Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken
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28 min whole rotisserie chicken? Yes! The chicken comes out perfectly tender, juicy + packed with flavor. And it’s SO EASY!
I love a good rotisserie chicken. I mean, I really love a good rotisserie chicken.
It’s so versatile, and has so many uses. It’s great on its own with a few roasted veggies and it’s great with pastas and soups as a fill in. But more importantly, they are so perfect with nachos and quesadillas during the wee hours of the night.
Or wait. Am I the only one making leftover rotisserie chicken nachos at 10PM?
I hope not.
But nonetheless, I am now sharing an effortless Instant Pot rotisserie chicken recipe! It’s made in the IP completely from start to finish – with a quick sear on both sides for that beautiful golden brown color before it sits in that IP for 28 minutes. Boom. Done.
Just let it release naturally as you prep your sides for dinner.
Oh and when I say dinner, I really mean nachos.
Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 ½ teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 (4-pound) whole roasting chicken
- 1 lemon, halved
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 cup chicken stock
Equipment
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, thyme, paprika, oregano, onion powder and garlic powder.
- Remove giblets and excess fat from the chicken cavity. Dry chicken thoroughly with paper towels. Season chicken and chicken cavity with salt mixture. Stuff cavity with lemon.
- Set 6-qt Instant Pot® to the high saute setting. Add canola oil and chicken, breast side down, and cook until evenly golden brown, about 4-5 minutes. Using tongs, flip, and cook for an additional 4 minutes; set aside.
- Place metal trivet into the pot and add chicken stock. Gently place chicken on top of the trivet. Select manual setting; adjust pressure to high, and set time for 28 minutes. When finished cooking, naturally release pressure according to manufacturer’s directions, about 20-30 minutes. Let rest 10-15 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Did you make this recipe?
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Have made this a few times now
It’s my go to recipe for a yummy easy chicken dinner. I make Air Fryer spiced potato wedges with it. So good even without the lemon
I just got my instant pot Duo yesterday. The first meal I want to make is rotisserie chicken and potatoes. Can you please tell me how to make the potatoes with the chicken?
Made this dish using my own rub (we love fennel, so I use fennel seed in my rub). Used a 5.5lb chicken, so I increased the cooking time to 37 minutes, and finished under the broiler to crisp the skin a bit. Came out juicy and tender, with just a bit of lemon tang. Rivals the rotisserie chicken we sometimes buy from our big box store.
Could you place the chicken on top of carrots and potatoes instead of the inset piece?
I wouldn’t advise it. The bottom of the instant pot does get quite hot, and the carrots and potatoes could very well burn.
This was absolutely delicious!!! Tasted exactly like the rotisserie chicken you buy at the store!!! The only thing we did differently at the end was make gravy from the broth & seasonings left in the pot. Right there in the pot, turned back on sauté cornstarch with some water & whisk. Just made the dish!!!!
Sounds delicious! How long did you sauté for?
My husband was wanting homemade chicken noodle soup on this fall night …! I went to Kroger to get a rotisserie chicken because that’s my cheat way to make excellent soup!! Being 8:30pm there was not one chicken left ! I was scouring my brain as to how to make the soup ! Then it hit me !! I will use my IP to cook a chicken!! It cut the time to 34 minutes (5.65 lb) and I was able to get soup in the table when he got home from the gym ! Basically this kitchen appliance gets rid of the need for a slow cooker etc !! Yea instant pot!
Absolutely excellent recipe! After the chicken was complete, I placed it in the oven on broil to crisp the skin. OMG! The seasoning was delish!
I’m new to Instant Pot (and also to writing reviews). This was AWESOME.
This is the BEST chicken I’ve ever made. This is my family’s favorite recipe. They call it THAT chicken and would eat every night if I made it. Thank you for the delicious recipe
Full disclosure: I made this in a proper, stove-top pressure cooker. I did not make the recipe as written, but used it as a jumping-off point.
The spice rub is delicious! I love how it really mimics the flavour of store-bought rotisserie chicken. I did make a few small changes: I quartered an onion and placed it underneath the trivet, and put fresh thyme sprigs inside the chicken cavity instead of dried thyme in the rub.
I also did one major change. I browned the chicken after cooking instead of before. Once the chicken was finished pressure cooking, I removed it from the pot, poured the liquid into a jug and skimmed the fat. Then I heated the pressure cooker pot, added some of the skimmed fat to the hot pot, and browned the cooked chicken until crispy and golden brown. Then I took the chicken back out, added some flour to the drippings in the pot , and made gravy with the reserved liquid in the jug.
If the Instant pot’s controls allow it, if people want crispy skin, I would suggest browning afterwards. It works!
Thanks for the inspiration!
New to Instant Pot so didn’t know what to expect, but my wife and I agreed this was pretty bad. Despite the deceptively lovely golden-brown color produced by the spices and searing, the pressure-steaming process left the skin flabby and unappetizing. Meanwhile with the quick cooking time the flavor of the spices and even the salt didn’t penetrate leaving the meat tasteless. The spices are basically wasted, except for color. One star because the “doneness” was right, and after smothering the meat with BBQ sauce we got a nutritious if disappointing meal out of it. Another star because I can make a chicken salad out of the leftovers. Based on this experience I think Instant Pot just isn’t the right tool for a whole chicken. I don’t see how the skin could ever be made appetizing using the pressure-steam method.
I understand what you are saying but you can make 2 simple adjustments.
1) once you rub the chicken with the spices, let is sit in the refrigerator for a few hours
2) once the chicken is finished cooking, put it on a backing sheet under the broiler for 5-10 minutes.
Great flavor, easy to cook!! Everyone has gone back at least once for more!! Thank you 🙂
So delicious! And without the pale, pasty look that many IP chickens have. 5#bird, 30 mins high pressure, 30 mins NPR. Rave reviews!
this is our first time using our instapot following your recipe. The recipe looks great and easy to follow, when was all said and done the chicken didn’t come out like it does on the grill. That’s my idea of rotisserie chicken. Is there something I did wrong, since this is the first time constructive criticism accepted thank you I will keep you posted on more recipes
This is the most amazing homemade rotisserie chicken recipe. It’s easy and flavorful and super tender. I love the addition of lemons. It gives the chicken a nice subtle citrus flavor. This is the first recipe that popped up when I wanted to cook a chicken in the instant pot, and it’s the only one I will use because I love it so much!
Easy to make and delicious!
I made this before I saw your recipe. I lather mine with butter and brown all sides of the chicken. Even turn it to brown the neck and cavity side. I have even marinated it in seasonings without butter and then marinated it with more same seasonings in a 1/2 cup of yogurt and then brown on all sides making a moroccan style chicken. I serve it with a Lebanese garlic rice recipe I got from YouTube and made a yogurt sauce and salad. I cook my chicken for 30 to 35 minutes. Pour out juices and slide my chicken into a baking dish because it’s so tender it will fall apart.
Question, does the skin actually crisp up? I love crispy skin on Rotisserie chicken. It just doesn’t seem like it would. Curious?
I can only find 51/2 lb whole chickens. Can you tell me how much time I need to add?
The chart that came with my Instant Pot says 8 min. per lb for whole chicken.
I read in another post its 30 mins for a 5lb chicken. Add 6 minutes for every pound and 3 minutes for every half a lb. So I’d say 33 minutes for a 5 1/2 lb bird. Hope that helps!
Can you tell me if it would be possible to sauté it ahead of time and then place it back into the insta -pot to cook it later? I would like to prep it and sauté it the night before so my family can begin the actual cooking process on a might I have to work a bit later than normal.
This is absolutely damn delicious!!