Cooking Methods for Whole Chickens

I prefer to buy whole chickens instead of packages of chicken breasts or wings or thighs or various other packages available. While the packages seem more convenient, I find far more value in a whole chicken. For every whole chicken I buy, I can get several meals'-worth of broth, plus at least four meals'-worth of meat. For almost every chicken recipe I use, the meat comes from chicken I have cooked right after purchasing a whole chicken, and then frozen into meal-size portions.

Slow Cooker
My favorite way to cook a chicken is in the slow cooker. I do it the same way each time, but just vary the spices and vegetables. I put the chicken into the slow cooker, then add vegetables if I want to. Sometimes I don't add any veggies, though. It just depends on what I have in my fridge. If I do use vegetables, I tend to keep it simple. I will use celery, onions, garlic, and carrots - either one, some, or all of those. Then I add a few peppercorns, lots of salt, and I like to add fresh sprigs of thyme and/or rosemary. Here's a secret: put in whole anise. It adds a hint of flavor that is unparalleled in chicken broth. Then I cover it all with water and cook it for 8-10 hours on low. When deciding which veggies and seasonings to use, I sometimes go according to a specific chicken soup I'd like to make that week. I make the broth using the spices called for in that specific recipe. I don't do this all the time. Mostly I just "wing it."

Stock Pot
Another way I cook my chickens is as prescribed in my Warrior Chicken Soup recipe. This is my absolute favorite flavored chicken broth.

Oven Roasting
And a third way, in case you don't have a slow cooker or a huge stock pot for the above methods, is the oven roasting method. Place the chicken in a large roasting pan with a cup or two of water and a bay leaf or two. Bake covered at 350* for approximately an hour. (Times will vary depending on the size of your chicken.)

What to do once the chicken is cooked?
First, take the chicken out and place it on a large platter. Let it cool a bit (but not completely - just until cool enough to handle with your fingers). Put a huge bowl or large pot into your sink, then put a mesh strainer over top of the bowl. (Mine nicely props up in the sink so I don't need to hold it.) Then pour all the liquid and vegetables that are still in the pot through the strainer. Let that cool. Once the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and discard it. Then start picking all the meat off the bones. Once the broth is cool enough, ladle it into freezer containers in 2-cup portions. Freeze. Once the meat is cooled, put it into freezer bags in 1-2 cup portions. Put all the little bags into one big freezer bag and freeze. Voila!