A few years ago my husband and I received a toaster oven from my parents for Christmas. We had been wanting one for awhile and we were super excited to get it! It's gone through a lot of use over the years. However, the rotisserie attachments were still brand new. After all this time, I decided to finally try them out last week.
When I think of rotisserie chickens, I think of my Grandpa. My Dad's father had to learn how to cook after Grandma passed away. He did. And he was good at it. He made soup, bread, awesome chocolate chip cookies... (I think that's where my Dad gets his cookie baking skills. It's in the genes...) Grandpa used to sit and watch his cookie dough bake, then when they were baked perfectly, he would pull them out and place the chocolate chips in just the right spots.
He definitely took pride in what he made and it was adorable. I remember being at his house one day and he was sitting at the kitchen table staring at the wall. At least that is what it looked like at first glance. When I came fully into the room I realized that he was looking at his rotisserie oven. But he wasn't just checking on it. We was actually watching it cook. The whole time it cooked. I'm not sure if he was just bored or if baking and cooking just fascinated him enough to take the time to actually watch his concoctions from start to finish. But it also made everything he created that much more special. He was proud of it. And he always wanted to share what he made. You couldn't visit Grandpa without him offering you some sort of treat or homemade ham soup he just finished making. Even to this day I think of him whenever I see recipes for ham soup and rotisserie chickens. It makes me miss him even more.
I was a little bit wary of making a full rotisserie chicken. I didn't know if it was going to take a long time, if it would be dry, or just be way more work than I wanted. But I'm so glad I tried it!
I whipped up this dry rub, let it rest overnight, then popped it in the rotisserie when I got home from work. It was done in an hour and a half and was perfect. Super easy!
Now I don't have a lot of pictures for this one because full birds weird me out a bit. Not so much when they are fully cooked, but when they are raw...let's just say the less I need to handle it the better. Looking at the directions on the label that came with the chicken, it said to remove the giblets and rinse it in cold water. I did that and then patted it dry with paper towels. Once I mixed up the dry rub, I rubbed it all over the bird, inside and out! Then you quarter up your onion and stuff it in the cavity. I didn't have kitchen string so I just used dental floss to tie the legs and wings together. Then I sealed it in a gallon ziploc bag and refrigerated it for about 20 hours before cooking it.
According to the directions, it said to cook it at 350 degrees for 20 minutes per pound. (You want the internal temperature to be 180 degrees and all the juices to run clear.) That is what I did and it worked perfectly. We served it with roasted broccoli & cauliflower and brown rice for dinner, then deboned it and froze the remaining meat to use in my Peppery Chicken Noodle Soup later on in the week.
Ingredients
4.5-5 lb. chicken
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. Cajun seasoning
1/2 tsp. ground oregano
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. white pepper
1 tsp. sea salt
1 onion, quartered
cooking string
Directions
Remove giblets and rinse chicken in cold water.
Dry well with paper towels.
Combine the seasonings in a small bowl.
Rub all over the chicken, inside and out (even under the skin).
Place quartered onion inside the cavity of the chicken.
Using the string, tie the legs together, then the wings.
Place in a gallon Ziploc bag and refrigerate at least 12-24 hours.
Preheat rotisserie oven to 350 degrees.
Bake for approximately 1 1/2 hours (about 20 minutes per pound) or until thermometer reads 180 degrees and juices run clear.
Let rest 10 minutes (breast side down) before slicing.
Oh for yum!
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