If you love juicy and flavorful rotisserie chicken, make your own at home!
Whether you have a rotisserie or want to bake it in the oven, this rotisserie chicken recipe is tender and juicy with crispy skin.
With minimal prep work and your own fave seasonings, this is a go to for us!
Make Rotisserie Chicken at Home!
It’s so simple, you’ll love homemade even more than store-bought rotisserie chicken!
- Season it however you like, either simply with salt & pepper or with the rotisserie chicken seasoning recipe below.
- You can make it in the oven or on a rotisserie or in the air fryer.
- Meal prep and make a couple of chickens and freeze the meat from one for easy meals another day!
- Shred it on top of a salad, turn it into a chicken sandwich, use it in a chicken noodle soup, make it into a chicken pot pie, or use it in chicken quesadillas! The possibilities are endless!
Ingredients for Rotisserie Chicken
Chicken – You’ll need a whole chicken for this recipe. If you have a large enough rotisserie, you can cook two chickens at once (great for busy weeknights) or try a turkey.
Olive oil – I use olive oil, but you can use any oil you have on hand. The oil helps the seasonings to stick and makes the skin extra crispy.
Seasonings – Experiment with different seasoning blends to find your favorite! You can try the seasonings in this recipe, a homemade chicken seasoning, or your preferred pre-made seasoning (I love this seasoning). Skip the fresh garlic as it will burn in this recipe.
How To Make Rotisserie Chicken
I make rotisserie chicken on a rotisserie (use a rotisserie on a grill or an electric rotisserie oven). If you don’t have one, you can make baked rotisserie chicken as you would make a roast chicken. While it’s not technically a rotisserie chicken if baked in the oven, the flavor is very similar!
To Prepare the Chicken:
- Ensure the cavity of the chicken is empty.
- Mix the seasonings together. Pat the chicken dry and rub it with olive oil and seasoning mixture.
- Bend the wings behind the chicken and tie the legs together.
To Oven Roast:
To make this recipe in a roasting pan:
- Roast for 12 minutes at 450°F, then drop down to 350°F and roast for another 60 to 70 minutes until the chicken reaches 165°F internally.
- Once removed from the oven, let the chicken rest for at least 10 minutes to seal in the juices.
To Cook a Chicken on a Rotisserie:
To make this recipe use either a rotisserie on a grill or an electric rotisserie oven:
- Cook for about 18-22 minutes per pound (this will vary based on the type of rotisserie you use) until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F in the thickest part of the thigh.
- Turn the heat off and let the chicken continue to “carryover cook” for another 15 minutes.
- Once removed from the rotisserie, let the chicken rest for at least 10 minutes to seal in the juices.
How To Cut Rotisserie Chicken
Cut a rotisserie chicken just like you would carve a turkey.
- Remove the string around the legs and unwind the wings from the body.
- Using a paring knife, cut from the leg/thigh joint that is attached to the body. Separate the leg from the thigh, if desired. The wings can simply be twisted away from the body.
- Using a sharp chef’s knife, cut slices from the center where the breastbone is across each left and right side.
- Serve the chicken as slices or shred for salads or wraps, sandwiches, or soup!
Leftovers
Leftover rotisserie chicken usually gets used up quickly because of all the different ways it can be served! Keep it in the refrigerator in a sealed container or a zippered bag for up to 4 days.
Leftovers can also be frozen in air-tight containers or freezer bags for about 3 months!
Best Ways to Use Rotisserie Chicken
Did you love this easy Rotisserie Chicken? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Rotisserie Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 small fryer chicken about 3.5 to4 lbs
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine paprika, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder. Add 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper (more or less to taste) and mix well.
- To prepare the chicken, dab the skin dry with paper towels.
- Rub the outside of the chicken with olive oil and season generously with the spice mixture.
- Gently fold the wings behind the chicken. Using kitchen twine, tie the legs together. Ensure the cavity is empty.
To Cook on a Rotisserie
- Center the chicken on a rotisserie spit. If using a grill rotisserie, preheat to medium heat, 350°F. (see notes for oven directions).
- Cook chicken for 18-22 minutes per pound, or until the chicken reaches 165°F on a meat thermometer. A 3.5lb chicken will cook for 60-80 minutes.
- Once the chicken has reached the right temperature, turn off the heat and allow the chicken to rotate for 15 minutes without heat.
- Remove from the rotisserie and serve.
Notes
To Roast in the Oven
-
Preheat oven to 450°F. Place chicken, breast-side up, in a cast iron skillet or in a small dish.
-
Roast 12 minutes, reduce heat to 350°F and cook an additional 60-70 minutes or until chicken reaches 165°F.
-
Rest 15 minutes before carving.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Chicken, Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
I made the Rotisserie chicken on the BBQ and it was great except it didn’t get crisp. I followed the recipe except I did marinate the chicken in the oil and seasonings. Could that have been the problem ,as I want to make it again ?
Thanks!
We have never tried marinating it the oil and spices so that may be the issue. If you make it again without marinating it, we would love to hear how it turns out!
Made this evening in oven and was extremely tasty! I did double the seasoning as I had a pretty large roasting chicken. Definitely putting on the meal rotation!
I baked this for the first time last night. It was fabulous. I followed all directions even the 1 hour in the fridge before baking. It took longer to bake b/c the chicken was larger than requested. I and my family loved it. Tasted like the best Rotisserie Chicken, esp. over any I’ve bought in Salisbury, N. C.
We will have leftovers tonight, but with different sides. I will definitely be making this again, often. Thanks !
I read this whole thing. I want to make this soon, but one question I have is it didn’t say to bake covered or uncovered ?
I want to do this correctly like yours. It truly looks delicious. Thanks !
Uncovered to get that nice crispy skin! Enjoy Barbara!
Your receipe’s loke so fresh and flavourful. Going to make the Rotisserie Chicken in my skillet, as we ,do not have our grill setup for a Rotisserie. We do many Beer Can Chicken’s on our Charcoal grill, and they turn out so juicy and good. What type of air fryer do you have? Haven’t made the investment yet! Thank you for sharing your receipe’s. I share many of the good ones, with friends and followings.
I am so glad you are enjoying the recipes! You can find what air fryer I use and my tips for choosing the right one here!
Easy and delicious! Works great in my convection oven with rotisserie feature at 400 for an hour and 15 minutes. (It’s usually an hour, but I had a slightly larger chicken.) Chicken was so moist and juicy!
We had your Rotisserie chicken made in our gas cooker. It was so moist and delicious I couldn’t believe how well it came out. Wow. It was just a small 1.2kgs bird.
Then on Friday lunch time we had chicken and mayo sandwiches for lunch then on Friday night I made a big pot of homemade chicken and veggies soup using the leftover chicken carcass and even that come out wonderful. So out of our small 1.2kg chicken my husband and I got 3 meals out of that one bird@
I love that, Hilary! Glad you could make the most of this yummy recipe.
I am wanting to make blueberry muffins using brown flour & oil
Do you have any easy favourites that I could follow, please Holly?
Hi Hilary, I have never tried with brown flour but we do have this easy recipe for blueberry muffins and this delicious blueberry bran muffin recipe you might enjoy!
I am going to try and rotisserate a small chicken for the first time ever, in my gas rotisserie oven in my Luxor gas cooker, tonight … Wish me luck!!
Good luck Hilary!! We can’t wait to hear how it turns out for you!
I just love your recipes and they are so easy to use.
Hilary Cole
Harare Zimbabwe
Southern Africa
Thank you!! That’s so sweet of you. Glad you are enjoying them as much as we are :)
Best chicken breast I’ve ever made. I usually overcook chicken breast but haven’t as yet. Simple to make!!!
I don’t have a rotisserie but I use my bundt pan. I put foil over the center post as it has a hole in it.
And set the bird over it. (like beer can chicken). Comes out great.
That’s a great tip, Sharon, thanks for sharing!
Sharon Best idea ever. Going to try tonight. Thank you for sharing. *****
OUTSTANDING
NOT EVER AGAIN WILL I HAVE A RUBBERY SKINNED ROASTED CHICKEN!
This is my NEW chicken seasoning I will only use from now on.
I bought my husband a brand new outdoor rotisserie grill for Christmas,
Last weekend we watched our local weather report found it would be a nice hot weekend so I planned to get 2-3 chickens for the rotisserie
I found the regular 3.5 whole chickens were $3.99 lb it was kind of expensive BUT I lucked out found 2 oven stuffer Perdue manager specials 7.49lb @ .99 cents so I got 2 of them
Unfortunate our weather rained all weekend so I ended up roasting only 1
WOW best seasoned roasted chicken EVER was even crunchy crispy skin that I always have a problem achieving crispy skin on roasted chicken
NOT EVER AGAIN WILL I HAVE A RUBBERY SKINNED ROASTED CHICKEN
So happy you enjoyed this recipe, Bonny Lynn, even if it was because the weather was rainy! If you still get the chance we love this easy rotisserie chicken recipe too!
When cooking in the oven, do I need to rotate the chicken at all? Totally want to make this!! Have some small whole chickens and been craving a rotisserie chicken :)
I don’t normally, but if your oven has hot spots, you may want to rotate it part way through. Enjoy Mary!
You don’t need to rotate it when cooking in the oven!
I did not rotate my pan, however I used my broiler pan with it’s rack (not the broiler top) and found since it was elevated it was away from the juices and sat higher above the pan it made the chicken super moist and the crispest skin I have ever made before.
Mary, good question! I am going to use my Rotisserie in my gas cooker for the first time tonight, and I also was wondering about the question you have asked?
Hi Hilary, you can rotate this chicken while cooking but this rotisserie chicken recipe might be exactly what you are looking for!
Delicious, very tender and juicy it was a hit with the family.
Am thinking to open chicken rotisserie restaurant, all kinds of chicken dishes.
Thank you for showing me how to make it,.
Enjoy Robert!
Good luck with your rotisserie chicken restaraunt.
I’m thinking of using the rotisserie in my toaster oven for the first time using this recipe. I’d love to line the dripping pan with potatoes, have you tried that? Do you think the timing would be ok to add the potatoes at the beginning? Im worried either the potatoes would over cook or would it slow the chicken cook time. I’ve enjoyed many of your recipes thank you!
I’ve never tried doing that Kelly, so can’t say how the timing would be affected. I’m sure it’d work, you’ll just want to check that the chicken is fully cooked. Let us now if you do try it Kelly!
I used a five pound chicken and just adjusted the amount of spice and time. This is absolutely delicious and I will be using this recipe again. My husband is a diabetic and really has to watch his carb intake. Thank you so much.
You’re so welcome Vicki! We love rotisserie chicken so much too!
Thanks! Can’t wait to try this!