Poultry should always be rinsed under cold running water after being taken out of the package. If it’s going to be pre-browned under the broiler or in a skillet on the stove, pat the pieces dry with paper towels and then wash your hands. Chicken often contains salmonella, a naturally occurring bacterium that is killed by cooking, but you don’t want to transfer this bacterium to other foods. That’s why cooked chicken should never be placed on a platter that held it raw. For the same reason, if you are prepping ingredients in the evening to cook the next day in the slow cooker, never refrigerate the chicken with other ingredients, and never pre-brown chicken and then refrigerate it again.
For the sake of food safety, it’s best not to cook a whole chicken in the slow cooker, because the low heat might keep the meat of a whole bird in the bacterial danger zone of 40°F to 140°F for more than two hours. For these recipes calling for whole chickens, I advocate using thighs, legs, and breasts, which can be cut in half. They’re bigger than the other pieces and they fit more neatly in the slow cooker if cut. Save the wings separately for making baked or grilled wings for a picnic or snack; there’s not enough meat on them to justify taking up room in the slow cooker.