Recommended poultry accessory for weber kettle

[jasonwilliams14]

hey folks!
With Black Friday right around the corner, I am eagerly awaing for my next kettle accessory to grab.
I want to expand my options for cooking poultry and have some questions on which items are recommended.

The list:

- chicken rotisserie. Seems like a great compliment. My only question is, which one? There is the weber one, onlyfire, cajun bandit. I was leaning towards the cajun bandit as it reviews say it is built solid. Any recommendations?

- beer can chicken stand. There are a lot on the market. there is also the weber gourmet setup as well, which is interesting. also, there are ceramic ones that can be used. Pros and cons? Ones to avoid?

- al pastor type vertical skewer system. I really want to do some sort of al pastor and chicken shawarma. There are like a gazillion different brands, ranging from $18 all the way to $90. The one thing I do like is having a 'tray' at the bottom to collect the juices and drippings. You could even put some veggies or something in it.

Those are a few ones I am looking to add to my arsenal and start doing some poultry!

Appreciate the recommendations and advice!

Cheers!

Jason

[TripleB]

Jason, I know it is not listed above but do you have a Vortex? It transforms your Weber kettle into a chicken roasting machine. You can put a beer can stand inside of the Vortex to roast a chicken or flip the Vortex over and place chicken pieces around the edge of the grill grate.

[Donw]

Add another vote for the Vortex.

[jasonwilliams14]

Heya! Yes I do actually. I saw your picture and wow. That is cool! I have done thighs several times with thighs with success. That looks very cool! Definitely going to try that! TY!

[CandySueQ]

Now this is totally cool!

[Richard Chrz]

Good poultry scissors, then you can spatchcock.

the best tool you can use, outside of a good grill monitor, is imagination, and the willingness to screw up a lot.

[Richard Chrz]

Jim, I think that is likely the brand scissors I have as well.

[JoeSousa]

We have been through at least 2, probably 3 pairs of the Oxo poultry shears. The spring mechanism always seems to break. They work great before they break and they aren't overly expensive. Reminds me I need to get a new pair of shears before Thanksgiving.

[jasonwilliams14]

Spatchcock. That is something I could do pretty quickly (need shears) and is something I want to try.. My family really likes chicken so I am exploring ways to BBQ more chicken.

[Purc]

I love my Cajun Bandit stainless steel rotisserie. I have the battery motor and I'm surprised how strong it is and how long the battery lasts. I also like it is an American company. My son ordered a different/cheaper brand from Amazon, the ring came in bent and it was sent back. Not the same quality as Cajun Bandit. Mine was very well packaged and of very high quality. I have had it for 4+ years. I highly recommend Cajun Bandit products. BTW, I also have a Vortex and it's a great accessory for the kettle for not only chicken but also searing 1 steak or several burgers, etc.

I also have the SnS, DnG and the Easy Spin Stainless Steel grate and love them as well. The Kettle is so very versatile, you can do almost everything on it.

[Panhead John]

I’ve heard nothing but praise for Cajun Bandit products! You can also turn the vortex upside down [wide end at the top] and it’ll give you more real estate if needed.

[Richard Chrz]

I’ve been contemplating adding a rotisserie, this is definitely one of the brands I trust, another fan of the easy spin grate as well.

[jasonwilliams14]

That is very good to hear. It is currently out of stock, so I am hoping to grab one when they are back in stock.Good to hear on the battery because I was kinda leaning that way.
ALl the items you listed are on my list; DnG, easy spin....very nice items to add for the kettle.

[Alan Brice]

Heard good things about the Vortex n also not soo good things about the beer can stand. I would vote Vortex.

[RonB]

A rotisserie just does something to a whole chicken, or turkey, that makes them better. I have the Weber model, but I had to replace the motor some years back. I'm not familiar with other models, but ya want something with a motor that will handle more than your expected load, (think turkey). I believe my new motor is rated for 40 lbs. Cheap plastic gears can strip if not heavy enough.

About beer can chicken - here's what Meathead thinks, (and I concur):

https://amazingribs.com/bbq-techniques-and-science/beer-can-chicken/

[jasonwilliams14]

Thank you. I will make sure I read this tonight after the kids are asleep.
I appreciate it

[radiodome21]

My kettle accessories are vortex, SNS insert, and rotisserie. I use the insert the most but love my other two accessories as well. The rotisserie takes up more storage space but damn does it put out good food. As does the vortex, which give me the best chicken skin. I bought some skewers years ago but have only used them on my Weber Genesis. It’s just not something we use that much in general. I haven’t done a beer can chicken before and not sure if that’s in the cards, thanks in large part to that aforementioned article I read years ago. I also have the OXO shears and they’re awesome too.

[jasonwilliams14]

I am learning to use the vortex a bit. I cant seem to get my skin crispy the way it should. I venture, some more practice will help, but i do like it. Chicken comes out very juicy.
Skewers is something i do enjoy and wanted to give that a try, just to try stuff out. More excuses to BBQ.

[Grillin Dad]

I've got the Weber rotisserie as well as a vortex and SNS. The only time I use the rotisserie is for turkeys (I stock up during Thanksgiving season and cook them year round). For whole chicken, I butterfly it and use the SNS, comes out great. For chicken pieces, I vortex, which is awesome.

I love the rotisserie for turkey (only way I can get a 20 lb bird on the 22" kettle), but honestly it's big and a lot of setup for a chicken. If you want something to do whole chickens, I know they sell an insert for the vortex that mimicks a beer can chicken. Personally, I'd go that route (vortex plus chicken insert). Super simple and turns out great results.

[jfmorris]

I used to do a lot of beer can chickens on my offset smoker. These days, I know there are better ways to go, and think that you are better spatchcocking, rotisserie cooking, or splitting the chickens and cooking them around the Vortex in the middle of the kettle.

Also, doing vertical shawarma on a kettle can work, but you can't put a very tall spit, so I just do my shawarma using a couple of metal skewers through a stack of chicken thighs, laid on the cooking grate, and flip it during the cook, then finish it over the SNS for some char.

[jasonwilliams14]

That is good to know. Ty. I plan to try spatchcock method this weekend with my sns and give it a go. THe rotisserie is very exciting to do, but will have to wait until cajun bandit gets in stock. That is ok. It gives me time to try other methods of cooking chicken.

I just need more excuses to fire up the BBQ and cook! hehe

[jfmorris]

IF you want a vertical spit for shawarma, this is what I use on my kamado:

https://ceramicgrillstore.com/products/meat-stick-spit?_pos=1&_sid=5aac7cc8a&_ss=r&variant=321774527 77530

I am not sure you can use the 9" or 12" on a kettle however. I think the one I use the Kamado is the 9".

I personally feel this technique works great for "horizontal" shawarma on a kettle, and the recipe is really good too:

https://snsgrills.com/pages/chicken-shawarma

Back to poultry tools for a kettle....

For chicken, the vortex cannot be beat. However, you won't be doing a turkey with a vortex, just not enough space. The ways I've done a turkey on a 22" kettle include:

• Spatchcocked turkey (up to about 18 pounds), with the SNS. The tips of the drums may want to hang over the water trough, and might need some foil to protect them.
• Rotisserie turkey using the Weber rotisserie. Really good, and you can go up to a max of 20 pounds. Onlyfire I think has a rotisserie that can also double as a pizza oven attachment...
• Deconstructed turkey - i.e. turkey parts. Two breasts, two deboned leg quarters, two wings, etc.

Of those three ways, I like the deconstructed best, since each part can be pulled at the perfect temperature. My second favorite way is the rotisserie, but it takes longest.

[jasonwilliams14]

very interesting. Chicken shawarma or al pastor, something I have eaten a lot sounds like a interesting challenge to try and BBQ on my kettle. Something new and different.
I like all of your ideas above. Really makes me think of different things I want to try and BBQ.
Thank you again!