Sam Milner, author and air fryer expert, has been cooking her roast dinners in the appliance for years and has shared exactly how to do it.

Sam said: “We bought our first air fryer in 2012, long before the air fryer became popular. We found ourselves experimenting with more and more food, seeing what could work in the appliance and what wouldn’t, making mealtimes even easier.

“One time of the year we found ourselves using the air fryer more often was Christmas. It started off with the pigs in blankets, stuffing and of course roast potatoes.

“We then added to this with mince pies, the Christmas cake, the cauliflower cheese and even preparing side dishes ahead of time and then air frying them closer to the time.

“Two years ago, we cooked our first turducken in it and we have cooked roast chicken, turkey crowns, legs of lamb, gammon and so many other great roasts too.”

Now being an air fryer expert, author of many cookbooks as well as the creator of a highly successful recipe website, Sam has shared exclusively how to cook a full Christmas dinner in the air fryer, in just one hour.

The expert said: “If you want to do an all-in-one Christmas dinner in the air fryer, it works best to make it with a whole chicken instead of turkey. You can then use the gaps around where the chicken sits to get all your sides into the air fryer.

“This all-in-one Christmas dinner is perfect for a family of four, or for two plus leftovers. If you want to save more time, you can also use prepared pigs in blankets and stuffing balls.

“There’s then even less of an effort on your part so it’s even more stress-free. How much you can cook at once in your air fryer depends on the size of your model.”

The expert said she has based this recipe upon a small, square-sized appliance, so if you have a bigger dual one, it can be done much faster.

Ingredients:

For the chicken and vegetables:

Four medium carrots

Four medium parsnips

Two and a half tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

One teaspoon of dried thyme

One medium whole chicken, giblets removed

One tablespoon of garlic powder

One tablespoon of dried parsley

225g Brussels sprouts

Half a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar

Half a tablespoon of maple syrup

One tablespoon of dried Italian seasoning

One tablespoon of clear honey

Salt and black pepper

For the potatoes:

900g medium red potatoes

One tablespoon of duck or goose fat

Two teaspoons of dried rosemary

One teaspoon of dried thyme

A pinch of mustard powder

Salt and pepper

For the pigs in blankets:

Four slices of smoked streaky bacon

Eight cocktail sausages

For the homemade stuffing balls:

340g pork sausage meat

Half a medium onion

Two teaspoons of dried mixed herbs

Two teaspoons of dried thyme

Two teaspoons of dried parsley

Two large eggs

120g fresh breadcrumbs

Salt and black pepper

Method:

Peel the carrots and parsnips, slicing them into sticks. Put them into a bowl with one tablespoon of olive oil and thyme as well as salt and pepper. Toss them until evenly coated and load them into the air fryer.

Put the chicken, breast side down onto a clean chopping board and then smother it in some oil, half a tablespoon of garlic and dried parsley. Place the chicken, still breast side down, into the air fryer basket, over the carrots and parsnips. Air fry at 180C for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the pigs in blankets, stuffing balls and roast potatoes with the following instructions. For the pigs in blankets, slice four rashers of smoked streaky bacon to create eight shorter strips, then wrap each sausage inside. Cover and place them into the fridge.

For the stuffing balls, place 340g of pork sausage meat into a bowl and then add half a diced onion into the bowl along with two teaspoons of dried mixed herbs, two teaspoons of dried thyme and two teaspoons of dried parsley, seasoning with salt and pepper before mixing.

Crack two large eggs into the bowl and mix, then gradually add 120g of fresh breadcrumbs until well combined. Divide the mixture into 12 portions and roll into balls, leaving them in the fridge until ready.

To prepare the roast potatoes, cut 900g of medium red potatoes in half and then half again to create quarters. Put them in a bowl with one tablespoon of duck fat, two teaspoons of dried rosemary, one teaspoon of dried thyme and a pinch of mustard powder. Season generously with salt and pepper at this stage. Set aside.

When the air fryer beeps, remove the chicken and place it to one side before placing the stuffing balls in its place over the carrots and parsnips, cooking at the same temperature for five minutes.

In that time, prepare the sprouts by slicing them in half and putting them in a bowl. Add half a tablespoon of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, maple syrup and Italian seasoning. Season with salt and pepper and mix so they are evenly coated.

When the air fryer beeps, remove the stuffing, carrots and parsnips, and put them all to one side. Return the chicken to the air fryer, this time breast side up, and season it with the final half a tablespoon of olive oil and the remaining half a tablespoon of garlic powder and parsley.

Add the potatoes and sprouts to any available gaps and cook at the same temperature for a further 20 minutes, or until the chicken reads an internal temperature of 70C. Remove the chicken and allow it to rest before carving.

In the meantime, add the pigs in blankets to the air fryer and cook with the sprouts and potatoes for five minutes. When the air fryer beeps, remove the sprouts and potatoes, loading them onto a serving dish.

Put the stuffing balls back into the basket, toss the carrots and parsnips in the honey and return them to the air fryer too. Cook the stuffing, carrots, parsnips and pigs in blankets for a final five minutes.

Carve the chicken and serve with all of the sides for a delicious Christmas dinner cooked in just one hour.

Sam’s first book The Complete Air Fryer Cookbook was a Sunday Times bestseller and her second book Air Fryer Easy Every Day is out now. Sam is also the creator of the highly successful website RecipeThis.com, which gets over a million visits a month.