Frozen Roasted Chicken (Rotisserie)

Roasted chicken was something I always enjoyed growing up. I remember my mom would drive all the way out 30 to 40 minutes to Dearborn, MI or Hamtramck, MI to get us our cravings of rotisserie style chicken that was Halal, but it wasn't always consistent in flavor.

To get good quality Halal "American" food was pretty nonexistent growing up. Sure we had our Mediterranean restaurants and we would take the trip up to Chicago for our Desi fix, but good American classics were lacking.

That is when my mom began attempting different recipes to get the perfect whole chicken. Her Charga (Spiced Whole Chicken) was everything! But I still wondered about a "real homemade rotisserie."

It wasn't until I got married, moved out, and missed my moms food that made me experiment to get the perfect roasted chicken. I was super intimidated at first but with lots of trial and error I got my perfect, flavorful American Style Rotisserie Chicken.

This recipe is super versatile and can be cooked using a frozen or fresh bird. I share both ways below and also share when to add the veggies if you want to turn it into a full meal. This dish is a staple and made almost weekly now for meal prep in my home. And further down after the recipe, I share the different birds you can use for this recipe and the timings to adjust for cooking (think: quail, duck, turkey, chicken).

I was leaving on a trip and had a whole chicken sitting in my fridge. Of course, I had no time to make anything out of it so I just simply froze the bird. Came back from the trip and of course remembered I had a frozen chicken sitting in my freezer. For those who know me, know I love shortcuts and HATE defrosting.

And that is when I decided to have this frozen roasted chicken experiment. Boy am I thankful that the outcome was a success!

If you have a fresh bird don’t fret, I explain how to use the same recipe with a fresh whole chicken as well!

Ingredients:

Frozen (or Fresh) Young Whole Chicken (with skin on, about 3 lbs)
1 to 2 tbsp Butter
1/4 c. Neutral Oil (this helps the butter not burn)
1 tbsp Cajun Seasoning
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Paprika
Salt (about 1.5 tsp or to taste)
Pepper (about 1/2 tsp or to taste)
2 Fresh Springs or 1 tsp Dry Thyme

Stuffing:

1/2 a Fresh Lemon
2 to 4 Garlic Cloves
2 Fresh Sprigs or 1/2 tsp Dry Thyme

Method for Frozen Chicken:

Preheat oven to 500'F.
Lay chicken breast side up on a greased foil lined baking sheet.
Brush chicken liberally with oil all over.
Top with seasonings and rub it in.
Add pats of butter.
Put in 500'F degree oven for 30 mins (this will ensure crispy skin and succulent meat underneath).
Pull Chicken out of the oven, open cavity and stuff chicken with stuffing ingredients.
Close the cavity with the excess skin using a skewer to hold the aromatics in.
Tie the two legs together using cooking twine or securing them with skewers.
Tuck the wings back and under the bird.
Tying the legs and tucking in the wings leaves you with a tight compact chicken.
Your bird will come out in the shape you put it in to cook, so make sure you tie and skewer to ensure a pretty outcome!
Place back in oven for an hr this time on 400'F degrees until crisp golden and juices run clear.
Let rest covered 15 mins before serving.
Serve the drippings on the side if desired. (Turn into gravy by adding flour if you'd like.)

Method for Fresh Chicken:

Preheat oven to 425'F.
Lay chicken breast side up on a greased foil lined baking sheet.
Stuff chicken cavity with stuffing ingredients.
Close the cavity with the excess skin using a skewer to hold the aromatics in.
Tie the two legs together using cooking twine or securing them with skewers.
Tuck the wings back and under the bird.
Tying the legs and tucking in the wings leaves you with a tight compact chicken.
Your bird will come out in the shape you put it in to cook, so make sure you tie and skewer to ensure a pretty outcome!
Rub the chicken liberally with softened butter all over and under the skin.
Top with seasonings and rub it in liberally all over and under skin also.
Brush or spray chicken with oil all over. This helps keep the butter from burning.
Bake at 425'F for 15 to 20 mins to crisp the skin THEN reduce heat to 325'F and continue cooking for 50-60 mins.
Let it REST covered for 15-20 mins before carving/serving.
Serve the drippings on the side if desired. (Turn into gravy by adding flour if you'd like.)

Notes:

If wanting to add veggies, add them 30 mins (for thawed chicken) 45 mins (for frozen chicken) before the bird is fully cooked.
Root vegetables like potatoes, zucchini, carrots and onions all pair great with a roasted bird.
Roast this chicken for meal prep or your next dinner party.
You can roast a whole chicken or bone in breast.
Any bird of choice can be used, just adjust timings according to the size of bird (see below for details).
Any aromatics can be used. Thyme, garlic and lemon are just an option. You can interchange by using different citrus' like oranges with rosemary and sage. Add an onion. Lime and cilantro is also delicious.
Save the bones and boil them to get a nice bone broth or stock.
Use the ingredients from the Yakhni Shorba recipe to boil the roasted bones to get a nutritious broth.