Grilling a whole chicken rotisserie style is a great way to feed a healthier dinner to your friends and family. It tastes great, too! Here’s how to do it:
Fetch your chicken.
You’ll need to prepare your poultry before seasoning it. Cut off any excess and flappy skin. This is the chewy, unwanted, and unhealthy portion of the chicken.
Then, hold your chicken out in front of you, grab ahold of the wings, and put them behind the chicken’s back. Kelly B calls this the “watching TV” position. This helps secure the chicken from rolling around on the grill.
Time to inject!
You can either make your own injection or buy one! Kelly B uses Cajun Injector; Roasted Garlic for his rotisserie chicken. Warm up your liquid so that it’s warm, but not too hot, so that the juices travel better in the meat. Injecting can be used with nearly every recipe by Kelly B!
The trick here is to make as little holes as possible in your bird. Start with both breasts, and work your needle all the way around the chicken without taking the needle out of the meat. Do the same to the front two sides of the chicken. Then again with both thighs, and maybe the legs if you desire.
Coat your remaining injection on the chicken, to hold the seasoning or rub we’ll add later on.
You’ll be able to tell when your meat is properly injected when it starts to swell with those juices!
Rub your bird!
Pick out your favorite poultry seasoning; your own creation or store bought. Keep watch for Kelly B’s own rubs, coming soon!
Cover the whole chicken with your seasoning. Don’t miss any spots, including the cavity! You don’t want to see any pale chicken skin before cooking this beauty.
Get your rotisserie on!
It’s time to cook your creation! Place your bird in the middle of the rotisserie rack. If you’re cooking more than one item, place it directly across or opposite of the chicken.
It’s recommended that you balance your food in your rotisserie smoker, to ensure that the motor keeps running while cooking.
Add your wood.
The wood in your smoker isn’t used to cook the meat, but rather flavor it. Let your creativity flow with the type of wood you use. Kelly B’s favorites are cherry and hickory. Place the wood in the firebox and let it go to town!
Leave it alone.
You want to eat the chicken, right? Don’t open your smoker unless you have to! If you do decide to open it, spritz your chicken with a spray to keep it moist. Kelly B uses an apple juice and balsamic vinegar mixture, but you can even use Coca-Cola to spray your meat!
When your chicken reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit, it’s ready to come out! Using a probe thermometer is your best bet for getting an accurate reading.
Wrap her up!
Want to freeze your chicken or save it for later? Wrap it snugly in foil. Keep in mind that if you wrap it directly after cooking it, your chicken will continue to cook in the foil.
How do you cook your chicken? Do you have a preferred poultry seasoning? Let us know in the comments!
