How To Rotisserie Chicken

Crisp, juicy and golden. Rotisserie roast chicken is a staple in our house during summer as it’s the best of hands-off summer grilling. Never tried this easy cooking method? Here are tips on how to rotisserie a whole chicken. Don’t buy it at the store. Do it yourself and enjoy the mouth watering aromas in your own backyard.

Easy Rotisserie Chicken

In colder weather I oven roast a whole chicken each week. It’s usually our Sunday dinner. But in the summer, it’s outdoors and onto the grill with a rotisserie attachment. Put in on, walk away and in about 2 hours you will have a gorgeous bronze bird ready for dinner.

Rotisserie is a style of roasting. It’s easy to do at home on a gas grill with a rotisserie attachment. The whole chicken is skewered onto a spit (a long metal rod), tightly secured, then roasted while the bird slowly rotates. The rotation provides even, gentle cooking and self-basting.  The skin turns a deep, golden bronze color and the meat stays juicy and tender.

Seasoning Options

To season chicken you can simply use salt and pepper. To add flavor, I add granulated garlic and sometimes smoked paprika for more color and a little smoky flavor. If you like the smoked flavors, try smoked black pepper instead of regular black pepper. Lemon pepper is good too. Another option is a seasoning blend. One fantastic ready-made blend is the Colorado Plateau Citrus Pepper (a salt-free blend). It’s available from Savory Spice Shop. Check their website for store locations or order it online.

For Southwestern flavor, make your own spice blend using salt, pepper, granulated garlic, smoked paprika, ground cumin, ground coriander and ancho chile powder. Experiment and come up with your own secret blend. If you prefer a ready-to-go blend, check out the Savory Spice Shop spice blends page and order a couple to play with.

Steps to Rotisserie Chicken

I usually buy a 4 – 4 1/2 pound organic chicken. This size will serve four to five for dinner. For us two it means dinner plus great leftovers for lunch through the week. Here are the steps I take to get my bird ready:

• Carefully rinse the bird inside and out and dry with paper towels. See post on safely handling raw chicken.
• Remove the extra fat around the neck cavity and any inner bag of innards and discard.
• Trim off the wing tips with a knife or heavy scissors or return back under the bird.
• Season the inside of the bird with a sprinkle of the seasoning you plan to use on the outside of the bird.
• Tie the legs together with kitchen twine. This keeps the chicken in a nice shape for even roasting and rotation.
• Rub the outside with a little olive oil
• Place one pronged holder on the steel rod with prongs facing in. Skewer the chicken through the cavity and tail end. Add the other pronged holder and center the bird for where it will roast in your grill. Be sure the chicken is tight between the prongs. Use pliers to tighten down the screws if needed. I do this on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any raw juices and keep things clean.
• Place the rod with the chicken into the rotisserie and turn on the motor to be sure it is turning. You can season the chicken while on the spit as it turns to get it evenly coated or do it in the kitchen.
• Roast for approximately 2 hours or until the inner thigh reaches 165º – 170º degrees when tested with a digital thermometer. The chicken should be a deep golden brown. Peak in and check on the rotisserie occasionally to be sure it is turning.
• Remove chicken from the rotisserie and allow chicken to stand for about 15 minutes before carving.

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How To Rotisserie Chicken

Crisp, juicy and golden, rotisserie chicken is easy as it is mostly hands-off cooking. Don’t buy a  rotisserie bird at the store. You will get a much better, tastier chicken by doing it at home. If you don’t have an attachment for your grill, look into options for adding one. Timing tip: start about 2 1/2  hours (or a little more) ahead of when you plan to serve. You will need extra time to set up the attachment, get the bird ready and get it going, then allowing it to rest when done.

Ingredients

• 4 1/2 pound whole organic chicken
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• seasonings of choice see post for ideas

Tools

• Kitchen twine to tie legs
• Rotisserie attachment
• Digital thermometer

Instructions

• Carefully rinse the bird inside and out and dry with paper towels. See post tips on safely handling raw chicken. Remove the extra fat around the neck cavity and any inner bag of innards and discard. Trim off the wing tips with a knife or heavy scissors or return back under the bird.
• Rub the bird with the olive oil then season the inside with a sprinkle of the seasoning you plan to use on the outside of the bird. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine. This keeps the chicken in a nice shape for even roasting and rotation.
• Place one pronged holder on the steel rod with prongs facing in. Skewer the chicken through the cavity and tail end. Add the other pronged holder and center the bird for where it will roast in your grill. Be sure the chicken is tight between the prongs. Use pliers to tighten down the screws if needed. I do this on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any raw juices and keep things clean.
• Place the rod with the chicken into the rotisserie and turn on the motor to be sure it is turning. Season the outside of the chicken while on the spit as it turns to get it evenly coated or do it in the kitchen.
• Roast for approximately 2 hours or until the inner thigh reaches 165º – 170º degrees when tested with a digital thermometer. The chicken should be a deep golden brown. Peak in and check the rotisserie occasionally to be sure it is turning.
• Remove from the rotisserie and allow chicken to stand for about 15 minutes before carving.

Nutrition

Serving: 4g