The GFCF Experience Recipe Repost - Slow Cooked Chicken

I love using the slow cooker. And a couple of Sunday's ago was the perfect example of why I love the slow cooker. That Sunday was the opening day of Spring soccer for my daughter, and it just so happened that she had two games that day. With a bit of a break between games, this meant we would be out and about for most of the afternoon, and likely too exhausted to come home and make anything resembling a decent Sunday dinner.



But a day like that is the perfect day for the slow cooker. You put your ingredients in before you leave, and you turn it on and let it cook all day while you are out and about. Come home, and you have a complete nutritious meal waiting for you! Which is exactly what we did on this particular Sunday.



My favorite slow cooker recipe is for slow cooked chicken. This is actually an Emeril LaGasse recipe, courtesy of the Food Network. While it lacks Emeril's traditional 36 cloves of garlic (just 1 little tbsp.) or spices you throw on at the end while yelling BAM!, it is full of flavor, and incredibly simple to make - throw ingredients into slow cooker, turn on, do something else for 6 hours, make gravy, serve. It didn't even need any adaptations - it was already GFCF!



I first made this recipe New Year's Day 2009 and originally posted it shortly thereafter. Since then it has become one of our staple Sunday dinners and remains a household favorite. I have made it using different herbs instead of thyme, like sage and rosemary, and it always comes out delicious.



This is how it turned out a couple of Sunday's ago. After a long day of soccer, we came home, whipped up a pot of rice, and steamed some vegetables. And a delicious Sunday dinner was born.





SLOW COOKED CHICKEN

A recipe by Emeril LaGasse



INGREDIENTS



1 whole chicken, 3 1/2 to 4 pounds

kosher salt

fresh pepper (we used black pepper)

1 medium onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

1 Tbsp minced garlic

1 Tbsp dried thyme

1 Tbsp lemon juice

4 tsp cornstarch





Rinse the chicken inside and out under cool running water, and pat dry.



Season chicken with salt and pepper inside and out and place in crock pot.



Scatter the onions, celery, carrots, garlic, thyme, and lemon juice over the top of the chicken.

Cover and cook on High for 6 hours.



Remove the chicken and vegetables from the crock pot, and pour the accumulated juices into a saucepan. Dissolve the cornstarch in 2 tsp of water and whisk into the juices. Bring to a boil and cook about 4 to 5 minutes until thickened. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.