An air fryer roast chicken delivers succulent, juicy meat and delicious crispy skin. And if you pop some veggies into the steamer, and roast some potatoes in the air fryer while the chicken is resting, you can have an entire roast dinner in an hour or less!
Everyone loves a roast chicken dinner, and this is my way of preparing a roast chicken dinner with all the trimmings and no fuss, in minimum time and with minimum effort.
If you've got an air fryer, this is the perfect way to roast a chicken. The meat is tender and succulent and the skin crisps to perfection, thanks to how the air fryer circulates the hot air all around the cooking basket.
If you don't believe how tasty air-fried chicken can be, try this recipe for sweet and spicy air fryer chicken drumsticks before you try your hand at cooking a whole chicken in the air fryer!
But getting back to the whole roast chicken dinner recipe.
You should coat the chicken with a little oil (to help the air fryer for the deliciously crispy skin), and rub your favourite spice blend over the chicken skin before placing it in the air fryer.
If you are having difficulty fitting a whole chicken into your air fryer basket you can spatchcock it so that it takes up less space in the air fryer basket. See this post on how to spatchcock a chicken for details. A spatchcocked chicken simply has the backbone removed to flatten it out. If you don't want to spatchcock the chicken you can flatten it slightly by pressing down with the flat of your hand on the whole chicken. You should hear it 'crack' as the bones give way.
I have a large 4.7 litre air fryer and I find I can easily fit a 1.5kg (or 3 pound) chicken into it without flattening it.
This chicken took 45 minutes breast-side down and a further 15 minutes breast-side up at 180 degrees C / 360 degrees F in my air fryer. That's a whole lot faster than in a conventional oven. And if you have a smaller chicken it will take even less time!
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Ingredients
The chicken I used in this recipe weighed 1.5kg (or about 3 pounds), but I could have easily fit a 4 to 5-pound chicken in my air fryer basket, which would be sufficient for 4 to 6 people.
- Chicken - I like to trim off the wing tips and cut away any excess skin and fat that may be tucked into the cavity.
- Spices - you can use your favourite blend of spices. For this chicken, I used salt, paprika and mixed herbs (or Italian herbs).
- Oil - this is sunflower or other neutral-flavoured cooking oil. You only need small amount to rub into the chicken skin.
- Lemon juice - the juice of one small lemon. This will be mixed with the oil and spices and rubbed all over the chicken before it is placed in the air fryer. The lemon skins can be placed into the chicken cavity. If you don;t have fresh lemon (I didn't) you can simply use bottled lemon juice.
- Onion - I like to add a peeled onion into the cavity of the chicken before roasting to add extra flavour. You may find that the onion doesn't cook through fully in the time the chicken is in the air fryer. You can simply discard the onion (along with the lemon skins) once the chicken has cooked.
**You can find the exact ingredient measurements for making this air fryer roast chicken on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
Instructions
Before you brush the marinade onto the chicken you may like to cut off the wing tips and also trim away any excess skin and fat.
Step 1: Combine the olive oil with the lemon juice, salt, paprika and mixed herbs.
Step 2: Use a pastry brush to brush half of the marinade all over the breast and legs of the chicken. Optionally place the onion and lemon skins into the chicken cavity.
Step 3: Place the chicken breast-side down into the basket of your air fryer and brush the chicken with the remaining marinade.
Step 4: Set the air fryer to 180C or 360F and cook for 40 minutes.
Step 5: Turn the chicken over and cook at 180C or 360F for a further 15 minutes. Remove the chicken to a serving platter, cover with tin foil and allow it to rest for 15 minutes before carving.
Easy sides
While the chicken is resting, you can make the gravy and roast potatoes.
- Tip any chicken juices out of the air fryer into a jug. Combine a tablespoon of your favourite chicken gravy granules with a cup of boiling water, stir until smooth and then add the chicken juices.
- Cut up enough potatoes to feed your family and coat them lightly with salt and olive oil.
- Place them in the air fryer and cook at 190C/375F for 20 minutes, giving the basket a shake halfway through.
- You can carve the rested chicken during the final 5 minutes of the potato cooking time so that everything is ready at the same time.
Here are some other ideas for vegetable sides that you might like to serve with the roast chicken. You can make these or other vegetables while the chicken is in the air fryer.
- Minted smashed peas
- Fresh buttered corn and rice (skip the roast potatoes and serve a rice dish instead)
- Cheesy gem squash
- Buttered cabbage and leeks with mustard seeds
- Baby marrows with tomato and onion
Tips for a successful outcome
Here are my top tips to ensure your air fryer roast chicken always turns out perfectly:
- To ensure a crispy skin, rub the chicken with oil, or a mixture of oil and spices.
- Place the chicken breast-side down for the first cooking period. This will ensure the chicken juices sink into the breast meat, keeping the chicken moist and juicy.
- The second cooking time is shorter, and just long enough to crisp the skin on the breast.
- When the chicken is cooked, you will find the juices run clear when you pierce the breast or thigh (the thickest parts of the chicken) with a skewer.
- Do allow the chicken to rest before carving to allow time for the juices to redistribute throughout the chicken.
- Cooking times will depend on the make and model of your air fryer, and also on how large the chicken is. Smaller chickens will take less time to cook than larger chickens. If you are unsure, cook the chicken for a few minutes longer.
How long should I cook a whole chicken in an air fryer?
It depends on the size of your chicken!
A chicken will be fully cooked when the internal temperature (measured on a digital probe thermometer) reaches 74C/165F.
The cooking temperature should be set to 180C or 360F.
As a rule of thumb, a whole chicken should be cooked for 30 to 35 minutes per kilogram or 15 to 18 minutes per pound.
Variations
You can change the spices that you rub over the chicken to give a different flavour profile. Here are a few ideas.
- Honey and soy - combine 1 tablespoon each of honey and olive oil, 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce, half a teaspoon each of garlic granules and ginger paste, and half a teaspoon of salt. Brush this all over the chicken before air frying. Word of warning - honey burns easily so you should baste the chicken with this mixture every 15 minutes.
- Barbeque - sprinkle the chicken with salt and then brush with your favourite barbeque sauce.
- Rosemary and thyme - swap out the mixed herbs in this recipe for a mixture of dried rosemary and thyme.
- Paprika and garlic - use a mixture of olive oil, paprika and garlic granules to rub on the chicken. Optionally add a touch of cayenne pepper for extra heat.
- Caribbean jerk chicken - coat the chicken with a mixture of jerk seasoning, olive oil and lime juice.
Equipment
You will need a small bowl for mixing the marinade, and a pastry brush to brush the marinade over the chicken.
You will also need an air fryer. I used an air fryer with a basket, but you could also use an air fryer oven, with or without a rotisserie. The timings given in this recipe are for a 4.7 litre Corsori air fryer. Consult the manufacturer's handbook for your own particular model.
Storage
Store leftover air fryer chicken in a covered container in the refrigerator, just as you would a normal leftover roast chicken. It will be good for up to 3 days.
If you would like to freeze leftover chicken:
- allow the chicken to come to room temperature before freezing
- cut the chicken into portions and wrap each portion individually in plastic wrap.
- place the portions in a freezer bag and squeeze out as much air as possible to prevent freezer burn.
- freeze for 3 to 4 months.
- defrost in the refrigerator and then reheat either in the microwave or in the air fryer at a low temperature for a few minutes. You could also wrap the chicken pieces in tinfoil before reheating in the air fryer to prevent the chicken from drying out.
FAQ
There is a lot you can do with leftover roast chicken. Here are a few ideas:
leftover chicken and ham pie with mushrooms
oven-baked chicken empanadas
cheesy chicken and potato bake
Brushing the chicken with oil helps the skin to crisp. You don't have to use olive oil, any cooking oil such as sunflower, rapeseed or canola will do the trick!
This is not advisable as the thickness of the stuffing can prevent the inside of the bird from cooking evenly.
If you would like to make stuffing I would advise you make it separately. Here is a recipe for stuffing balls that can be cooked in the air fryer along with the roast potatoes - sage and onion stuffing with sausage meat.
Save for later
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Related recipes
Visit my chicken and poultry recipes page for more delicious chicken recipes. Here are a few you might enjoy:
📋The recipe
Air fryer roast chicken
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- Air fryer either basket type or air-fryer oven
- Small bowl
- Pastry brush
Ingredients
- 3.5 pounds / 1.5 kg fresh chicken
- 1 small onion optional
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice or the juice of 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs (or mixed herbs)
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
Instructions
- Remove the wing tips and trim away any excess skin and fat from the chicken.
- Combine the olive oil with the lemon juice, salt, paprika and mixed herbs.1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs (or mixed herbs), 1 teaspoon salt
- Use a pastry brush to brush half of the marinade all over the breast and legs of the chicken. Optionally place the onion and lemon skins (if you used a fresh lemon) into the chicken cavity.1 small onion, 3.5 pounds / 1.5 kg fresh chicken
- Place the chicken breast-side down into the basket of your air fryer and brush the chicken with the remaining marinade.
- Set the air fryer to 180C or 360F and cook for 40 minutes.
- Turn the chicken over and cook at 180C or 360F for a further 15 minutes. Remove the chicken to a serving platter, cover with tin foil and allow it to rest for 15 minutes before carving.
Notes
- Tip any chicken juices out of the air fryer into a jug. Combine a tablespoon of your favourite chicken gravy granules with a cup of boiling water, stir until smooth and then add the chicken juices.
- Cut up enough potatoes to feed your family and coat them lightly with salt and olive oil.
- Place them in the air fryer and cook at 190C/375F for 20 minutes, giving the basket a shake halfway through.
- You can carve the rested chicken during the final 5 minutes of the potato cooking time so that everything is ready at the same time.
- To ensure a crispy skin, rub the chicken with oil, or a mixture of oil and spices.
- Place the chicken breast-side down for the first cooking period. This will ensure the chicken juices sink into the breast meat, keeping the chicken moist and juicy.
- The second cooking time is shorter, and just long enough to crisp the skin on the breast.
- When the chicken is cooked, you will find the juices run clear when you pierce the breast or thigh (the thickest parts of the chicken) with a skewer.
- Do allow the chicken to rest before carving to allow time for the juices to redistribute throughout the chicken.
- The onion is to add flavour only, and you may find it does not cook completely in the cooking time. You can discard the onion along with the lemon skins.
- Cooking times will depend on the make and model of your air fryer, and also on how large the chicken is. Smaller chickens will take less time to cook than larger chickens. If you are unsure, cook the chicken for a few minutes longer.
- A chicken will be fully cooked when the internal temperature (measured on a digital probe thermometer) reaches 74C/165F.
- In all cases the cooking temperature should be set to 180C or 360F.
- A whole chicken should be cooked for 30 to 35 minutes per kilogram or 15 to 18 minutes per pound.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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