A former MasterChef runner-up has revealed that cooking roast chicken in a slow cooker, rather than the oven, produces the juiciest results. Dean Edwards, who finished as runner-up on the show in 2006, shared his go-to recipe for roast chicken that uses a slow cooker instead of an oven.
Slow cooker method for tender chicken
In a TikTok video from September, Dean said: “The only slow cooker recipe you will need for the juiciest chicken ever. This chicken is gonna be fall-apart tender by the end of the cook.”
To help manoeuvre the chicken, Dean recommends making a “sling” out of two long strips of tin foil. The chicken is then rested on the top of the tin foil. You can either cook the chicken on high for four hours or at a low temperature for eight hours. The chicken should reach an internal temperature of 75°C.
Recipe for slow cooker whole chicken and fruity stuffing
Once the chicken is cooked, you can use the remaining liquid in the slow cooker to make homemade stuffing. Dean said: “Trust me when I say this was the juiciest chicken I’ve ever eaten.”
The recipe serves four and uses a whole chicken (1.5kg in weight), 30g melted butter, one teaspoon sweet paprika, one heaped teaspoon garlic granules, one heaped teaspoon onion granules, one teaspoon salt, one finely chopped onion, 100ml boiling chicken stock, 100g sage and onion stuffing mix, and 50g dried cranberries.
Combine the garlic granules, onion granules, paprika, butter, salt, and gravy browning in a small bowl, then rub this all over the chicken. Throw the onion into the bottom of the slow cooker pot, then pour in the chicken stock. Place a couple of strips of tinfoil over the onions, then place the chicken on top. The foil will help you remove the chicken from the pot once it’s cooked. Place on the lid and cook on the high setting for four hours or the low setting for eight hours. Scatter the stuffing mix and cranberries into the slow cooker pot and give it a good mix to combine all of the juices into the stuffing. Put the lid back on, then cook for a further 10 minutes whilst the chicken is resting.
Viewer reactions and tips
Dean explained that his recipe uses a 3.5 L slow-cooker pot. You will need to adjust the ingredient measurements if your slow cooker is larger.
Dean’s video has been viewed over 89,800 times and has received 2,474 likes and 66 comments. B wrote: “Wow the best chicken ever, will never use the oven again. So tender and juicy 100% The tinfoil handles worked so well. Thank you.” Joanne commented: “I must admit, I felt a bit sceptical because I thought it might be dry, but omg - it's proper banging! Thank you, Dean!”
Lee said, “I’m certainly going to try this at the weekend. I love the slow cooker. Please share more ideas,” while Dunnep praised, “Unreal as always mate. That’s Sunday sorted.” Another agreed: “Best way to cook chicken, been doing it for years.”
