Delicious Whole Chicken – Instant Pot

I love love love making whole chicken in my instant pot for many reasons. It’s quick, easy and convenient to create this dish and best of all the end result is a flavorful, juicy and tender meal. I used to make whole chicken in my oven until I discovered how to create this in the instant pot. This recipe involves three easy steps: Marination, pressure cooking, and broiling. Read along or jump directly to the recipe to find out how to create this delicious, flavor-packed meal.

Why Marinate your chicken?

I like to marinate meat, especially chicken. It may sound like an extra step but trust me, it makes a huge difference. The goal with marination is to give the chicken more flavor from the inside and not just the outside. Plus it makes your meat your meat juicy and tender from the inside. I personally feel this step is necessary especially if you are making your chicken in the instant pot. Without marination, I find chicken to have a boiled- bland type flavor.

For marination, I also recommend making holes or cuts into the chicken. This will allow the marinade to go farther deep into the meat. The recommended time for marination is 4 hours to overnight. Remember, the longer you marinate, the more flavorful your meat will be. If you are in an absolute rush, allow your chicken to marinate for at least 2 hours before cooking. TIP: You can sort of meal prep with the whole chicken. Buy your whole chicken ahead of time, apply the marinade and store it in the freezer to be cooked whenever desired.

Cooking in the Instant Pot

I used to brine my chicken when baking in the oven and now I can comfortably skip that step. The steam from pressure cooking makes the chicken so soft and tender. Marination not only helps with this process but also adds flavor to the meat. The combined process of marinating and pressure cooking the chicken will give you excellent results. The real question is, how much time is needed to cook whole chicken in your instant pot? Continue reading to find out.

Pressure cooking time depends on the weight of your chicken. The magic formula is 6 minutes per pound + 10 minutes of Natural pressure release (NPR). Before you remove the packaging, be sure to note down the weight so you know can calculate the pressure cooking time. After the pressure cooking cycle ends, add 10 minutes of NPR. NPR, as you know, is letting the instant release pressure naturally. This will prevent the meat from drying out and allow the chicken to retain moisture. Long story short: 6 minutes per pound + 10 minutes of NPR.

Why Broil Chicken?

So when you remove chicken from the instant pot, it will look colorless and the skin will appear soft from the outside. Do not panic, you can bring color and crisp up the chicken by placing it in the oven in broil mode for 5 to 10 minutes. Before putting it in the broiler, remember to brush the reserved marinade, flip it halfway and continue broiling. Keep an eye on your chicken as it browns and be careful as the outer layer can burn if kept in for a longer time. You can also set your oven to 450 F and brown your chicken slowly. Check out the recipe below and the step by step video for detailed instructions. Enjoy!