Supermarket rotisserie chickens

[kc7jty]

The potential here is enormous. Quality (not that Arkansas crap) chickens, herbs, spices, maybe some powered or concentrate lemon juice. But no, they have to soak the birds in tenderizer, chemicals, and sorbitol, giving them a very unfresh, sweetened, cured taste.
We're a hopeless lot, having absolutely no taste, the worse something is the better America likes it.

[NQ6U]

Here's a suggestion: Roast a chicken yourself.

I do it about twice a month--just do a simple olive oil and herb rub, then stick it in a 350° oven 'til it's done. Takes about 90 minutes and they come out great.

[n2ize]

Theres a supermarket around here that makes an excellent roast chicken. Not quite as good as home made but pretty darned good.

[kc7jty]

Here's a suggestion: Roast a chicken yourself.

I do it about twice a month--just do a simple olive oil and herb rub, then stick it in a 350° oven 'til it's done. Takes about 90 minutes and they come out great.

Agreed, and I do, but it's nice & convenient to pick up a chicken (which is 4 meals for me) at the Supermarket (especially in the non winter) for $6.

[kc7jty]

Theres a supermarket around here that makes an excellent roast chicken. Not quite as good as home made but pretty darned good.

Consider yourself lucky. The Fred Meyer here had EXCELLENT roasted chickens, then they "improved" them. I sent them a PM today asking to bring back the old.

[kf0rt]

Agreed, and I do, but it's nice & convenient to pick up a chicken (which is 4 meals for me) at the Supermarket (especially in the non winter) for $6.

We do the Costco chickens once in awhile because they're cheap and already cooked. 4 meals is about right, and I think they cost $4.99. The white slices from the breast aren't bad at all, but we saved the dark meat on the last batch and I made a sandwich from the leftovers. It was pretty horrible and even Duke's mayo couldn't fix it. Too much fat and just didn't taste very good.

Best cheap birds here are the Cornish game hens, smoked on the smoker. Cheap, but it takes time to smoke them right. Turkeys, too, but again, that takes work. I don't add anything when smoking fowl; you can season it after the fact if you desire.

[W3MIV]

I have an old Farberware rotisserie (gotta be more than twenty-five years old) that I use for roto chickens or Cornish game hens. I like to cut an apple or two into chunks and stuff either bird with them, sew it closed and shove the skewer up its butt. Paint the outside with melted butter as it begins its dizzying gourmet jouney, lightly salt and pepper the outside, and let it rotate (as they say) until done. The advantage of roto is self-basting, as any fool can plainly see (thank you, Li'l Abner, for that very useful phrase).

Trouble with the "store-boughten" fowl is just as Bill says -- they just can't leave well-enough alone. I don't want my chicken squirted full of somebody else's idea of flavor. I prefer a chicken to taste like chicken. I think they also get soggier and soggier sitting under hot lights in those plastic tubs.

[al2n]

The roasted birds we get up here are pretty good. When they go on sale we buy a bunch a freeze them since they are cheaper than uncooked at times. The wal-mart up here puts them out for really cheap just before the deli closes for the night. If we time it right we can get them for under 2 bucks a bird.

Costco and wal-mart have decent chicken, as does Fred Meyer. Safeway birds have a strange flavor to them that I do not care for.

One thing I like to do is to make stock out of the carcass after most of the meat has been cut off. Makes a great soup.

[KG4CGC]

Nothing like burning a bird!

[al2n]

I would say slow cooked to death before I called them burnt.

If they sit in the take home bins too long they will slow cook in their own juices. For pulled pork this is a good thing, but for chicken, it is not good eats.

If I get one that is too soft, it is a soup bird.

[kc7jty]

Safeway birds have a strange flavor to them that I do not care for.
Safeway is the worst, they have that cured chemical taste, almost like cheap pressed deli ham. I can taste it in all of them but not as bad as Safeway.
They all have sorbitol, which is a big ingredient in tooth paste. WTF?

Here we go:
http://www.caloriecontrol.org/sweeteners-and-lite/polyols/sorbitol
It's used as a sweetener AND moisture retainer. So the chicken doesn't dry out.

[al2n]

Safeway is the worst, they have that cured chemical taste, almost like cheap pressed deli ham. I can taste it in all of them but not as bad as Safeway.
They all have sorbitol, which is a big ingredient in tooth paste. WTF?

Here we go:
http://www.caloriecontrol.org/sweeteners-and-lite/polyols/sorbitol
It's used as a sweetener AND moisture retainer. So the chicken doesn't dry out.

You will find sorbitol or other similar ingredients in many food service type of foods. As you said, it keeps the food moist and is helpful for stuff that may spend a fair amount of time under a heat lamp or warmer.

The home cook can achieve similar results by using a salt brine.

[NQ6U]

As food additives go, Sorbitol seems relatively benign. Still would rather not have it in my chicken, though.

[al2n]

Walmart chicken

INGREDIENTS: Chicken, water, salt, sodium phoshpates

RUBBED WITH: spices, maltodextrin, bread crumbs, garlic salt, lemon peel, paprika, citric acid, malic acid, partially hydrogenated soybean and/or cottonseed oil, sodium diacetate, parsley, spice extractive, natural flavor.

Not too bad of an ingredient list considering they are a food service type of thing.

[WØTKX]

That parsley will kill ya. ;)

[kc7jty]

I remember buying a WM chicken a few years back and putting on my no no list, but that was when Fry's/Fred Meyer still had the good ones.

[W4RLR]

Rotisserie chicken...the absolute best I ever had was in Rota, Spain. My girlfriend at the time was in the Navy, she and I had the same job specialty, so I could actually get permission to stand a watch with her when I was off. Back when the dollar was actually worth something I would fly from Madrid to Jerez and she would pick me up at the airport. When she was on duty, she would send me to this little hole in the wall outside the gate, the place sold rotisserie chicken and ONLY rotisserie chicken. The guy had them by the dozens, all you could want in a marinade that was the best I have ever tasted. I'd usually get two, and between the two of us there would be no chicken left at the end of her board shift.

Now I have to settle for Publix, which isn't a bad bird, and much better than the Winn-Dixie stuff. But I do miss those Rota rotisserie chickens.

[W4GPL]

I so miss Publix.. Publix subs with their 5 grain bread, Publix chicken (fried & rotisserie).. :drool: Lucky bastard.

[n6hcm]

the costco chickens work well for me ... it's only a once or twice a year thing for me, though, because i never get to costco ...

[KG4CGC]

As food additives go, Sorbitol seems relatively benign. Still would rather not have it in my chicken, though.
Sorbitol causes gas.

[W1GUH]

Here's a suggestion: Roast a chicken yourself.

I do it about twice a month--just do a simple olive oil and herb rub, then stick it in a 350° oven 'til it's done. Takes about 90 minutes and they come out great.

That's the easy part. ;) It's the stuffing, mashed potatoes, and gravy that add to the job, but that make it sooooo much better. Ya gotta simmer the giblets while the bird roasts for a great base to the gravy. For seasonings...Bell's and a little extra thyme.

[n2ize]

Consider yourself lucky. The Fred Meyer here had EXCELLENT roasted chickens, then they "improved" them. I sent them a PM today asking to bring back the old.

All too often "improvements" means that quality goes down.

[kc7jty]

All too often "improvements" means that quality goes down.

It ALWAYS means that.

[WØTKX]

Wild rice, pecans, pumpernickel bread, leeks, olive oil and butter for stuffing. Yummy!

[W3MIV]

I tried one from the Weis in Woodstock. Bill should know Weis, both being PA-bred. It was a Perdue bird. Way too wet and over-cooked; skin slimy instead of crisp (likely a product of being confined in the plastic container under IR lamps for an indeterminate l. of t.). It was cheap -- $6 -- and convenient to just grab and waltz out the door, which are the only things that would recommend it. The birds are small roasters -- which have more fat than a fryer. I have always preferred the fryer for roasting or roto-ing. Here a Perdue fryer averages $6 or so (store-brand about $5), less on sale; the roasters from Perdue usually run 7 pounds or even a bit more. A sawbuck for a chicken, and it is usually loaded with fat (which can be managed by pricking the skin, especially the back and thighs, and using a rack).

A friend of mine has a counter-top gadget (George Foreman?) that does a good job on fryers, but is a PITA to store.

My usual stuffing recipe (for conventional roasting) is stale white bread cubes, minced onion, finely chopped celery, either raisins or dried cranberries and sufficient chicken (or toikey) stock to moisten so it clumps and can be manipulated. You can make your own stock from the giblets (if the bastards gave you any giblets) of use canned. Don't forget salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper to season both the inside of the bird and the stuffing. Remember to cook the beast longer if it is stuffed, and don't rely too heavily on those pop-up gymcracks. Use a thermo deep in the thigh.

[w3bny]

Wild rice, pecans, pumpernickel bread, leeks, olive oil and butter for stuffing. Yummy!


STUFFING IS EVIL! -Alton Brown-

[kc7jty]

The stuffing can be quite good actually, it just screws up the chicken.

[kf0rt]

STUFFING IS EVIL! -Alton Brown-

Good. That means more for me. :neener:
(That really IS my stock Thanksgiving reply on that biz...)

[al2n]

Keep the dressing out of the bird!

Stuffing is evil, dressing is good eats.

[WØTKX]

Always freaked me out, going east and seeing my last name on a grocery store.

[KE7DKN]

Always freaked me out, going east and seeing my last name on a grocery store.

Piggly Wiggly?

[WØTKX]

:lol:

No, I worked at one of those.

Weis.

[NQ6U]

Always freaked me out, going east and seeing my last name on a grocery store.

I never knew your last name was "Safeway".

[n2ize]

Safeway, Packers, BoHack, A&P, Finast, Waldbaums ... these are the supermarkets that I grew up with here in Southeast NY.

[W1GUH]

Gristedes? Food Emporium? D'ag's?

[W3MIV]

I grew up with A&P and a couple of names only too familiar to many East Coasters here, especially in PA: Acme and Food Fair, both of which were Filthydelphia concerns. Later Penn Fruit was morphed into Giant Food.

I still prefer to deal with PA food chains (Weis and Mars) over the Safeway or Giant. I use Food Lion (Bloom) ONLY to buy my Dukes. Graul's is far too pricey, and our newest invader from Dixie -- Harris Teeter -- though a wonderful market, is not convenient to me. I always sought them out when in Charleston, SC; a bit "boutiquey," perhaps, but generally good merch.

[W1GUH]

"Dear, I'm going to the A and P."

"What, is the toilet here out of order again?"

[n2ize]

well I was at my Mom & dad''s yesterday and they finally found a nice sized electric rotisserie broiler... large enough to cook a decent sized chicken. My Mom has been searching for one for a long time but unfortunately most of the broilers were too small, barely large enough to cook a tiny sparrow. large ones were ridiculously expensive. Finally, she just happened to check out our local PC Richards and found a niced sized Hamilton Beach electric broiler for only $83.00. She already cooked some pre seasoned roast chicken in it and it came out great. Now she can make those awesome rotisserie chickens like she used to make in the old days. I'll have to stop by for dinner more often.

[n2ize]

I grew up with A&P and a couple of names only too familiar to many East Coasters here, especially in PA: Acme and Food Fair, both of which were Filthydelphia concerns. Later Penn Fruit was morphed into Giant Food.

I still prefer to deal with PA food chains (Weis and Mars) over the Safeway or Giant. I use Food Lion (Bloom) ONLY to buy my Dukes. Graul's is far too pricey, and our newest invader from Dixie -- Harris Teeter -- though a wonderful market, is not convenient to me. I always sought them out when in Charleston, SC; a bit "boutiquey," perhaps, but generally good merch.

We have a Morton & Williams that opened up nearby. they have some good deals on Italian sausage, imported parmesan, provolone, etc. And they opened up a Fairway nearby. It's really huge and they have some nice stuff.

[AA0CX]

CashWise, Hornbachers here in the Fargo area.

[kc7jty]

No Kroger?
How about Fry's, Smith's, Bashas', H-E-B, ABCO, Southwest Markets, Big 8, Food City, Ralph's, Pathmark, Superfresh, Shoprite,

[WØTKX]

What I really miss is having an excellent Jewish Deli in many handy locations.
Killer take out box lunches with tasty exotic sandwiches, the amazing pickles.

Would always buy meat and cheese and bread there, instead of the silly grocery stores.

Halvah anyone?

http://amysrobot.com/files/halvah.jpg

[W7XF]

No Kroger?
How about Fry's, Smith's, Bashas', H-E-B, ABCO, Southwest Markets, Big 8, Food City, Ralph's, Pathmark, Superfresh, Shoprite,

Bill:
1. ABCO is dead.
2. Basha's/Food City is dying a slow, painful death.
3. Fry's/Smiths/Ralphs/Fat Freddy's: Supposedly, they will ALL get re-badged as Kroger in the future.
4. H-E-B: Still alive and well.... but how many of y'all know what H-E-B stands for?
5. The others..... I dunno... not my part of the country.

[kc7jty]

There were Save n' Gain in El Paso but I think they got taken over. The only H-E-B I knew was in Del Rio (one of the towns I'd get off the trains to spend a few days in). Don't know what it stands for.

Bashas' NOT BASHA'S at least "was" a good place to shop. Very good prices on the specials. Needles, Casa Grande, Nogales.
I used to hole up with a friend who lived just outside Florence. We'd drive to Casa Grande once or more a week to grocery shop at Bashas' AND watch some REAL trains sail by.

Was a Southwest market in Yuma, best god damned store made pork chorizo in the world. I think they are in southern Cal only now. (can't get anything on google)
Big 8 is a chain in El Paso only. I remember just barely being able to get into the one closest to me on Saturdays it was so crowded, 99.9% non anglo clientele. They made their own tortillas right in the store, just like Food City in Yuma.

[kc7jty]

http://img560.imageshack.us/img560/3954/fmchicken.png
I'm planning to take the bait. That's 4 meals for me.
Steamed broccoli, crusty Euro style bread and Pinot Noir.

Trying to appeal to customers here they say it'll go with mac and cheese. Bet it increases sales too.

[WØTKX]

Yupper, that's the same label on the Savory Chicken at the local Safeway.

[kc7jty]

Mac & cheese, gatorade, and jello mold. http://www.forthemommas.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Kraft-Macaroni-and-Cheese.jpghttp://img707.imageshack.us/img707/7771/gatorade.png
http://img573.imageshack.us/img573/74/retard.pnghttp://blog.craftzine.com/layered_jello_mold.jpg

Opps, almost forgot the http://www.savingmoneyinmissouri.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/coolwhip.jpg

[n2ize]

The crazy thing is that I like Kraft macaroni annd Cheese. Especially when i substitute real chese for the powdered substance that Kraft calls cheese. But, sometimes, in a pinch the powdered cheese works. Just remember, Macaroni and Cheese was Reagan's favorite. I call it the "Reagan Special"

[ki4itv]

Mac & cheese, gatorade, and jello mold. http://www.forthemommas.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Kraft-Macaroni-and-Cheese.jpghttp://img707.imageshack.us/img707/7771/gatorade.png
http://img573.imageshack.us/img573/74/retard.pnghttp://blog.craftzine.com/layered_jello_mold.jpg

Opps, almost forgot the http://www.savingmoneyinmissouri.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/coolwhip.jpg

You did forget the Miracle Whip, a true American condiment crime. What the heck is that stuff anyway?
All I know is it ain't Dukes.

[kc7jty]

the answer can be found within the body of the text.

[kc7jty]

http://www.cheapwineratings.com/images/pepperwood.pinotnoir.jpg
This Pinot Noir is cheap. Usually about $6/7 for 750 ml. I'm getting it for $2.50 right now. Quite good for the price. Has a slight caramelized sugar characteristic with just a hint of smokeyness.
Had some with the roti chicken today.
http://volunteer.blogs.com/winewaves/2008/06/pepperwood-grov.html

Edit: This stuff evidently comes from 3 or 4 different areas. Chile (Central Valle), Italy, Australia, & California. It's the Chile stuff I like (the source is printed on the label). Bought 6 bots of the Italy stuff without realizing there were different sources. Hope it isn't crap.