Whole Chicken in the Crockpot

This was a 5+ lb. chicken for $6.22 It will make ~4 meals for us. I don't think you can beat that! 

Recipe chopped from: Gimme Some Oven 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 whole chicken (about 4-5 lbs.), insides removed
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• (aluminum foil, or thickly-sliced onions or vegetables)

DIRECTIONS:

Rinse the chicken thoroughly and pat it dry with paper towels.

In a small bowl, whisk together the paprika, salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder until combined.  Rub the seasoning mix all over chicken -- on the outside skin, the inside cavity, and (if you're feeling brave) on the chicken breasts underneath the skin.

Roll up a few small balls of aluminum foil (or thickly slice some onions, and/or veggies) place them on the bottom of your slow cooker bowl to serve as a "rack" for the chicken, so that it doesn't have to cook in the juices that will accumulate in the bottom of the slow cooker.  Place the chicken on top of the aluminum foil (or veggies), pressing it down a bit if need be for the lid to fit.  Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours until the chicken is cooked through and reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.

Carefully remove the chicken from the slow cooker (it may be so tender that it falls apart on you), discard the bones, and serve the chicken as desired. Then I put mine into a 9x13 in the oven on broil to allow it to brown a little! 

*I used this small 3-quart slow cooker, and the chicken just barely fit.  (It also shrunk down a bit while cooking.)