Slow Cooker Garlic & Herb Guinea Fowl with Rustic Vegetables

There’s nothing better than coming home after a busy Sunday out with the family to a warm, comforting meal waiting for you. This Slow Cooker Garlic & Herb Guinea Fowl is the perfect fuss-free dish—simply prepare it in the morning, set the slow cooker, and let it work its magic while you enjoy your day.

Guinea fowl is becoming increasingly popular and is now widely available in supermarkets. With a flavour that’s richer and slightly gamier than chicken, it makes a fantastic alternative for a hearty, home-cooked meal.

Tender, flavourful guinea fowl is infused with a delicious mix of garlic, lemon, and herbs, sitting on a bed of rustic potatoes, carrots, and celery. As it slow cooks, the juices from the bird and vegetables create a rich, natural broth that can easily be thickened into a simple homemade gravy—perfect for drizzling over your meal.

With minimal effort and maximum flavour, this dish is ideal for a stress-free, home-cooked Sunday dinner. Just serve, carve, and enjoy—no last-minute rushing, just a hearty meal ready to warm you up when you walk through the door! 🍽️✨

Ingredients

1 whole guinea fowl

Herb Mix

3 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 juice of 1 lemon
pinch maldon salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp dried oregano

Vegetables

4 medium potatoes, cut into chunks
3 large carrots,  cut into chunks
1 celery stalk,  cut into chunks
1 small onion, roughly chopped

3 whole garlic cloves

1 tbsp cornflour

water

Optional

Fresh parsley, chopped

Lemon wedges

Method

Prepare the Herb Mix
In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, minced garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper, thyme, parsley and oregano.

Prepare the Guinea Fowl

Pat the guinea fowl dry with kitchen paper.
Gently loosen the skin over the breast using your fingers or a spoon.
Spread the herb mixture under the skin, ensuring an even distribution.

Prepare the Vegetables

Place the potatoes, carrots, celery, garlic cloves and onion at the bottom of the slow cooker.

Assemble in the Slow Cooker

Place the prepared guinea fowl on top of the vegetables.
Spoon the rest of the Herb Mix over the guinea fowl.

Guinea Fowl in Slow Cooker at the start of cooking

Cook

Cover with the lid and cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 3-4 hours, until the guinea fowl is cooked through (internal temperature should reach 75°C/165°F).

Carefully remove the guinea fowl and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving.

How to Make a Simple Gravy from the Cooking Juices

Strain the Juices

Once the guinea fowl is cooked, carefully remove it from the slow cooker and set it aside to rest.
Strain the juices into a small saucepan, removing any vegetable bits for a smoother gravy.

Thicken with Cornflour (Cornstarch) Slurry

In a small bowl, mix 1 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch) with 2 tbsp cold water until smooth.
Bring the strained juices to a gentle simmer over medium heat.
Gradually whisk in the cornflour slurry, stirring continuously until the gravy thickens (this usually takes 2–3 minutes).

Enhance the Flavour (Optional)

Add a knob of butter for a glossy finish.
Stir in a splash of lemon juice to brighten the flavours.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve

Pour the gravy over your guinea fowl and vegetables, or serve on the side in a jug.

Garnish with fresh parsley and extra lemon wedges if desired.

Enjoy your flavourful, fall-apart slow-cooked guinea fowl! 🍽️😊

Read More

Guinea fowl - spatchcocked and Portuguese style

Trying to find a variation for dinner involving white meat, is challenging. There is turkey, chicken and duck in most supermarkets. We choose organic and free range as much as possible, the cheap chicken has no flavour and also seems to shrink a lot during cooking, which is probably due to a high water content.

We have discovered that guinea fowl is a great new option and reasonably priced and tastes amazing.

Cooking with minimal fuss and speed can be a challenge in the evenings, I love it when a meal can be popped in the oven and just needs occasional monitoring and turning. A guinea fowl can take 90 minutes to roast normally, but if spatchcocked it can roast in 60 minutes.

Spatchcocking the guinea fowl is really easy if you have some strong kitchen scissors. It involves removing the backbone from the bird, just turn over the bird so that the breast is facing down, then using the kitchen scissors, cut through one side of the backbone, then repeat the other side, turn over the bird and open out the legs and push down on the breast, this will flatten the bird. 

https://www.marthastewart.com/8305039/how-to-spatchcock-chicken

Ingredients

1 guinea fowl

1 sachet of Nando’s Peri Peri coat and cook https://www.nandos.co.uk/food/medium-coat-cook-sauce

Method

Spatchcock the guinea fowl, then put the bird in a small roasting pan, cover with the marinade and rub into both sides of the bird. If you have the time, cover with foil and leave for 15 minutes to marinade. Pop on the middle shelf in a preheated oven Gas 5 180C for 60 minutes. Remove the foil after 30 minutes and baste with the juices in the pan.

Check that the guinea fowl is cooked, by piercing thickest part of the leg and checking that the juices run clear.

Serve with Jacket potatoes (these can be popped into the same oven when the guinea fowl is put in the cook).

I also served with Roasted Red Peppers and fennel (Delia’s recipe) this was cooked on the top shelf of oven. https://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/books/delias-happy-christmas/roasted-red-peppers-stuffed-with-fennel

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