Rotisserie + Pellet Grill

[deanlorensen]

My family LOVES rotisserie chicken (i mean who doesnt?) but Im struggling to get my chicken as juicy as most rotisserie chickens from the deli? It wont shred as easy and I end up chopping most of the meat.

I’ve done a few rib/chicken competitions so I have on hand a chicken injection which contains sodium phosphate which makes a world of difference as compared to a standard sugar/salt/water brine. But I still am not there. I have a pellet grill and a vertical pellet smoker. It would be fairly easy to adapt a rotisserie to my vertical smoker and I would have no trouble getting up to 350/375 for a smoker temp.

Is a true rotisserie the piece of puzzle I am missing or is it in my brine/injection? Something about the idea of meat basting in its own rendered fat makes me think a it might be?

Give me your opinions.

[Tex_77]

deanlorensen What temp are you cooking the chicken too? The Cyclopes Greek marinade that Walton’s sells I thought helped retained a ton of moisture and added a great flavor. With a pellet grill you really have no reason for a rotisserie, as the heat is being blown around the inside of your cooker so everything should for the most part cook evenly without needing to be rotated.

[Jonathon]

deanlorensen We do pulled chicken weekly at our house and we cook it till its 190° in the crockpot. Not a 1-1 comparison there but I am guessing that part of the issue is that you are not cooking it to a high enough internal temperature. If you’re already doing something with a sodium phosphate injection then the other thing I would check would be to buy chicken that hasn’t been pumped with anything if possible but certainly nothing above 6%. Some of the organic stuff can be as low as 3%, that’s what you should aim for in my opinion.

[deanlorensen]

So I think you both already pointed out where Im failing…I only smoke my chicken to 165F. Other than some quarters for competition practice I pretty much only cook home raised, spatchcocked full birds. The birds I raise at home are a red ranger chicken variety so they are more proportional white/dark than a cornish cross type that’s considerably fatter and more white meat. My next batch of chicks (cornish cross this time) arrive in 2weeks and Im excited to see the finished product side by side on the plate with the rangers.

Thanks for the help.

[Jonathon]

deanlorensen Okay, so if they aren’t already pumped when you get them then that is honestly your biggest issue erased, I’d say just go ahead and cook ithigher but not quicker. Also, maybe increase the humidity inside your BBQ/Smoker, if your smoker has those controls great, if not then consider using automotive sponges and an oversized bowl of water https://meatgistics.waltonsinc.com/topic/1099/cured-sausage-205-advanced-thermal-processing

[PapaSop]

deanlorensen
I think the missing link is the rotisserie. I’m actually looking at an add on for my Weber grill that will allow me to do that. Haven’t done any rotisserie in years but from what I remember it makes all the difference.

[deanlorensen]

Well I will try my normal method and run the IT up around the 190ish mark. If that doesnt yield the results I want I will go down the road of a rotisserie and report back.