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!

a cooked rotisserie chicken with parsley

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.

rotisserie chicken ready to be cooked on a spit

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:

  1. Ensure the cavity of the chicken is empty.
  2. Mix the seasonings together. Pat the chicken dry and rub it with olive oil and seasoning mixture.
  3. Bend the wings behind the chicken and tie the legs together.

To Oven Roast:

To make this recipe in a roasting pan:

  1. 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.
  2. 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:

  1. 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.
  2. Turn the heat off and let the chicken continue to “carryover cook” for another 15 minutes.
  3. Once removed from the rotisserie, let the chicken rest for at least 10 minutes to seal in the juices.
a cooked rotisserie chicken ready on a rotisserie spit

How To Cut Rotisserie Chicken

Cut a rotisserie chicken just like you would carve a turkey.

  1. Remove the string around the legs and unwind the wings from the body.
  2. 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.
  3. Using a sharp chef’s knife, cut slices from the center where the breastbone is across each left and right side.
  4. Serve the chicken as slices or shred for salads or wraps, sandwiches, or soup!
cooked rotisserie chicken in a bowl

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!

a cooked rotisserie chicken with parsley
5 from 64 votes↑ Click stars to rate now!
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Rotisserie Chicken

Made in the oven or rotisserie oven, this rotisserie chicken recipe is perfectly juicy and moist with a crispy skin!
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 12 minutes
Resting Time 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 37 minutes
Servings 4 servings

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

  1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Place chicken, breast-side up, in a cast iron skillet or in a small dish.
  2. Roast 12 minutes, reduce heat to 350°F and cook an additional 60-70 minutes or until chicken reaches 165°F.
  3. Rest 15 minutes before carving.
Air Fryer: To cook the chicken in the air fryer, season as directed above and follow our air fryer whole chicken recipe.
Seasoning: Chicken can be seasoned with any spice mixture.
You can cook more than one chicken at a time and ensure chickens are not touching. Note: Read the directions for your exact rotisserie equipment for mounting directions. Electric rotisserie machines do not require preheating.
Cooking Time: Cooking time can vary based on the size of the chicken and they cooking method (oven/rotisserie). Most small-sized chickens will cook in approximately an hour. For best results, use an instant-read thermometer and cook until chicken reaches 165°F.
Leftover chicken can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. 
5 from 64 votes

Nutrition Information

Calories: 444 | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 143mg | Sodium: 134mg | Potassium: 375mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 0.1g | Vitamin A: 451IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 2mg

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

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About the author

Holly is a wine and cheese lover, recipe creator, shopping enthusiast and self appointed foodie. Her greatest passion is creating in the kitchen and making deliciously comforting recipes for the everyday home cook!
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Comments

  1. 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!5 stars

  2. 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 !

  3. 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 !

  4. 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.5 stars

    1. 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!

  5. 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!5 stars

  6. 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@5 stars

  7. I am wanting to make blueberry muffins using brown flour & oil
    Do you have any easy favourites that I could follow, please Holly?

  8. 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!!5 stars

  9. I just love your recipes and they are so easy to use.

    Hilary Cole
    Harare Zimbabwe
    Southern Africa5 stars

    1. Thank you!! That’s so sweet of you. Glad you are enjoying them as much as we are :)

  10. 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.

  11. 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 CHICKEN5 stars

  12. 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 :)5 stars

    1. I don’t normally, but if your oven has hot spots, you may want to rotate it part way through. Enjoy Mary!

    2. 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.

    3. 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?5 stars

  13. Am thinking to open chicken rotisserie restaurant, all kinds of chicken dishes.
    Thank you for showing me how to make it,.

  14. 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!

    1. 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!

  15. 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.5 stars