Ninja Air Fryer Whole Chicken

 Learn how to roast a whole chicken in your Ninja air fryer. Delicious flavour combination of zesty lemon with herbaceous seasoning. A Juicy chicken dinner that's so easy to prepare and just a good as restaurant quality.

There's something irresistible about lemon flavoured chicken and cooking it in the air fryer, really take things up a notch.

What is it that drives the nation into a complete frenzy about using the air fryer for almost anything, because you can cook a plethora of things in it.

I've been through a ton of air fryers since they came on the scene, but my Ninja Foodi Flexdrawer is by far my favourite air fryer that I have owned.

The capacity is HUGE, the drawer is large with a divider so you have the option to cook two different things and take advantage of it's multi functions (air fry crisp, air fry, dehydrate, roast, bake).

I love cooking vegetables and meat in my air fryer and I have already christened it with a chicken dinner but this time I am sharing this recipe with you.

While I am slightly late on the roasting a whole chicken in your air fryer band wagon, better to be late than never at all.

This chicken recipe is everything you could have dreamed of, juicy, crispy, succulent chicken made in the air fryer.

Having a large capacity unit makes anything possible, I bet you didn't think you could roast a whole chicken in your air fryer? I thought it was impossible too!

But you can, I promise it's not one of those over complicated chicken recipes, instead it is relatively straight forward.

Ingredients you need

• Whole chicken - I'm using a whole chicken, I used quite a large bird which I believe was around 4lbs/4.4kg. This should fit into your air fryer seemingly with no problems.
• Olive oil/dairy butter - both are used (one for underneath the skin and the other for the outside, they help with crisping up the chicken.
• Lemon pepper seasoning - I used my homemade lemon pepper seasoning to add some mild citrus flavour.
• Rosemary& pink salt - for a herbaceous flavour and to enhance the taste.
• Lemon juice - for more lemon flavour.
• Cavity stuffing - onion, sprigs of rosemary and lemon (self explanatory).

Reasons to make this recipe

• Perfect for those who have a large capacity air fryer and want to use it for a whole chicken recipe.
• You have complete control over what ingredients are being added.
• Lean amounts of protein which will keep you feeling fuller for longer.
• Moderate/low levels of carbohydrates.
• You can freeze any leftovers or refrigerate them for the next day.
• Purchasing a whole chicken is cheaper than buying wings, legs and thighs separate.
• You don't have to depend on store bought chicken when you can make it yourself (bespoke) at home.

Recipe preparation

Let's briefly discuss how to prepare this chicken dinner. The first thing I do is wash and the chicken, if it's a whole chicken I singe the hairs and clean out the cavity too.

This is a cultural practice that I always adhere to no matter what recipe I'm making.

If you want the chicken to be extra juicy then adding an extra step to brine the chicken is highly recommended.

I used this

• Preheat the air fryer.
• Combine the lemon pepper seasoning, rosemary and pink salt in one bowl and mix.
• Place the melted butter in one bowl and the olive oil in another bowl.
• Divide the lemon juice equally between both bowls.
• Divide the dry seasoning into equal parts in the bowl with the melted butter and bowl with the olive oil and mix.
• Place the cleaned chicken on a large flat surface like a chopping board or large plate works too, as it is easier to season the meat.

• Use a large spoon (upside down) to open up underneath the skin.
• Place the lemon, rosemary sprigs and onion inside the cavity of the chicken.
• Use some twine to tie together the legs together (downwards).
• Use a pastry brush to spread the melted butter mix underneath the skin (you can tilt the chicken vertically to pour in excess butter mixture into the open pockets.

• Generously coat the outside of the entire chicken with the olive oil mix.
• Carefully transfer the chicken (breast side down) into the basket.
• Turn the dial to "roast" , select, 180C/356F for 60 minutes, "megazone" .
• Roast the chicken for 45 minutes then turn the chicken over (breast side up) and continue for a further 15 minutes (until the internal temperature of the chicken is 165F/74C) and the juices run clear, use a thermometer, if needed to check this).
• Once cooked, you can collect the drippings from underneath the basket and reserve to baste the chicken.
• Serve accordingly.

Notes and tips

• Use a thermometer if needed, insert into the thickest part of the chicken (the breast) to determine the readiness of the meat, it should be 165F/74C.
• This is the link for my Homemade Lemon Pepper Seasoning
• Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may want to adjust the size of your whole chicken, mine was around 4lb.
• You can use another type of Ninja air fryer with the roasting ability, if you want to.
• Make sure to mix the olive oil/lemon juice/dairy free butter together with the dry ingredients before coating the chicken.
• Any leftovers can be frozen for up to 3 months or stored in an air tight container for up to 3 days.
• For added flavour, make sure to season underneath the skin, I use a large spoon, upside down to push it underneath the skin to open a pocket without tearing the skin which makes it easier to insert the pastry brush to season.
• Save the carcass! You can make chicken stock with the bones, don't throw it away!
• If you want to clean the chicken, the island way, then check out this

  More chicken recipes to try

  • Jamaican Brown Stew Chicken
  • Tamarind Chicken
  • Lemon Pepper Chicken Breast
  • Smoked Chicken Leg Quarters
  • Creamy Coconut Curry Chicken
  • Peanut Butter Chicken
  • Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings
  • Nutmeg Chicken
  • Coconut Curry Chicken (slow cooker)

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  Ninja Air Fryer Whole Chicken

  Paleo, dairy free and gluten free lemon roasted chicken, delicious and succulent!

  4.67 from 3 votes

  Print Pin Rate

  Course: Main

  Cuisine: American

  Prep Time: 25 minutes minutes

  Cook Time: 1 hour hour

  Total Time: 1 hour hour 25 minutes minutes

  Servings: 6 servings

  Calories: 477kcal

  Author: Charla

  Ingredients

  • ▢ 4 lbs organic chicken (2kg) washed and dried
  • ▢ 2 tablespoon lemon pepper seasoning (12g)
  • ▢ ½ teaspoon rosemary (0.05g) chopped finely
  • ▢ 1½ teaspoon pink salt (9g)
  • ▢ 4 tablespoon dairy free butter (56g)melted
  • ▢ 4 tablespoon olive oil (56g)
  • ▢ 6 tablespoon lemon juice (90g)

  For stuffing the cavity

  • ▢ 1 lemon halved
  • ▢ 1 large onion halved
  • ▢ 3 sprigs of rosemary

  Instructions

  • Preheat the air fryer.
  • Combine the lemon pepper seasoning, rosemary and pink salt in one bowl and mix.
  • Place the melted butter in one bowl and the olive oil in another bowl.
  • Divide the lemon juice equally between both bowls.
  • Divide the dry seasoning into equal parts in the bowl with the melted butter and bowl with the olive oil and mix.
  • Place the cleaned chicken on a large flat surface like a chopping board or large plate works too, as it is easier to season the meat.
  • Use a large spoon (upside down) to open up underneath the skin.
  • Place the lemon, rosemary sprigs and onion inside the cavity of the chicken.
  • Use some twine to tie together the legs together (downwards).
  • Use a pastry brush to spread the melted butter mix underneath the skin (you can tilt the chicken vertically to pour in excess butter mixture into the open pockets.
  • Generously coat the outside of the entire chicken with the olive oil mix.
  • Carefully transfer the chicken (breast side down) into the basket.
  • Turn the dial to "roast" , select, 180C/356F for 60 minutes, "megazone" .
  • Roast the chicken for 45 minutes then turn the chicken over (breast side up) and continue for a further 15 minutes (until the internal temperature of the chicken is 165F/74C) and the juices run clear, use a thermometer, if needed to check this).
  • Once cooked, you can collect the drippings from underneath the basket and reserve to baste the chicken.
  • Serve accordingly.

  Notes

  • Use a thermometer if needed, insert into the thickest part of the chicken (the breast) to determine the readiness of the meat, it should be 165F/74C.
  • This is the link for my Homemade Lemon Pepper Seasoning
  • Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may want to adjust the size of your whole chicken, mine was around 4lb.
  • You can use another type of Ninja air fryer with the roasting ability, if you want to.
  • Make sure to mix the olive oil/lemon juice/dairy free butter together with the dry ingredients before coating the chicken.
  • Any leftovers can be frozen for up to 3 months or stored in an air tight container for up to 3 days.
  • For added flavour, make sure to season underneath the skin, I use a large spoon, upside down to push it underneath the skin to open a pocket without tearing the skin which makes it easier to insert the pastry brush to season.
  • Save the carcass! You can make chicken stock with the bones, don't throw it away!
  • If you want to clean the chicken, the island way, then check out this link.

  Nutrition

  Calories: 477kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 39g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 109mg | Sodium: 1382mg | Potassium: 347mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 203IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 34mg | Iron: 2mg

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