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I bought a rotisserie attachment for my gas grill & I've used it to roast a couple of chickens. It works really well & I love it - the chicken comes out very moist and flavorful. And therein lies the problem...

The chicken comes out perhaps too moist. I mean, I like it this way and my sons like it this way, but my wife feels it's a little too moist. I can't really argue with her - it is very moist and I would enjoy it just as much if it were a little drier.

So how to I make the chicken a little drier?

Here are the details:

I've roasted three chickens this way so far.

  1. I brined the chicken for several hours before roasting at approx 350-400 degrees F. While cooking, I basted it periodically with an herbed button mixture. It tasted great, but it was definitely too wet.

  2. I used a dry brine (1/3 cup salt, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp pepper) overnight and washed off the salt before cooking. This time I roasted at approximately 425-450 degrees F and basted as before. The results were better this time - not so wet - but pretty salty (perhaps I didn't remove enough of the dry brine)

  3. Just like #2, but dry brined for about 3 1/2 hours only and washed off the dry brine more carefully. I roasted at around 475-500 degrees F and basted as before. The results were pretty much the same as #2, although the skin did come out a little browner & crunchier. But again it was a little moister than my wife would have liked.

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    What types of chickens are you buying? Most sold in supermarkets have been injected with water to make them more juicy (and add weight). Try to find a non-injected bird, and try again with the dry brine.
    – Joe
    Commented Jan 1, 2017 at 23:06
  • Just "off the shelf" roasting chickens. That's a good idea about the non-injected bird, I didn't think of that
    – Kryten
    Commented Jan 1, 2017 at 23:32
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    To @Joe's point, most are injected with a salt solution - not just plain water. The claim is that it enhances flavor. I won't buy them.
    – Cindy
    Commented Jan 2, 2017 at 12:01

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We use our rotisserie on our BBQ and love how our chicken and turkey comes out. I suggest you not brine the poultry as it is constantly basted by its own juices as it turns on the rotisserie.

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