So this is my recipe for rotisserie-style chicken. Will you get that delicious crispy chicken, crispy skin, juicy, and then inside the flavors of a store-bought one, or one that you get when you’re abroad, in Spain, when you see them all on that level of rotisserie.

Simple to make, really versatile, and I’ll give you enough to feed, well, maybe about six people from one four- or five-pound chicken.

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What you need

It’s got really simple seasoning, so you can make up your seasoning mix. I use paprika, thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, which gives it a really nice and savory flavor, some olive oil, and I would squeeze a lemon in there as well, and then you’re going to roast it in the oven. I find the oven gives it a nice crispy skin.

Make sure you’re going to baste your chicken, which means coating and spooning those lovely juices and basting liquid over your chicken every 15 to 20 minutes. And you want to always rest for 10-15 minutes before you carve it, so all the juices sink back into the meat and permeate the meat to get that delicious juice.

So, as I said, you need a large chicken, olive oil, salt and pepper, paprika, time, onion powder, and garlic powder as your basic spice rub.

How to make it

So how’d you make it? First of all, set your oven to 425° Fahrenheit (210 Celsius). In a small bowl, mix up your spice mix, and remember to add a teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of pepper as well, plus olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice.

You can choose to check it out, which means tying up the legs, but you don’t have to do that. I don’t bother.

Place the chicken breast in a roasting pan, and then brush it and rub it with the spices all over the skin. I also like to put half a lemon inside the cavity, and that gives you steam and cooks the lemon flavor, which permeates into the chicken. I’m going to cook that uncovered until the skin’s golden, and it’s 165° in the thickest part of the breast, but it’s 70 to 80 minutes normally, but you’ve got to remember to keep on basting the chicken every 15 minutes with the juices that are in the bottom of the pan.

Once it’s starting to get a nice crispy golden color, sometimes I like to add a bit of red wine or cider to the pan, and that will create a bit more of a gravy to go over it when you serve it. Okay, so maybe about 20 minutes before it’s due to finish cooking, add a bit of cider or wine into it, and once it reaches the temperature, it’s finished cooking, then it’s ready to carve up.

Unless it’s carved, you can serve it with the breast, the leg, and the thigh. You can slice up; it’s really entirely up to you. Another good tip is that you can actually take the chicken legs and wings off, and the breast you can actually put it in a large freezer bag, and then the steam will help to bring the chicken skin off the bone, and you get nice shredded chicken.

But at that point you do lose the crispy skin, and then it’s up to you how you want to serve it.

I like to serve mine in the summer with a nice tomato salad, and then I just drizzle over some of the juices from the pan, or if it’s wintertime, I like roast potatoes and some lovely roasted veg with it, and it’s absolutely delicious. Enjoy!

Fiona MacLean

Rotisserie Style Chicken

A whole chicken rubbed with a paprika-herb spice mix, roasted until the skin is crispy and the meat reaches 165°F, basted and rested before carving.

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Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 4-5 pound chicken
• olive oil nice and loose consistency for spice mix
• 1 lemon juice squeezed into spice mix, half placed inside cavity
• paprika
• thyme
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• a bit red wine or cider optional, added near end of cooking to make a gravy

Method

 

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F (210°C).
2. In a small bowl, mix the spice rub: paprika, thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, about 1 teaspoon salt and half a teaspoon of pepper, olive oil until nice and loose, and a squeeze of lemon juice.
3. Remove any giblets and pat the chicken dry to help get crispy skin.
4. Optionally tie the legs together (not essential).
5. Place the chicken breast up in a roasting pan, then brush and rub the spice mix all over the skin.
6. Put half a lemon inside the cavity so it steams and permeates the chicken with lemon flavor as it cooks.
7. Roast uncovered until the skin is golden and the thickest part of the breast reaches 165°F, normally 70 to 80 minutes, basting every 15 minutes with the pan juices.
8. Optionally, about 20 minutes before the chicken is due to finish, pour a bit of red wine or cider into the pan to make a gravy.
9. Let the chicken rest 10-15 minutes before carving so the juices sink back into the meat.
10. Carve and serve with breast, leg and thigh as desired.

Notes

Leftover chicken can be bagged while warm to steam the skin off the bone for shredded chicken, though this loses the crispy skin. Serve with a tomato salad in summer or roast potatoes and roasted vegetables in winter.