How to Use a Rotisserie Oven
Using a rotisserie oven will result in a healthier and more evenly cooked meal. There are a few great reasons to use these ovens. Not quite sure how to use a rotisserie oven? Read on to learn more about preparing the meat and getting the cooking process started. For this guide, we’ll use chicken as an example.
Cooking Tips: Preparation
Let’s say you’re using a rotisserie oven to cook a chicken. The bird will need to be properly prepared before being cooked. Here are some tips on how to prepare the meat before being placed on a spit:
- Remove the giblet bag from inside of the bird.
- Thoroughly rinse the meat inside and out with cold water.
- Trim the excess fat and discard.
- Pat the meat with a paper towel to dry and begin seasoning.
Once these steps are covered, you can get started with using your rotisserie oven with confidence you’ll get a quality product at the end of the cooking cycle.
Placing Chicken on the Rotisserie Spit
Surprisingly, this step is the most time consuming. When thinking about how to use a rotisserie oven, it can be easy to forget how to use the spit. Here’s how to place the chicken on the spit:
- Enter the spit rod through the neck of the chicken and push straight through to the bottom, centering the meat.
- Attach the rotisserie spit forks into the breast and tighten the wing nut to secure in place.
- Attach the other rotisserie spit fork into the tail end and tighten the wing nut.
- Cut a few pieces of kitchen twine and soak them in a bowl of water. Loop the twine around the tail and tie it to the rod to secure the bottom section of the chicken.
- Season the meat with any additional rubs or flavors before wrapping more twine around fatty sections of the meat and securing to the spit.
- Use one more piece of twine to secure the breast area and wings.
- Check the balance of the chicken on the spit by picking up the spit and rolling it in your hand. If it rolls evenly, then it’s centered.
Cooking with a Rotisserie Oven
When it comes to cooking the chicken, the process is fairly simple. Check out our step-by-step instructions below to properly cook with your rotisserie oven:
- Place the spit on the spit supports on the drip pan.
- Slide the drip pan into the oven with the pointed end inserted into the rotisserie spit mount hole in the back corner.
- Check the manufacturer settings to find out the suggested cooking time. Most ovens suggest 120 minutes per 4-5 pounds of chicken.
- Once you set the timer for the correct cooking time, press start.
- Close the door, leaving a small opening.
- Around 30 minutes until the finish time, start checking the temperature for doneness.
- Once done, carefully remove the chicken from the oven and place on a cutting board to remove the forks from both ends and pull out the spit.
- Start removing the twine from the chicken and cover in foil to let it rest for about 20 minutes before carving.