Last year we added a new toy to our kitchen toolkit which has transformed the way we cook. Maybe you’ve heard of it? It’s the Instantpot. Part slow-cooker, part pressure cooker, this little guy is now the busiest piece of gear in our kitchen, second only to our trusty VitaMix.
The beauty of the Instantpot is both its versatility and its speed. Things that used to take patience and time can now be whipped out in no time. Rice? 10 minutes (and I’m not talking about instant rice). A whole chicken? 20 minutes. Say what?!? A beautiful slow-cooked stew that would typically take 8-10 hours in the slow cooker? Done in under 2hrs.
Perhaps the only downside to the Instantpot is that it takes a little getting used to. It’s a whole new way of thinking and cooking. There are also some tricks. Consider the whole chicken: when you cook it in the Instantpot, it cooks quickly, but it doesn’t get that nice crispy skin you get when you roast it. Here’s our easy solution to have super fast, super moist, super tasty roast chicken with that perfect crispy skin on top.
Ingredients
1 3-5lb whole chicken
1/4 c grass fed butter
2 lemons, sliced thick
6-8 garlic cloves, unpeeled and left whole (Pro tip: if you leave them unpeeled for cooking, they will get nice and tender inside. If you peel them, they won’t cook as nicely)
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
2-4 cups of veggies, cut in 1-2″ chunks. Use whatever’s in season at the farmers market – a combination of root veggies with alliums work the best. In this example we used a combination of fennel, celery, carrot and turnip.
Equipment
Instantpot – a worthy investment. You can thank me later.
Big cutting board and sharp chef’s knife.
Directions
Prepare chicken. Ensure the offal has been removed from the cavity. Rinse chicken under cold water and pat to dry. Insert pats of butter between the skin and the breast meat on both sides. Fill the cavity with sliced lemon and garlic cloves. Season generously with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
Prepare the veggies. Chop into rough chunks 1-2″ in size.
Put the veggies in the Instantpot, and rest the chicken on top of them. Close the lid securely.
Set the Instantpot to the Poultry setting and add 10 minutes (total 25 minutes)
Pro Tip: The Instantpot will keep your dinner warming, and you really can’t over do it. If you’re not ready to eat right when it’s done, just let it sit in the Instantpot a little longer. It will only get juicier and yummier.
Just before you’re ready to serve, remove the chicken from the Instantpot and lay on a large cutting board. Slice through the breastbone to cut the chicken in half. Lay both halves skin side up on a baking sheet, and place under the broiler in your oven set to high for 3-5 minutes. You’ll need to keep a close eye on the chicken as you do this as you want the skin to get crispy and golden brown, but not burnt.
While the chicken skin is crisping up to perfection, you can put the juices from the Instantpot into a small saucepan on the stove and heat it over medium-high heat to reduce it into a seriously yummy sauce. It takes 10-15 minutes to reduce, so we do this while we’re setting the table and getting everything else ready to go.
Serve the chicken with the juices poured over top on a bed of veggies. Goes beautifully with a lovely side salad.
As an Instapot owner and lover I wonder why you can’t just save a dirty saucepan and reduce the juices by using the saute function on the Instapot? I seem to recall having done this in the past.
I guess you could do that, Deborah. I hadn’t thought of that! We’re always separating things out when it comes time to reduce down. But I don’t see any reason why not!