A whole chicken is nothing to be afraid of.

29 Jan A whole chicken is nothing to be afraid of.

I thought whole chickens were difficult to cook.
I thought whole chickens were disgusting.
I thought whole chickens would demand too much time.

And then I tried it.

And I found out whole chickens are
easy
just regular meat
(aside from a few stray feathers, shiver)
and so quick to prepare
(let your crockpot do the work!).

Plus, you get a gallon of free chicken broth to boot!

Here’s the deets.

Thaw a whole chicken.
(Miller’s has great chickens at Owen’s or Eagle Creek,
or get a big stash from a local farmer.)

I got a poultry rub once from the Spice Merchants in The Village,
but any of your favorite herbs will add wonderful flavor.

First, rub oil all over the chicken (even under the skin and
inside the cavity, if you can stand it!). Oil=moist meat!

Then your spices. (I’ve done it plain plenty of times
and just season it with whatever meals I make it into.)

No need to add water or anything else.
The chicken provides its own juices.
(I have friends who add veggies at this point,
but since we use the chicken for several different
meals, I cook my sides separately.)

Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

The most tedious task of cooking a whole chicken is the deboning process.
Get yourself a good nap time with a short TV episode showing on your
iPad to pick all the bones out. Or an eager-to-help husband.

Yeah, Option Two is definitely the way to go.

Use the chicken meat however you want.

Then place the bones and skin back in the crockpot.
All that juice is just from cooking the chicken!

Cover with (filtered) water.
Cook for 8-24 hours.

I typically cook it overnight and strain it whenever I get to it during the next day.

Then I strain the bones from the broth and toss ’em in the trash. Try to break a bone.
I’m serious. It’ll break like a toothpick. That means you did your job.
Got all that nutritious collagen out. A.mazing.

Now. My mesh strainer died about two weeks ago. I’d definitely recommend using
that over the one I used here. Wanted to try it before I purchased a redundant gadget.
But it allowed more little bits in my broth than I would prefer. Don’t think it’s bad,
just not as smooth and clear. My two (four?) cents.

When I fill my crockpot to the top with water, it yields four quarts of broth!

You can use it right away, or you can store it. A few days for refrigeration,
several weeks in the freezer. I always cool them on the counter ’til room temperature,
several hours in the fridge, and then place them in the freezer. Prevents cracked jars.

(Note: if you’re planning to store these in the freezer, leave some breathing room in the jars.
Otherwise, you’ll end up with shattered glass in your thawed broth. Ask me how I know.)

Look at the rich fat collecting at the top! Mmm.
And the color. Rich, rich, RICH.
(This jar has the floaties since it wasn’t strained so finely.)

See how much smoother these ones are? Yep. Mesh strainer’s worth it!

Personally, I started making chicken broth more because it’s free than because it’s healthy.
But healthy it is! If you’d like to read more about the health benefits of homemade bone broth,
click here.

One last tip. I have yet to remember to do this, but if your mind hasn’t been zapped of all its remembering power, do the following: every time you peel any vegetables, save the peelings
in a baggie in the freezer. When you make your chicken broth, place all your peelings in the crockpot too. Your body will appreciate the extra nutrients, and you’ll be feeling extra frugal.