Instant Pot Whole Chicken is a rotisserie-style whole chicken cooked under pressure for 30 minutes till perfectly tender. The recipe is a bombshell of flavors and aroma, it is indeed versatile, easy, and delicious.
Forget grocery store rotisserie chicken, this recipe for Instant Pot Whole chicken is a real savior for the times when you are out of time. The pressure cooking will tenderize the meat till it falls off the bones. It is an absolute success because it saves your time, yet, it delivers one of the most delicious chickens you’ve ever had, I promise! It is the most succulent roast chicken I’ve tasted.
How do you prepare a whole chicken before cooking?
There are some simple tips and steps you need to follow in order to get a whole chicken that delicious as it looks in our pictures.
First, choose a medium-sized chicken, too large birds will cook longer and will not soak in the flavors as good as a small-sized or medium-sized chicken would. Here also, the bird has to be fully defrosted when you start cooking it.
Second, clean the bird. By that, I mean removing excess skin and fat, removing the giblets and the feathers if there are any left, check under the wings. It is also, recommended to pat dry the skin of the chicken instead of rinsing it to avoid bacteria spreading.
Third, rub in the spices and don’t skip seasoning the inside of the chicken, and stuff the cavity with lemon and a few garlic cloves. Choose the classic blend of spices when pressure cooking a whole chicken in an instant pot. That would be a mix of paprika, granulated garlic, salt, pepper, and thyme. It is a known fact that chicken meat is delicious as is, it needs very little to taste like heaven.
Therefore, use a moderate amount and variety of spices to not over-season the meat and miss out on its genuine taste. You can season the chicken, cover it in foil and refrigerate it overnight, or for a few hours. The marinated chicken in the instant pot is a whole new level of taste and tenderness. However, it is not a mandatory step for this recipe.
How to pressure cook a whole chicken in an instant pot?
Once the chicken is covered in perfumed spices, let’s proceed to the actual cooking. At this point, you have to decide whether you want the chicken to have appealing golden skin or not. Because if you want your chicken to be beautiful besides delicious, you need to roast it a bit first. Pressure-cooked meat is cooked with steam, you will not get that golden and crispy skin like you will when cooking oven-roasted chicken.
Therefore, brown the chicken first on the chest, then on the back. For that, set the instant pot on the “sautee” program, choose the “high” heat, and set it for 15 minutes. Then press the “start” button. Pour in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, and wait for the pot to beep. It is letting you know it has already preheated and you can now add in the produce.
Put the chicken with the breast down and allow 5-7 minutes for it to brown. Then, use the tongs or 2 forks to turn it upside down. Again, allow it to brown for another 5-7 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the chicken stock, you will need one cup of it.
Now that the skin is golden, turn off the “sautee” program on the instant pot by pressing the “cancel” button. Remove the chicken from the pot to place in the metal trivet that comes with the pressure cooker. Then pour in the chicken stock and place the chicken back to the pot on top of the metal trivet.
Press on the “pressure cooking button”, select the “poultry” option, and press on “start”. This program is set for 25 minutes, and it is perfect for a small or medium-sized chicken.
Finally, when the pot emanates a beep indicating that the cooking is done, release the steam. That will take about 20 minutes. You will be able to open the lid only after the steam is completed released. Don’t try to open the lid because you might get burnt.
How to serve the Instant Pot Whole Chicken?
Serve the tender chicken as soon as you take it out of the instant pot. Accompany it with the refreshing tzatziki sauce and some roast potatoes.
Tips:
- Add some knobs of butter under the skin and pierce the breasts a few times
- Season the chicken and marinate it overnight
- Place the chicken in a steamer basket so it’s easy to pull out of the pot when it’s done without it falling apart
- Prepare a mix of spices and keep a batch ready in the cupboard
- If you like crispy skin, shove the bird under the broiler when done for 10-12 minutes
Instant Pot Rotisserie Whole Chicken
Equipment
- instant pot
Ingredients
- 1 medium whole chicken
- 1 medium lemon
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tbsp thyme
- 1 tbsp granulated garlic
- 3-4 cloves garlic
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Mix in the spices in a small bowl: salt, pepper, thyme, paprika, and granulated garlic
- Remove excess fat from the chicken cavity. Pat dry chicken and season the bird on the inside and outside. Stuff the cavity with lemon and garlic cloves
- Put metal trivet into the pot and pour the chicken stock. Place chicken on top of the trivet
- Press on the "pressure cooking button", select the "poultry" option, and press on "start". This program is set for 25 minutes
- Release the steam
- Serve with pleasure
