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Do you ever find yourself at the grocery store buying a week’s worth of food, then reach for a rotisserie chicken because you no long have the energy to go home and cook what you just purchased? I admit it, I am guilty. But have you ever looked at the ingredients label on that chicken? Yikes! My Instant Pot Faux-tisserie Chicken is pure goodness…..
It is not injected with brown sugar or any crazy sounding ingredients. There is no caramel coloring to be found, just chicken, olive oil, fresh onions, garlic, and seasonings. That’s it!!
*Notes:
- You can use any pressure cooker to prepare this recipe, but you may have different times and buttons.
- If you do not have a pressure cooker, follow the directions in my Classic Roast Chicken post to bake in the oven.
How to make Instant Pot Faux-tisserie Chicken:
Rub chicken with one Tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the onion wedges and garlic cloves inside the chicken…..
Use butcher’s twine to secure the legs…..
Turn on the pressure cooker and press the Sauté button…..
Add the remaining olive oil to the metal pan. When hot, add the chicken and sear/brown both sides, about 4 minutes per side…..
Guess who forgot to oil the chicken first? Guess who’s skin stuck to the bottom?
Remove the chicken and set aside. Place the trivet at the bottom of the metal pan and add the chicken stock or water…..
Sprinkle seasoning mix over the entire chicken, rubbing it in and spreading it around to cover the entire chicken. Place the chicken, breast side up on top of the trivet and secure the lid…..
Make sure the lid is in the “Sealing” position, not “Venting”…..
Set the pressure cooker to Manual and set timer for 25 minutes by pushing the + button…..
When the timer beeps, allow the pressure to release naturally for 15 minutes. If the lid will not open, quick release the remaining pressure and remove the chicken…..
Allow chicken to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving…..
Sharpen your knife before using!! 😉
More Notes:
- Cooking time does not include the time it takes for the pressure cooker to reach pressure, or the time it takes to release the pressure. This will add an additional 30 to 40 minutes.
- Each pressure cooker is different so times may vary depending on brand, temperature of chicken when you begin cooking, even the size of your pressure cooker can make a difference.
- I have included a scaled down Southwest Seasoning recipe, but any seasoning will work, garlic-lemon, paleo powder, etc.
- You do not have to use a trivet, but the bottom of your chicken will be soggy if you don’t.
- If your cooker is not coming to pressure, double to check that the lid is completely secured and it plays that little song when it’s closed.
- Discard the onion and garlic when the chicken is finished, or toss them into the pot with some water, carrots, celery, and aromatics to make Homemade Chicken Stock!
This recipe is Whole 30 and Paleo compliant, but you would never guess it. The chicken is still moist and full of flavor. Best of all, when you use your Instant Pot you can walk away and do other things until it’s ready. 🙂
Tools used to make this recipe: contains affiliate links
- I use this 6 Qt Instant Pot® and it comes with a trivet. I actually used this Steaming Rack to lift the chicken up higher, but it’s not necessary. I just don’t want anyone coming back asking why their trivet looks different than mine. 😉
- If your pressure cooker did not come with a trivet you can purchase this one, it’s the one that I used to make this chicken, or this version with handles.
Some other flavored Instant Pot Whole Chicken recipes:
Greek Roasted Chicken – these next two are not Instant Pot recipes, but they can still be cooked using the same instructions.
Peruvian Roasted Chicken. The Peruvian Chicken will need to marinate, so plan ahead.
Enjoy!!
Instant Pot Faux-tisserie Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 pound whole chicken
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil {divided}
- sea salt & black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 medium onion, cut into quarters
- 5 large cloves fresh garlic, peeled and left whole
- southwest seasoning mix {recipe below} or 2 Tablespoons of your favorite seasoning {lemon-garlic, paleo powder, etc.}
- 1 cup chicken stock/broth, or water
Southwest Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon basil
Instructions
- Rub chicken with one Tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Place the onion wedges and garlic cloves inside the chicken. Use butcher's twine to secure the legs.
- Turn on the pressure cooker and press the Saute button.
- Add the remaining olive oil to the metal pan. When hot, add the chicken and sear/brown both sides, about 4 minutes per side. {included in cooking time}
- Remove the chicken and set aside. Place the trivet at the bottom of the metal pan and add the chicken stock.
- Sprinkle seasoning mix over the entire chicken, rubbing it in and spreading it around to cover the entire chicken.
- Place the chicken, breast side up on top of the trivet and secure the lid. Make sure the lid is in the "Sealing" position.
- Set the pressure cooker to Manual and set timer for 25 minutes.
- When the timer beeps, allow the pressure to release naturally for 15 minutes. If the lid will not open, quick release the remaining pressure and remove the chicken.
- Allow chicken to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
Each pressure cooker is different so times may vary depending on brand, temperature of chicken when you begin cooking, even the size of your pressure cooker can make a difference.
I have included a scaled down Southwest Seasoning recipe, but any seasoning will work, garlic-lemon, paleo powder, etc.
You do not have to use a trivet, but the bottom of your chicken will be soggy if you don’t.
If your cooker is not coming to pressure, double to check that the lid is completely secured and it plays that little song when it’s closed.
Discard the onion and garlic when the chicken is finished, or toss them into the pot with some water, carrots, celery, and aromatics to make Homemade Chicken Stock!
Whitney says
October 27, 2017 at 10:24 amHelp me. The smallest chicken I could fiind was a 5 pound chicken. How would this change cooking time??
Lisa Johnson says
October 27, 2017 at 6:12 pmI would cook it for 32 minutes, assuming that you can fit it inside the pot. You may also want to sear it in a separate pan to make it easier to turn. 🙂
Chanie says
November 30, 2017 at 8:57 amI just ordered my insta-pot and I’m stockpiling on recipes. Can’t wait to make this one. My question is why do you mention to throw away the onions & garlic? Is it because it was cooked in the cavity of the chicken? My family loves cooked garlic & onions
Lisa Johnson says
December 3, 2017 at 5:27 pmI throw them away because I didn’t have a use for them, Chanie. 🙂
Marie says
December 30, 2017 at 8:59 amI have a 6 qt IP. I don’t know how anyone is able to even fit a small chicken in the IP. I hadn’t a 4lb chicken which wound not fit flat and it would’ve too tall to fit in the pot and put a cover in it. What am I missing here that others have even put a 6 lb chicken in an IP
Lisa Johnson says
December 31, 2017 at 9:06 pmYou would need to use an 8 quart to fit a 6 pound chicken, nothing over 5 pounds will fit in a 6 quart. My chicken was just under 3 pounds, Marie.
Marie says
December 31, 2017 at 9:08 pmOthers on this reply have said they have cooked bigger than 3 lbs I their pots and I thought they were also 6 qts. Even a 3 lb chicken looks too big to fit to me.
Jen says
January 3, 2018 at 7:42 amThis was great but I do have a question as I am new to using the instant pot… Any tips for how you flipped the bird when doing the searing? Once it was down in there seating and the pot was hot with hot oil… it was VERY difficult to flip over an oiled chicken without burning myself. Luckily my husband walked in right as I was attempting and helped. How do you do it?
Lisa Johnson says
January 3, 2018 at 10:32 pmFlipping the chicken over is the hardest part, Jen. I start with tongs, one inside one on the outside. If that doesn’t work, I just grab the legs, lift it up and flip it over, LOL
Cynthia Aguilo says
January 13, 2018 at 5:46 amHi Lisa!
New to the IP world, this recipe sounds awesome, want to try it soon; That said, I have an IP Mini, any variations on time? Assuming I can find a small bird.
Thanks in advance!!!
Lisa Johnson says
January 18, 2018 at 8:34 pmHi Cynthia, I do not know anything at all about the Mini. I would check the owner’s manual and see if they have a chart for cooking times. Sorry. 🙁
Dan says
January 25, 2018 at 9:00 amThis looks great but I’ve read a lot of comments about dry and over-cooked chicken when done this way. Contrary to your recipe notes, we made a similar recipe without the trivit and reduced the broth to 2/3 cup. The bird was juicy and perfect, with no sogginess. Also, after making a few different whole chicken recipes in he IP, we’ve found that a pressure cooking time of 8 min/lb followed by a NR of 15-20 mintes gives a consistently juicy and tender chicken. Thanks for your wonderful post and great photos, all very nicely done!
Toni Annette says
January 28, 2018 at 10:46 amOh sweet baby James, that was one good chicken. I pulled the bone right out of the drumstick, trying to carve it. My husband, after he ate, said, “You need to use that little robot to cook all your chickens from now on.”
Lisa Johnson says
January 28, 2018 at 11:07 pmHahaha, I love it Toni! I’m so glad your husband approves of your robot cooked chicken. 😉
Celia says
February 5, 2018 at 4:51 pmHey there! Loved this. One point of clarification: it’s listed at 91 calories per serving (love that there are nutrition facts–thanks!). How many ounces do you mean a serving of this to be? One? Four? Thank you!
Lisa Johnson says
February 11, 2018 at 8:58 pmThe total serving size was a guess and the nutrition calculator broke it down from there, Celia. It’s difficult to determine the actual amount of meat on the chicken without weighing it, which I did not think to do. A 2 1/2 pound chicken “could” be half skin and bones, which would leave 1 1/4 pounds of chicken meat divided between 4 people would be a little over a 1/4 pound each…or about 5 ounces. 🙂
Alyssum says
February 6, 2018 at 3:11 pmHello Lisa! This is a wonderful recipe! I had a little question: I tend to go for white wine when dealing with a whole chicken – would it be okay, in your opinion, to opt for wine over the broth in the bottom of the IP? Or half wine, half broth? Wine just tends to deliver SUCH lovely flavor with poultry.
Thank you!
Lisa Johnson says
February 11, 2018 at 8:52 pmThat sounds like an awesome idea Alyssum! I use beer and wine in mine all the time. 🙂
Scott says
February 11, 2018 at 1:08 pmCurious how you came to 91 calories per serving but only 1 gram of protein.
Lisa Johnson says
February 11, 2018 at 8:50 pmI use an app that generates the nutritional data, something must have not have calculated correctly, LOL
Allen says
March 27, 2018 at 1:40 pmNutrition facts seem off (1 gram of protein?) especially since the recipe includes a chicken.
I’m still trying it though ?
Lisa Johnson says
March 28, 2018 at 10:23 amI fixed it Allen. Apparently I cannot use 2 1/2 to 3 as a value in the nutritional calculator, it was calculating the chicken as 0 pounds. 🙁
Allyson says
August 9, 2018 at 6:55 amWe had the faux-tisserie chicken cooked in my Instant Pot. It was delicious! This is a wonderful way to
“roast” a whole chicken. We really enjoyed the South-
Western rub. I also made a gravy and it too was very tasty.
This is now my go to recipe for roasted chicken
I’ve now subscribed to your site.
Thanjd
Lisa Johnson says
August 16, 2018 at 6:49 pmThank you so much Allyson, I am so glad you enjoyed it!!
Matt says
January 6, 2019 at 12:42 pmHow do you keep the skin from getting stuck on the bottom of the Instant Pot when searing both sides for 4 minutes? I used a full tablespoon of olive oil. Thanks for your help!
Lisa Johnson says
January 8, 2019 at 5:04 pmMore oil would probably help, Matt. If you have a newer instant pot or an 8 quart, I would try to pressure the Saute button a couple of times to drop it down to a lower setting so it doesn’t get as hot. I have not tried this myself, bu I have heard that it is possible. I hope that helps!
Madina says
February 9, 2019 at 4:38 pmWhen you mention 25 minutes, should it be on high or low pressure cooker? The recipe doesn’t specify this.
Lisa Johnson says
February 10, 2019 at 5:33 pmHi Madina, it is High Pressure.
Nancy says
March 26, 2019 at 2:34 pmHave made this a couple times wth great success. Just wondering what you use the liquid for afterwards besides gravy or chicken broth?
Lisa Johnson says
March 29, 2019 at 8:33 pmI am so happy to hear that, Nancy! I have honestly only used the liquid for gravy, sorry I wish I had a really creative answer for you! 🙂
Karen says
March 31, 2019 at 6:28 amIs it okay if the chicken is not completely thawed before cooking?
Lisa Johnson says
April 2, 2019 at 7:44 amYes that will be fine, it will just take longer to pressurize. 🙂
Sarah says
June 3, 2019 at 7:51 pmIf cooking from frozen how much time would you suggest adding?
Lisa Johnson says
June 4, 2019 at 8:24 pmThe cooking time remains the same Sarah, but it will take longer for the Instant Pot to come up to pressure and begin cooking.