Instant Pot Whole Chicken You will never make a roast chicken again after making this instant pot whole chicken with compound butter! Juicy, easy, and no basting required!

I am so in love with this Instant Pot Whole Chicken Recipe because I will never have to buy another store bought rotisserie chicken again!  They are small, usually dried out, and probably full of junk.

I have another roast chicken recipe on this blog but it is quite a bit more labor intensive.  There was lots of basting, and waiting, basting and waiting some more.  Busy moms ain’t got time for that!

To get started with this delicious instant pot chicken recipe, I made a compound butter.  This is just softened butter with salt, pepper, smoked paprika, onion powder, dried oregano, and garlic powder.  I mixed that all together really well with a fork.

Before we rub the compound butter all over the chicken, we need to take it out of the packaging and pat it dry.  If your chicken is frozen, you really need to let it thaw completely before pressure cooking it.  I normally use frozen chicken breast when I am cooking them in my Instant Pot (like my recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Breast), but it doesn’t work as well with a whole chicken.

After I pat it dry with paper towels on a plastic cutting board, I rubbed it down with the compound butter.  I put 1 cup of water in the Instant Pot, followed by the trivet, then the whole chicken.

HOW LONG TO COOK A WHOLE CHICKEN IN THE INSTANT POT

Here is a great formula for Instant Pot cooking times with a whole chicken.  For each pound of chicken, set the Instant Pot timer for 6 minutes.  So for a 5 pound chicken, you would set the cook time for 30 minutes.

After the chicken is finished cooking, let it naturally release the pressure for 15 minutes.

When I removed the chicken from the pot, it almost fell apart it was so juicy and tender!  Before serving it I did a big squeeze of lemon over top for some brightness.  I served my Instant Pot Whole Chicken with Cauliflower Mac and Cheese!

The Instant Pot is so great for basic recipes like this.  I also love it to make Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs, Instant Pot Chicken Thighs, and Instant Pot Ribs!

5 from 3 votes

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Instant Pot Whole Chicken

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

45 mins

Total Time

50 mins

 

You will never make a roast chicken again after making this instant pot whole chicken with compound butter! Juicy, easy, and no basting required!

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Course: dinner, Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: 6

Calories: 300 kcal

Ingredients

• 1 Whole Chicken (completely thawed if frozen)
• 1/2 stick Softened butter
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon Smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon Onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon Dried oregano
• 1 cup Water
• 1 Lemon, cut in half

Instructions

1. Remove the chicken from the packaging and place on a plastic cutting board.  Pat dry with paper towels.

2. Add the butter and seasonings to a small bowl.  Mix with a fork

3. Rub the compound butter all over the chicken.  

4. Add water to the instant pot liner, followed by the trivet that came with the pot.  Place the whole chicken on top of the trivet.

5. Lock the Instant Pot lid, set to sealing, and set the timer.  See notes for cooking times.

6. When the cooking time is finished, let naturally release the pressure for 15 minutes.  Release the rest of the pressure by flipping the knob. 

7. Remove from the pot carefully onto a platter.  Finish with drizzle of the leftover cooking liquid and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Recipe Notes

1. For cook times, multiply the size of your chicken times 6.  My chicken was 5 pounds so I cooked it under high pressure for 30 minutes.

⭐ Did you make this Instant Pot Whole Chicken Recipe?  Tag me on Instagram so I can see! @lowcarbwithjennifer