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A cooked whole chicken in an air fryer.
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5 from 1 vote

Air Fryer Whole Chicken

A super easy recipe for an air fryer whole chicken that is deliciously juicy and tender with golden crispy skin and a lovely hint of lemon. Minimal prep, and just over an hour in the air fryer, and you have a big 2kg chicken cooked easily to perfection.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time1 hour 10 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: International
Servings: 1 chicken
Calories: 1820kcal
Author: Daniela Apostol

Equipment

  • 1 air fryer
  • 1 silicone tray for the air fryer (optional)

Ingredients

  • 1 whole chicken ( 2kg, 4.4 pounds)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • ½ teaspoon coarse salt
  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 1 lemon

Instructions

  • Use a ramekin to mix together the olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika and oregano.
  • Brush the chicken well with the mixture.
  • If you use a silicone tray, place the chicken onto it, if not, straight into the air fryer drawer.
  • Use a fork to prick the lemon into a few places, then stuff the chicken cavity with the lemon and peeled garlic cloves.
  • Cook at 180 degrees Celsius (350 Fahrenheit) for 25 minutes, then carefully flip the chicken onto the other side, and cook for a further 25 minutes.
  • Flip the chicken breast side up again, increase the temperature to 200 degrees Celsius (390 Fahrenheit) for 15 minutes so that the skin is golden and crispy.
  • Make an incision into the thickest part of the chicken, if the juices run clear, the chicken is done.

Video

Notes

  • The chicken is ready when you cut into the thickest part of it and the juices run clear and there is no pink or red colour. This is the safest way to test without a thermometer.
  • If you use a smaller chicken, check for doneness after 50 minutes, it will cook a lot faster the smaller it is. Also, it cooks faster if the chicken is spatchcocked.
  • If you don't want to have to deal with flipping the chicken onto the other sides twice, you can start cooking it breast side down, and just flip it once after 25 minutes and follow the same instructions regarding the temperature.

Nutrition

Calories: 1820kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 144g | Fat: 130g | Saturated Fat: 35g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 26g | Monounsaturated Fat: 58g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 571mg | Sodium: 1719mg | Potassium: 1704mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 2128IU | Vitamin C: 72mg | Calcium: 168mg | Iron: 9mg