Air Fryer Whole Chicken

Tender, tasty and juicy with a perfectly crispy skin air fryer whole chicken! Combining the marinating and rub process into one, you can make a rotisserie style whole chicken in the air fryer in less than an hour from start to finish and your whole house will smell so good as it cooks!

I recently bought myself a massive air fryer! The old one was too small and just didn’t do the job anymore. I got a 4.2 L air fryer, it’s a powerful machine with a big capacity and I’m just in love with it! Seriously, guys, I use it every single day!

And that means, that I finally can fit a whole chicken in it and never have to buy rotisserie chicken again! This air fryer can roast the chicken so beautifully, you won’t believe it. If you’re reading this, please give this recipe a try and you can thank me later.

Whole Chicken in Air Fryer

So it’s true that you can roast a whole chicken in your air fryer, but there are so many recipes on the internet and you gotta find the right one. But you’ve come to the right place because here’s a true and tested recipe for you!

This recipe guarantees that your chicken is perfectly roasted in the air fryer as it works like a rotisserie. The chicken will turn out juicy, tender, full of flavor and the crust will be absolutely perfect.

How to Cook a Whole Chicken in an Air Fryer?

If you have time, I recommend brining your whole chicken. Brining in a salt solution makes your chicken juicy, tender, and seasons the meat very well. This step is not a must, but strongly recommended for better results! I have an easy chicken brine recipe if you want to give it a try.

Prepare the marinade. There are many different marinades to choose from, but here’s my favorite. In a small bowl, combine olive oil, ginger, garlic, thyme, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Whisk the ingredients until well combined, and that is your marinade ready.

To prep the chicken:

1. Remove the chicken giblets, rinse the chicken inside out and remove any excess fat or pin feathers. Using kitchen towels, pat the chicken dry.
2. Using kitchen string, tie the legs together.
3. Stuff the inside of the chicken with a bunch of thyme, lemon wedges, and garlic cloves. Then using a brush, just brush the marinade all over the chicken and make sure that the chicken is well coated. 
4. Transfer to the air fryer. Make sure that your chicken fits into the air fryer before you start, if not, then you can always cut up the chicken into pieces (but the cooking time will be less so you’ll need to watch the chicken). To learn how to properly cut up a chicken, check out this video on youtube.
5. Cook at 390°F (200°C) for 30 minutes. Then flip the chicken over, and cook for an additional 10 minutes.

How to Check If the Roast Chicken Is Cooked Through Properly

Before you take the chicken out, you need to make sure that the chicken is well cooked and is safe to eat. You can check this by using one of these methods:

• Using a thermometer (recommended method): You can use a thermometer to check if your chicken is cooked. The internal temperature of the breast must be at least 165°F (75°C).
• Slice the chicken between the breast and the leg and look at the juices, if they’re running clear then it means that the chicken is cooked. If they have a slight pink tinge to it, you need to cook it for longer. So put it back in, and cook for 10 more minutes then take it out and check again.
• Also, look at the meat and check if it feels firm. When it’s cooked, it will be firm. If it’s still undercooked, then it will feel rubbery and jiggly.

The air fryer will be really hot as you check the chicken, so make sure that you’re wearing oven mitts and you’re handling with care. It’s very easy to burn your hands as the air fryer and the chicken will be extremely hot.

Tips to Get the Perfect Air Fryer Rotisserie Whole Chicken

• Make sure that the chicken is completely covered with the marinade before cooking to get more flavor.
• If your chicken is smaller/bigger than the one in this recipe, the cooking time will be different. 
• The air fryer that I’ve used to roast a whole chicken, is this 4.2L air fryer so the chicken fit perfectly. It’s great for families and for cooking bigger amounts of food. If your chicken won’t fit, you can cut it up into smaller pieces or just remove the backbone (save the backbone to make homemade stock later!).
• Start with the chicken breast side up (as you can see in the picture above), then after 30 minutes of cooking flip the chicken and cook for an additional 10 minutes.
• Make sure that you check the doneness of the chicken before removing it from the air fryer. You don’t want to undercook or overcook the meat.
• Let the chicken rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
• Use the leftovers for other recipes such as this Instant Pot chicken noodle soup, Rasta pasta, Caesar pasta salad, or meal prep for the week!

What to Serve This Whole Chicken With?

In the pictures, you can see that I served this Air Fryer chicken with potatoes, green beans, artichokes, and garlic. I cooked them using this Instant Pot buttered potatoes recipe for 5 minutes, then broiled for a couple of minutes.

For more great Air Fryer recipes, check out:

• Crispy air fryer chicken breast (my most popular Air fryer recipe!)
• Crispy air fryer fish
• Air Fryer chicken fajitas
• Crunchy air fryer hot dogs
• Air fryer asparagus with mushrooms
• Air fryer salmon
• Air fryer baked potato

You can also cook a whole chicken in the Instant Pot, check out my Instant Pot whole chicken recipe, and you can even use the chicken juices/broth to make flavorful rice afterward!

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I don’t feel like I say this often enough, or that I could ever thank you enough. But THANK YOU for all of your support, for visiting my blog, commenting, and sharing my recipes with your friends and family. I am SO thankful for you!

If you make this recipe or any of my recipes, then don’t forget to rate it and leave a comment below. I would LOVE to hear about your experience and your comments just make my day!

I hope that you love every recipe that you make! – Diana x