatoes and roasted cauliflower!
had to tell you, I made your fauxtissirie chicken on Monday, served it w/couscous and peas, used the broth that accumulated in the bottom of my crock pot for a white bean chicken chili (used frozen boneless/skinless chix thigh for that) on Tuesday, and finished up the last of the chicken breasts on a chicken and spinach pizza on Wednesday! this is a fabulous money saver recipe you have given me and i truly appreciate it! you two are amazing and inspiring.
The chicken I bought is 5 lbs and I had to jam it in to get it to fit. It is touching the crockpot on two sides. Is this going to cook as well if there isn’t as much room for the air to circulate?
So I’m totally a bachelor and like to cook but am really bad at it and never have time. My sister sent me this recipe because she knows I love rotisserie chicken and I finally made it today. All I can say it, IT WAS AWESOME! I loved how I came home from work and my house smelled amazing and the chicken was so incredibly tender and tasty. I made stove top stuffing (don’t hate, I love that stuff!) and corn to go with it and it was the best meal I have made for myself ever I think. I will totally be making this again soon. 🙂
OK question – mine keeps falling apart – I go to lift it out and seriously all of it falls apart – bones and all – which makes getting to the meat kind of a pain – I’ve tried everything (including a disaster of sucking out the juice to keep it from getting “stewed” (I burned myself pretty bad doing this btw – so I do not recommend it) )
Honestly, that doesn’t bother me because it means it’s moist and tender and done. 🙂 BUT I totally get your point. I would actually try cooking it for just a little less time so everything isn’t quite to the falling apart stage, you know?
So I must say I love you ladies!! I made the fauxtisserie lemon herb chicken with green bean bundles and Garlic herb scalloped potatoes…It was amazing!!! So simple and feeds a ton. Only took me two hours to make everything in between interruptions and all that. I’m going to buy your book so I can have it on hand. Thanks again for sharing 🙂