Weeknight meals in my house are often some combination of quick and easy skillet dinners, to-go meals, and store-bought shortcuts. Of all the grocery store time-savers out there, nothing compares to a rotisserie chicken. These whole cooked chickens with golden skin and juicy, seasoned meat can be found in almost every grocery store and warehouse club.
Rotisserie chickens often look similar — a whole bird, roasted on a rotating spit until the skin is golden and the meat is so tender it practically falls off the bone — but each store has its own recipe. I purchased a rotisserie chicken from every grocery store and warehouse club near my house in the Tampa, Florida, area on the same day to find out which one sells the best rotisserie chicken. These are the only two that are worth buying again (and again).
I have a background in culinary science and have written recipes for The Kitchn, cookbooks, and television for 18 years. I’m also a working mom and have learned how to get the most out of every ingredient and every minute in the kitchen. There isn’t a week that goes by where I don’t add a rotisserie chicken to my shopping cart, and after tasting seven in a single day, I now know which two are the only ones worth buying.
Best-Tasting Rotisserie Chicken: The Fresh Market
The flavor of the rotisserie chicken from The Fresh Market is what ultimately made it stand out from its competitors. Both the white and dark meat were savory and well-seasoned throughout. The skin on the chicken was browned more on the breast-side than on the underside of the chicken, but was still the most flavorful of all the rotisserie chickens I tasted.
The Fresh Market’s rotisserie chicken costs $5. The total weight of the chicken I purchased was 1 pound 13.8 ounces, with 15 ounces of total meat.
I evaluated the most basic roasted chicken for this taste test. The Fresh Market also sells the following flavors: Butter, Garlic Thyme; White Wine Herb; and Lemon and Rosemary. The Fresh Market has 166 locations across 22 states, mostly in the eastern half of the United States. If you don’t live near one of these locations, you might live closer to the purveyor of our other top pick (see below).
Find it in stores: Rotisserie Chicken, $5 for one chicken at The Fresh Market
Best Value Rotisserie Chicken: Costco
Costco’s Kirkland Signature rotisserie chicken has earned a reputation for being one of the best deals in the entire warehouse. After comparing rotisserie chickens from other club stores, big-box grocery stores, and specialty grocers, it is clear that Costco’s is the best value around.
Costco sells rotisserie chickens for $4.99 each. The chicken that I purchased had a total weight of 4 pounds 4.4 ounces. From that chicken, I got almost 2.5 pounds of meat. That’s an extra pound (or more) of meat than the rotisserie chickens from other stores — for the same price.
The value is clear, but how does Costco’s rotisserie chicken taste? The meat was juicy and tender. It is well-seasoned and not overly salty, making it a good choice for eating on its own or adding to recipes where cooked chicken is called for in the ingredient list. The only drawback is the flavor of the skin, which had a slightly burned flavor. Luckily that flavor didn’t affect the taste of the meat at all.
Find it in stores: Kirkland Signature Rotisserie Chicken, $4.99 at Costco
Did your favorite rotisserie chicken make the list? Tell us about it in the comments below.
