It sure has felt like summer the past week or so. But does it get more summer than cooking out on the grill and using some extra toys to create a delicious meal? The answer is definitively: no. Today is National Rotisserie Chicken Day…and yes, there is a “day for everything”, it seems. We’ve all been there. You need a fast meal, so you go to the grocery store and pick-up an awaiting rotisserie chicken in a plastic shell, sitting in a warming container that is causing not only condensation to drip down on the skin, making it not only soggy (instead of crispy), but also making the skin shrivel.
“Gross, I’ll never do that again” we tell ourselves, but we go back. Or, maybe you head to the local restaurant that has a rotisserie, and you order from there instead. The result is an overcooked bird that is so dry inside, it’s inedible without a sauce. It’s time to stop the insanity and do it yourself! Consider your investment into the rotisserie attachment as savings from what you’d otherwise spend on a sad commercial chicken product over the coming years. The entire process itself takes only 90 minutes. The flavors are amazing, the bird will be juicy, and the skin will be crispy! In other words: perfection. Especially, if you serve them up with my duck-fat-fried fingerling potatoes.
Rotisserie Chicken
You will need a rotisserie attachment and a grill for this recipe.
Wood chips (preferably cherry or apple wood)
~4lb chicken
2 tbsp dried Italian herbs
Kosher salt + black pepper
Lemon
Fresh herbs for stuffing
Butcher string
Place three large handfuls of wood chips in a bowl and soak in water for 30 minutes. Then drain and fill your smoker boxes or create a packet using aluminum foil, poking holes in the packet to allow smoke to escape.
Meanwhile, remove the chicken from the packaging, discard giblets if present, and rinse the inside of the chicken and drain. Place on a cutting board covered in paper towels. Grabmore paper towels and blot the top dry. Run the towels inside the chicken cavity as well. Remove any extra fat from the chicken tail area. Carefully separate the skin from the breast and leg meat, sliding your hand in between and pulling at connective tissue to separate. Remove the paper towels from the cutting board.
In a bowl, combine the dried herbs along with 1.5 tbsp of salt and 2 tsp of pepper. Toss a ½ tsp on each side of the breasts (2 tsp in total) and rub into the meat, including down over the leg portions, with your hands. Then sprinkle most all over the bird, leaving about ½ tsp to rub inside the cavity. Let sit.
After the wood chips have soaked, drain and place into the smoker boxes/packets, as noted above, and place them over your outermost grill burners. You’ll need to remove the grates from the grill to operate the rotisserie and allow clearance for the chicken. Secure the rotisserie motor housing to the grill, then turn the outermost burners to high and allow to preheat for 15-20 minutes.
Meanwhile, slice the lemon and stuff one half into the cavity cut-side facing the breast bone. Add in some fresh herbs. Place the bird breast side up with the legs facing you. Cut about a 2.5 foot piece of butcher string and run it under the back to the mid-thigh. Pull the strings together, cross over twice and pull until taught. Run the strings up, between the legs and carcass, over-and-between the wings and the carcass and flip the bird (no, not your middle finger!) then pull the strings around the carcass, loop twice and pull taught and once more to complete the knot. Cut off any remaining string. Here’s a handy tutorial video from Steven Raichlen.
Now that the bird is ready, secure one prong on your rotisserie attachment near the handle and run the skewer through the cavity of the chicken. Place the other prong onto the end of the skewer and run the prongs together into and securing the bird. Lock the prongs into place. Set the rotisserie attachment into the motor housing secured to your grill and turn the motor on. Monitor a few rotations to ensure everything is going smoothly.
Then, close the grill cover and reduce the burners to medium. Cook for 45 mins then check the temperature. Cook until the thigh registers 165.
Once cooked, remove the rotisserie skewer from the motor and place on a cutting board and allow the chicken to cool for about 5-10 minutes before removing the prongs. Carve up and serve with fingerling potatoes (recipe below) and some greens, sprinkling everything with the remaining half of the lemon.
Duck Fat Fingerling Potatoes
1.5 lbs fingerling potatoes
~⅓ cup duck fat
Few sprigs of fresh herbs of rosemary, sage, and thyme
2 large cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
Kosher and coarse sea salt
Place your potatoes into a pot and cover with water, adding in 2 tbsp kosher salt. Bring to a boil over high heat. Then reduce the flame to medium and maintain a gentle simmer for about 10 minutes.
Drain the potatoes and place on a paper-towel lined cutting board. Let dry, then halve the potatoes lengthwise.
In a large skillet, melt the duck fat over medium-high heat. When nearly fully melted, add in the herbs and garlic. Once the herbs start popping, add in the potatoes cut-side down and cook until browned.
Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined surface and season with coarse sea salt. Serve immediately.
______________________________ Copyright 2022, Brendan McCann, All Rights Reserved.
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