Carnivore-ish Slow Cook Whole Chicken Recipe

This is a very easy slow cook whole chicken recipe that will give you a dish that the whole family can enjoy: tender fall-off-the-bone chicken with incredibly rich flavor.

Factory-farmed chicken has a bad reputation on the carnivore diet but if you can raise your own chickens or get access to pasture-raised chickens, they are super nutritious food and you should enjoy them as much as you wish.

Pasture-raised chicken and eggs both taste better and have a better nutritional profile. ^{[1, 2]}

Because pasture-raised chickens are free to roam, their meat tends to be leaner and tougher and requires a longer cooking time. Cooking the whole chicken slowly over many hours till tender is a great way to enjoy pasture-raised chicken.

This recipe uses only a few non-carnivore seasonings (onion, garlic, lime leaves, and Shiitake mushrooms). If you don’t want to eat them, once the chicken has been cooked, you can use a strainer to remove them.

This recipe is super easy, it takes less than 10 minutes to prepare with just a few basic ingredients but will yield really amazing flavor.

Ingredients

1 whole chicken (3-5 lbs) (pasture-raised if possible)
6 chicken feet (pasture-raised if possible)
3 tsp sea salt
1 large brown onion
6 garlic cloves
4 fresh lime or lemon leaves
10 whole dried Shiitake mushrooms
1 tbs tallow or lard
4 cups light chicken broth.

Instructions

Step 1

Slice the onion and garlic into large slices.

Heat a frying pan on high heat. Add tallow and wait till it bubbles. Add onion and garlic and fry till well caramelized.

Step 2

Place half the fried onion and garlic and the Shiite mushroom inside the chicken then place the chicken in a crockpot or a Dutch oven.

Add the rest of the fried onion and garlic, lime leaves (tear or cut into large pieces), chicken feet, salt and broth to the pot.

The chicken feet are used in this recipe help to increase the fat content of the dish because pasture-raised chickens are usually quite lean. They also help create a rich and gelatinous broth at the end.

Step 3

Bring to a boil then simmer on low heat for about 4 hours or till the chicken is fork-tender. If you use a slow cooker, it’ll take 7 to 8 hours to finish.

The end result is a very tender chicken with awesome flavor that comes from the combination of the onion, garlic, lime leaves and Shiite mushrooms.

Please note that pasture-raised chickens usually take a lot longer to get to the right weight compared to factory-farmed chickens.

In addition, as mentioned above, because they are free to roam around, their meat is usually tougher as well. So, generally, pasture-raised chickens will take longer to cook compared to conventional chickens.

carnivore-ish slow cook whole chicken in a Dutch oven

If you don’t like to eat the onion, garlic, and mushrooms, once it’s done, you can lift the whole chicken and the chicken feet out of the pot and then remove the seasonings using a slotted spoon or a strainer.

You can use a pair of food scissors to cut the whole chicken into large chunks or you can simply break the chicken apart with a knife and fork at this stage.

This is a very simple dish that tastes great on its own.

The depth of flavor in the meat is amazing and so is the broth. Because the chicken feet are very rich in collagen, they help enrich the broth and make it slightly sticky.

A bowl of carnivore-ish slow cook chicken

If you like, you can save the bones in a bag and store it in the freezer and use it later to make bone broth.

Other recipes that you may be interested in:

Disclaimer: The information in this post is for reference purposes only and not intended to constitute or replace professional medical advice. Please consult a qualified medical professional before making any changes to your diet or lifestyle.