Learn to make a whole chicken right in the Instant Pot with this easy recipe! Made with homemade rotisserie seasoning, this recipe for Instant Pot Whole Chicken results in a tender, juicy, perfectly cooked chicken in under 60 minutes.
This Instant Pot "Rotisserie-Style" Chicken is a favorite Instant Pot Chicken Recipe. It is perfect to enjoy for a family dinner or to use in leftover rotisserie chicken recipes.
I held off making a whole chicken in the Instant Pot for a long time. I love my recipe for Homemade Rotisserie Chicken made in the oven, so why mess with a good thing?
I am so glad I decided to start experimenting because Instant Pot Whole Chicken is about the best thing since sliced bread. Just like my recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Breast and Instant Pot Chicken Thighs making a whole chicken in the Instant Pot results in the most flavorful, tender, juicy chicken you will ever have. The meat literally falls off the bone and each bite of chicken is oozing with juiciness.
I predict this Instant Pot Rotisserie-Style Chicken is going to quickly become a new favorite recipe at your house. It is a simple, economical recipe that is worthy of a Sunday family dinner, or it can be used for any recipe calling for leftover rotisserie chicken or cooked chicken.
What you Need
- Whole Chicken: This recipe is designed for a fresh or thawed whole chicken. The one important note to consider is to make sure your chicken fits inside the instant pot. I have found that for a 6-quart model, you can prepare up to a 5-½ pound whole chicken, and for an 8-quart model, you can typically fit a 6-½ pound whole chicken. If you find that your chicken does not fit inside your inner pot, use my oven-roasted chicken recipe.
- Onion & Lemon: I add lemon and onion to the cavity of the chicken to help add flavor to the meat. However, you can omit one or both if you don't have an onion or lemon on hand.
- Homemade Rotisserie Blend: This spice blend is made with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, thyme, and cayenne pepper. Feel free to omit the cayenne pepper if you are sensitive to heat, but the blend itself is not spicy, as very little is used. You can replace the seasoning blend with your favorite spice blends, such as Homemade Poultry Seasoning, Seasoned Salt, or a Cajun seasoning.
- Water: As you know, you need liquid to reach and maintain pressure. I recommend using water when cooking a whole chicken in the Instant Pot, as there are minimal differences in flavor when using a liquid such as broth or beer.
- Trivet: It is best to cook a whole chicken on the metal rack or trivet that came with your electric pressure cooker. This will keep the skin from becoming soggy AND prevent a potential burn notice.
How to Cook a Whole Chicken in the Instant Pot
This chicken recipe is one of the easiest Instant Pot Recipes you can make. However, if you are new to using an Instant Pot, you may first want to check out How to Use an Instant Pot to familiarize yourself with some of the terms and steps.
- Place the trivet or rack inside the pressure cooker.
- Pour in 1 cup water of cold water for a 6-quart model and 1-½ cups for an 8-quart model. Be sure to use cold tap water, not warm water. Using warm water will cause the instant pot to come to pressure faster, which ultimately changes the cooking time needed.
- In a small bowl combine the seasonings for the spice rub.
- Remove any plastic or metal pieces from the chicken and the giblets from inside the cavity of the chicken. Pat dry with a paper towel.
- Generously sprinkle the spice rub over the chicken, using your hands to rub the spice blend into the skin of the chicken. Be sure to season both sides of the chicken.
- Place the chicken, breast side up on the rack inside the prepared Instant Pot.
- Wash your hands well, and then place the lid on the Instant Pot, being sure to set the vent knob to the sealed position.
- Set to cook on High Pressure for 6 minutes per pound, by using the manual or pressure cook button, and then hitting the +/- buttons to adjust the cooking time.
- After the cooking time has elapsed, allow the pressure to naturally release for at least 15-20 minutes. This will ensure the meat stays tender and juicy.
- After 10 minutes of natural release. you can do a quick release of remaining pressure by using a long utensil to hit the vent knob valve from sealing to venting. Just be sure to stand away from the valve to prevent being burned by steam.
- Use a digital thermometer, inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, to check to ensure the temperature of the chicken has reached 165 degrees F. If the temperature is below 165 degrees F, place the lid back on the pressure cooker and cook for an additional 2 minutes for every 5 degrees below 165 degrees.
Note: It is NORMAL for the meat to pull away from the bones after pressure cooking. It will still be incredibly juicy and delicious.
- If desired, you can crisp up the skin by placing the chicken onto a sheet pan, brushing the skin with oil, and broiling for 2-4 minutes, watching closely so as to not burn the chicken.
- Remove the chicken to a cutting board and let it rest for 10 minutes. This will allow the juices to redistribute.
- Slice the chicken into pieces and serve as desired. And don't forget to save the bones to make Instant Pot Chicken Stock.
Instant Pot Whole Chicken Video
If you learn better through a step-by-step video, watch me prepare this whole chicken in my kitchen.
Serving Suggestions
Instant Pot Whole Chicken is perfect for serving as the star of dinner along with a side of Mashed Potatoes and Roasted Carrots or a side salad. This Instant Pot Chicken is perfect for any recipe that calls for cooked chicken. Some of my favorite recipes are shared below.
- Creamy Chicken and Rice
- Creamy Parmesan Chicken Casserole
- Chicken Waldorf Salad
- Homemade Chicken Pot Pie
- Easy Chicken Enchiladas
Determining Cooking Time
The length of cooking time for a whole chicken in the Instant Pot will vary based on the size of your chicken. A safe rule of thumb is to cook your chicken on HIGH pressure for 6 minutes per pound with a natural pressure release of at least 15-20 minutes for perfectly cooked chicken.
- 3-pound chicken: 18 minutes on high pressure
- 4-pound chicken: 24 minutes on high pressure
- 5-pound chicken: 30 minutes on high pressure
To account for an additional ½ pound, add an additional d 3 minutes to the total cooking time. For example, if you were cooking a 3-½ pound chicken cook for 21 minutes (6 minutes per pound + 3 minutes per half a pound).
Please Note: If your chicken seems like it is really thick (the chicken breasts are on the larger side) you may want to increase the time to 7 minutes per pound.
Air Fryer Option
If you happen to have an air fryer lid that fits on your Instant Pot, you can use your air fryer lid to crisp up the skin right inside the Instant Pot. After pressure cooking, use an air fryer lid on your pressure cooker to crisp up the skin. Set to 400 degrees F and air fry for 3-4 minutes or until the skin is crispy.
Instant Pot Frozen Whole Chicken
You CAN cook a whole frozen chicken in the Instant Pot if your frozen chicken already has the innards/gizzards removed and has no plastic ties around the feet. You will not be able to remove a plastic insert or bag of gizzards from a frozen chicken. Therefore, you can not put a frozen chicken with either of those items into your pressure cooker.
If you have a chicken that comes without the gizzards or plastic clamp around the legs, you would need to increase the time by 5 minutes per pound, for a total of 11 minutes per pound, with a natural pressure release of 20 minutes.
More Instant Pot Chicken Recipes
Looking for more Instant Pot Chicken Recipes? These are a few fan favorites!
- Instant Pot Chicken Breasts
- Instant Pot Chicken Thighs
- Instant Pot Chicken Wings
- Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
- Instant Pot White Chicken Chili
If you make and enjoy this Instant Pot Whole Chicken, I would love for you to leave a comment and your five-star rating below – it will make my day!
Instant Pot Whole Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken innards removed
- 1 lemon cut in half
- 1 onion peeled and cut in half
- 1 recipe Rotisserie seasoning recipe below
Rotisserie Seasoning
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons pepper
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- dash of cayenne pepper
Instructions
Homemade Rotisserie Seasoning
- In a small bowl, combine the dried spices with salt and pepper until well combined.
For Pressure Cooker Whole Roasted Chicken
- Place a trivet inside the inner pot of the instant pot and pour in 1 cup of COLD tap water into the instant pot for a 6-quart instant pot and 1.5 cups of water if you have an 8 quart instant pot.
- Be sure to remove any plastic or metal from your chicken. And remove any innards and giblets from inside the chicken. Pat dry with a paper towel. Sprinkle the seasoning mix evenly over the chicken on both sides, using your hands to pat the seasoning mixture on the chicken.
- Place the lemon and onion inside the cavity of the chicken and place the seasoned chicken on the trivet inside the instant pot.
- Wash your hands well, and then place the lid on the pressure cooker and be sure the vent valve is sealed.
- Set to cook on high pressure for 6 minutes per pound. If your chicken seems like it is really thick (the chicken breasts are large) you may want to increase the cooking time to 7 minutes per pound.
- Once the cooking time has elapsed, allow pressure to release naturally for at least 15-20 minutes. Once the pressure has been released, remove the lid, and insert a digital thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken thigh. Be sure it has reached 165 degrees F.
- Remove the chicken from Instant Pot and place it onto a cutting board and let the chicken rest for an additional 10 minutes for the juices to redistribute. Discard the onion/lemon/etc from the cavity of the chicken and slice and enjoy.
Optional Browning Step
- Broiling Option: Cook the chicken as directed in your pressure cooker. After removing the chicken from your instant pot, transfer it to a baking sheet. Brush with oil and place under broiler for 2-4 minutes, watching closely so as to not burn the chicken. Allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes before enjoying the chicken.
- Air Fryer Lid Option: After pressure cooking, use an air fryer lid on your pressure cooker to crisp up the skin. Set to 400 degrees F and air fry for 3-4 minutes or until the skin is crispy. Allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes before enjoying the chicken.
Equipment Needed
Notes
- 3-pound chicken: 18 minutes on high pressure
- 4-pound chicken: 24 minutes on high pressure
- 5-pound chicken: 30 minutes on high pressure
- For every additional pound add 6 minutes, for every half a pound add 3 minutes to the total cooking time for a whole chicken.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally shared in 2019 and updated in 2023.
Kate
Cooked a 4lb chicken (not frozen) for 34 minutes, parts were well over 165 and parts were 120. Cooked for another 10 min. Parts still in the 140’s. My pin dropped after 5-7 minutes both times- that seems quick. Any suggestions? (Giving up and broiling bird and then tossing in microwave)
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Kate! I am sorry for your issues--very frustrating. That seems EXTREMELY quick for your pin to drop with a full size chicken. Did you use a full cup water? Was your chicken only partially thawed? Let me know and I can help further trouble shoot for you.
Juliane
Hello there,
I am just wondering if it is ok to use 2 cups of water since I have an 8qt pot and it says to never use less then 2 cups with it and you also said that you used a 6qt.
Thank you 🙂
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Juliane! I would use at least 1.5 cups for an 8 quart but 2 cups works great too 🙂 Enjoy!
Jeaninne Mutersbaugh
Can I stuff a chicken and put gravy instead of water.?
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Jeaninne! The stuffing inside the chicken will probably get fairly soggy as the chicken is cooked with moist heat, it also will take longer to cook the chicken, which may dry out the meat. Ad for gravy, no, you need water or chicken stock--and then can make gravy after cook time with drippings. The gravy would cause a burn notice to occur on your instant pot. Sorry it can't work out the way you were hoping.
Jeaninne Mutersbaugh
Thanks I will try it.
Becca
I’m typing this with a very happy mouth full of chicken. Thank you thank you thank you for this delicious recipe!
Kristen Chidsey
YAY!!! So glad you are enjoying!
Norma Frye
I am a new Instant Pot user and this is the very first recipe I am trying. My question is that the safety notes for my 8-qt Duo say that the minimum amount of liquid for any recipe is 18 oz, but you are recommending 8 oz. What am I missing? (no rating because it is cooking as I write this)
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Norma! I am sorry for any confusion. Because of the liquid that the chicken will render when cooking, 1 cup in the bottom of your pressure cooker will be plenty. In the future if you are concerned, add an extra 1/2 cup. I hope you enjoyed the chicken 🙂
Robin
Do you use the entire spice blend for one chicken? I am trying this right now (kitchen is smelling good!) and put the entire spice blend on the chicken, but it seemed like a lot of spice blend. Hoping I didn't just over-season and ruin a whole chicken! Thanks!
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Robin! I make the spice blend and then use just what is needed to liberally season the entire chicken. Even if you used too much, just discard the skin, the meat will be fine.
CindyH
I also put all of the spice seasoning on the chicken. I thought it seemed like a lot, but I read back through the recipe and figured that must be what I was supposed to do. The chicken is moist and flavorful. I take the skin off anyway so it was not an issue at all.
I have only had my Instant Pot for a couple weeks and I’m determined to make good use of it. I was heading to the store to buy a rotisserie chicken today and decided to first see if I could cook a whole chicken in the Instant Pot. Obviously I can. Thanks for showing me how to do it.
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Cindy! I will be sure directions are clear--just use the amount of seasoning needed to cover entire chicken, but be very generous. I am so glad you found this recipe though and enjoyed 🙂
Tracy Burke
Picked up my first Instant Pot today. I had a chicken ready to oven roast for dinner. Googled recipes for the Instant Pot and here we are! Your rottiserie seasoning is perfect. The cooking times and instructions are perfect. I cooked a 7 pound chicken in my 8 quart Lux to perfection.
Kristen Chidsey
Way to go Tracy! Most people buy the instant pot and let it sit for a long time because they are too scared to use it! I am so happy you found my recipe and it was a success. Here is to many more Instant Pot recipes!!
Betty C Haugen
Hubby and I just finished our whole chicken in the instant pot. The lemon and onions gave it an amazing flavor. It was moist juicy and absolutely perfect. I am saving the broth for another day I just couldn't throw it out it was so perfect tasty. I followed your directions exactly except I made it a little spicier. I had a little chicken left on the serving dish my son stop by and slowly picked away at it until there was none left he loved it. Good job thank you so much.
Kristen Chidsey
Thank you so much for taking the time Betty for sharing this with me. I love hearing about families enjoying my recipes together. I hope you find more recipes you like here.😊
Abby
EXCELLENT. I wanted plain chicken to use in recipes during the week so I did not season or saute (I don't care about the skin) and this came out perfectly! I'm going to use the bones and leftover liquid for stock, which I can use in other IP recipes. Thanks for clear and practical instructions.
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Abby! I am so glad you this recipe was easy and clear for you to follow. I love using the bones to make stock myself! Enjoy through the week 🙂
Taylor
This turned out really good!!! I followed the instructions exactly, and it was juicy and falling off the bone. I put it in the oven on broil to crisp it up, which ended up drying it out some. I had it in for four minutes, but that may have been too long. Delicious!!
Kristen Chidsey
I am glad you enjoyed so much Taylor. Next time, cut the broiling time down for juicier meat 🙂
Chris R.
Hi, can you please clarify/explain the logic behind why you say a chicken WITHOUT gizzards requires MORE time to cook rather than less? This doesn’t seem to make any logical sense.. (You stated: “If you have a chicken that comes without the gizzards or plastic clamp around the legs, you would need to increase time by 5 minutes per pound, for a total of 11 minutes per pound..”) Thank you for your help!
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Chis,
That is referring to the a FROZEN chicken (it was under can you cook a frozen whole chicken) You can only cook a frozen chicken if the gizzards and clamp have already been removed--because if not, it is too hard to remove them from a chicken when frozen. Sorry for any confusion that caused. Let me know if you need any further clarification 🙂
Elizabeth
Excellent! This was only the third time i’ve Used my instant pot and it came out perfect. I tend to like drier chicken because i’ve Never been able to make tender but juicy chicken before. But this came out very tender and very juicy. Thank you for this simple and perfect recipe. Going to try the lasagna soon!
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Elizabeth! I love that you were able to enjoy juicy chicken and enjoyed it! I hope you enjoy the lasagna as well!
BREnt
Hi I was wondering if theres a way to make the skin crispy. Unfortunately the skin was gelatinous so i had to peel it off. Otherwise the chicken turned out really well and was very tender. Also had some trial and error actually getting out of the pot. I ended up sticking some tongs up its butt it worked but the arms kind of fell off haha...
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Brent! Yes, my directions state if you want to crisp up the skin, place on a baking sheet and brush with oil. Broil until crispy. Also, I use the handles on my trivet if I can reach them or two carving forks to help get out of pressure cooker.
Jim
I’m making this for the first time. I’m wondering about the people that ended up with raw chicken, if they counted the warm up time as cooking time?
Kristen Chidsey
That could be. But I really think it is that it is more likely the chicken was not defrosted or thicker through the cavity. But yes, my timing refers to cook time only! Enjoy!
Joshua Evans
There is a lot of stock left over after cooking the chicken. Can this be saved and used for anything? Looks like it has a bunch of good fats in it!
Kristen Chidsey
Absolutely...it will be delicious.
Kay
Tried this recipe tonight in a 5 pound chicken. Cooked for 32 minutes, but wasn’t quite all the way done. However, I realized that my float valve never popped up, and determined there wasn’t enough water in it. So, I put it back in the intent pot for 12 min with another cup of water, let it naturally release pressure, and it was perfect. Next time, I will probably put in 1.5 cups of water instead of 1 cup. Thanks for the recipe!
Kristen Chidsey
Good catch on your float valve, that can happen at times if your inner ring isn't sealed or your vent knob wasn't securely on "sealed." Glad you saved the chicken and enjoyed 🙂