Instant Pot Whole 5-Spice Roast Chicken
Instant Pot Whole Chicken is an easy way to get dinner on the table quickly. It's especially nice when it's 5-spice roasted chicken! Perfectly marinated chicken with an abundance of Asian inspired flavors will be a real weeknight dinner treat for the family!
I love whole roasted chicken but I really wanted something a little different than what we had been having which was rotisserie chicken. With a yummy marinade this was easy to cook at the end of a long day of meetings. Add some of my Instant Pot Coconut Rice with whole steamed green beans and you've got yourself a meal!
What is five spice powder?
Five spice powder is traditionally used in Chinese and Vietnamese cooking. Although it may vary these days according to The Spruce Eats the traditional blend is made up of ground cloves, cinnamon, fennel seeds, star anise, and Szechuan peppercorns. It has been known to be made with other ingredients like ginger, nutmeg, and licorice.
It is thought that the Chinese were attempting to get a balance reflective of the elements (earth, wind, fire, metal, and water) to incorporate into this special blend. You can pick this up from local or Asian supermarkets. The blend is a delightful aromatic and will adds a special flavor to any dish.
Marinate the chicken
The first thing you need is a whole chicken that will it in your pot. I made this using my 6-Quart Instant Pot Duo, and I used about a 5.5 pound chicken. It's really important that it fits. 😉 While this marinates why not make some cornbread dressing to go with it?
Next combine in a measuring cup the soy sauce, fish sauce, oyster sauce, olive oil, 5-spice powder, ground ginger, hot red pepper flakes, and pepper. Stir together with a fork or small whisk until combined.
Next clean your whole chicken and remove the innards. Find a gallon size plastic bag, and quarter your orange.
Next place chicken in gallon size plastic bag, and pour in marinade. Add the quartered oranges squeezing the juice, and putting half of them in the chicken cavity. I love using these bag stands to help out with tasks like this in the kitchen!
Marinate the chicken for at least two hours, however, it is preferable to marinate overnight. I like to either to do it the night before in the morning before work. That way after work I just have to walk through the door, and throw it in the Instant Pot. Make some Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes while you wait.
Cooking the chicken
Insert your rack into your Instant Pot and add the water. I have a 6-quart so I added one cup of water. If you have an 8-quart be sure to add in two cups of water.
Remove the chicken from the marinade leaving the orange quarters that you put inside the cavity for cooking. Throw away the rest of the marinade, and the remaining oranges.
Cooking time will depend on the size of your chicken. The chicken is cooked for 6 minutes per pound. I had a chicken that was almost six pounds so I cooked on high pressure for 36 minutes then followed with a 10 minute natural pressure release.
Once done cooking you can serve immediately. However, I like to brown and crisp the skin. I put my chicken under the broiler in the oven for about ten minutes to do this. Make sure to have something sweet like my Easy Banana Cake after!
How to make it
If you enjoyed this you might like Instant Pot Sweet and Spice Wings, Instant Pot Meatloaf with Italian Roasted Vegetables, or Instant Pot Swiss Steak.
Recipe
Instant Pot Whole 5-Spice Chicken
Ingredients
- 5-6 pound whole chicken
- 1 Navel Orange quartered
Marinade Ingredients
- ½ cup soy sauce I used reduced sodium
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1 teaspoon 5-spice powder
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger may substitute fresh
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon fish sauce
- ⅛ teaspoon oyster sauce
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in the marinade group in a small bowl or 2-cup measuring cup then whisk or stir together.
- Place the chicken into a gallon size plastic bag, and pour the marinade over. Add the oranges squeezing some of the juice over the chicken. Add two orange quarters to the cavity of the chicken.
- Marinate for two hour or overnight. Longer is better.
- Add rack to inside of Instant Pot. Add one cup of water if using a six-quart pot. If using a different size pot use the appropriate amount of minimum liquid. For example, an eight-quart would be two cups of water. Add the chicken to the Instant Pot, and throw away the marinade.
- Cook on high pressure at 6-minutes per pound. I had almost a 6-pound chicken so I cooked on high pressure (normal) for 36 minutes.
- Follow with a 10-minute natural pressure release.
- If you would like crisp the skin, cook under the broiler in the oven for about ten minutes or until you reach the desired level of browning.
- Serve immediately, or store in an airtight container for up to one week.
