Do you find yourself drawn to the aroma of rotisserie chicken the moment you step into the grocery store?
What’s not to love about them?
Rotisserie chicken from the grocery stores are cheap, convenient and tasty. I love picking on the crispy skin, and even the leftovers can be used for another delicious meal or go into the sandwiches. The only downside is probably that you cannot customize to your own flavors.
It may seem to be intimating to make your own rotisserie chicken at home. Is it possible for a non-cooking expert to create something so flavourful?
The answer is yes. And it is not difficult if you have the right equipment.
Yes, you heard me right… rotisserie chicken.
Not oven-baked chicken.
And you do not have to get an entirely new rotisserie oven. That’s probably too much for just one facet of cooking, which you are unlikely to do every day.
In fact, all you need is a countertop convection toaster oven with rotisserie. This is a more budget-friendly option, which is highly versatile and easy to operate.
Here are our top picks for the best rotisserie toaster oven
A toaster oven is a must-have for anyone who’s lazy to fire up a full-sized oven for lighter tasks. A convection toaster oven makes use of an additional fan to circulate the hot air, resulting in faster and more even cooking compared to conventional toaster oven.
To keep up with the consumers’ insatiable quest for multi-use appliances (to save cost and space), more toaster ovens are now incorporating additional functions and features.
So, if you are on the lookout for a convection toaster oven, why not find one with the rotisserie feature?
It can toast, bake, broil and rotisserie. Some can even dehydrate or air-fry.
Most of these rotisserie toaster ovens allow you to bake at least a 12” pizza, which means that they have a bigger footprint compared to the conventional toaster ovens under $100. So, do take note of the measurements if space is a real limitation for you.
Let’s dive into the details now!
Cuisinart TOB-200N Rotisserie Convection Toaster Oven – Best Overall
Cuisinart is a trusted kitchen brand for quality functional products. The Cuisinart Rotisserie Convection Toaster Oven is one of such products.
At 1875 watts, it is higher powered than most toaster ovens.
You can choose from 12 cooking functions – toast, bagel, bake, broil, roast, pizza, keep warm, leftovers and rotisserie (chicken, duck, meat, custom).
It also offers more pre-set options than its peers, taking guesswork out of the picture and giving you more precise cooking results. The interface is easy to use so you can quickly select your desired settings.
I also like that it gives you full control over the temperature settings and the convection option for most of the cooking functions, unlike some of the cheaper toaster ovens.
It is a shame that it lacks an interior light.
User-Friendly Features
Cuisinart has built in some really convenient features, which are not always found in other rotisserie toaster ovens. All these are designed with the users in mind.
The crumb tray can be pulled out directly from the front for easy cleaning.
When the wire rack is in the mid position, it will automatically extend out when the toaster oven door opens. This is a nice feature as it is easier for you to access the hot food without risking touching the hot surfaces.
Different cooking functions require racks and trays to be placed at different positions for best results. But you don’t have to worry about forgetting what goes where because Cuisinart has clearly labelled the rack positions in the toaster oven.
Easy to use interface
The Cuisinart TOB-200N Rotisserie Convection Toaster Oven features a large backlit LCD screen that is very easy to read. It clearly displays the cooking function, time and temperature (or toast shade) that you’ve selected. During the cooking process, the LCD screen will display the countdown timer.
The control panel consists of a large dial knob and 3 buttons (Conv, Rotis and Start/Stop).
You can select the cooking functions and change the pre-set settings by scrolling the large selector dial knob. Simply turn the dial to adjust the time, temperature or toast shade, and press the dial to confirm the selection.
The “Conv” button controls the convection feature. You can press on the button anytime to start or stop the convection fan for most cooking functions (except toast and bagel). When the convection function is selected, you’ll see the icon of a fan on the LCD screen.
The “Rotis” button is used to scroll through the different rotisserie settings for chicken, duck, meat and customs settings.
After you have completed selecting your desired settings, simply start on the Start/Stop button to start the cooking cycle.
When the cooking cycle is completed, you will hear the beeping sounds, which of course, you have the option to switch it off or adjust the loudness.
More Precise Cooking Results
I really like that the Cuisinart TOB 200N gives you control over the temperature settings and when to start/stop the convection feature.
Temperatures can be varied from 150 to 450 degF for most functions, while it is fixed at 500 degF for broil. For the toasting functions (toast and bagel), you can select from a range of 1-7 shades as well as the number of slices.
This Cuisinart toaster oven has a pre-set options for frozen items, which is not something available in all toaster ovens. If you are toasting frozen bread or heating frozen pizzas, do remember to select the snowflake icon before starting the cooking cycle.
The toaster has 4 heating elements to ensure even heating. Unlike cheaper toaster ovens where heating elements are either on or off, the heating elements can change in intensity throughout the cooking cycle to maintain better control the temperature.
Even though Cuisinart boasts an exact heat sensor to maintain precise temperature, I would still use a cooking thermometer to measure the internal temperature when cooking meats.
Variable Rotisserie Temperature Settings
The Cuisinart TOB 200 has pre-programmed rotisserie settings for Chicken/Poultry, Duck and Meat. In the final phase of the pre-programmed cooking cycle, the temperature will be raised to crisp the skin.
However, that doesn’t mean that you will be locked to the pre-set temperatures. You can also select “Custom” to set your desired temperatures, which is a feature lacking in many of the rotisserie toaster ovens.
Juicy Rotisserie With Golden Crispy Skin
The rotisserie can be used to cook a wide range of meats, such as small whole chickens, split chicken breasts, cornish hens, pork loins, duck and baby back ribs. The rotisserie meats are juicy and tender, with golden crispy skin.
If you are new to rotisserie, you can check out the recipes in the manual so you can season them to your own liking.
However, you do have to master the skill of trussing.
It is important that if not tight and balanced evenly. If not, the meats could be browned unevenly and could also result in more oil splatters.
The rest is quick and easy.
IMPORTANT: Do read and follow instructions in the manual.
You will need to place the baking/drip tray under the rotisserie to collect the grease and drippings. Do not let the drippings fall through to the crumb tray beneath the bottom heating elements as that can cause splatters all over the insides, or worse, a grease fire. But do recommend that you monitor the cooking cycle.
TIP: The drippings from the meats are full of flavors, so don’t waste it! You can cook 2 delicious dishes at the same time by placing veggies or rice in the baking/drip tray under the meat.
How to Clean?
The interior should be cleaned after the unit has cooled using a damp cloth and mild soap. Avoid caustic harsh cleaners since these are not ceramic coated ovens. The grease splatter should be cleaned off as soon as possible after the unit has cooled. If you delay to days later, could be really tough to wipe off.
What Are the Accessories Included?
Rack, baking/drip pan, a broil rack (to be placed on the baking pan when broiling), spit & skewers for rotisserie, skewer grip, crumb tray and recipe book.
PROS
- Digital display – easy to use
- Easy to use interface to set controls
- Exact Heat sensor maintains precise oven temperature
- Crumb tray can be pulled out from the front for easy cleaning
- Rack positions are well labelled
- Convection can be controlled separately
- Heats up very quickly with its 1875 watts
- Large capacity – 4 Ib chicken rotisserie, 12” pizza, 6 slices of bread
- Has preheat features
- A lot more options/customizations
- Good customer services
- Also vents on top, bottom, left, right, and back unlike other units that disperse the heat only on one side panel which limits on where you can place it.
CONS
- expensive
- No interior light
- Does not fit 9×13” pan
- Labels rubbing off
- Temperature 475f is not available period. Lots of frozen foods such as fish sticks for example are instructed to use bake 475f on convection ovens, bake on this oven goes only up to 450f and broil just has 500f. You either bake for a longer time or broil for a shorter time.
Specifications
- Weight 25 Ibs
- External Dimension: 19 x 21.25 x 14.63 inches
- Internal Dimension: 12.75 wide, 11.75 depth, 8.75 height
- Warranty: 3 Years
Cosori Air Fry Rotisserie Convection Oven – Best for Versatility
The Cosori Air Fry Rotisserie Convection Oven is one of our top-rated air fry toaster ovens for its superb air fry and baking capabilities, as well as the large capacity.
It is highly versatile and customizable with 23 cooking presets – Pizza, Roast, Air Fry, Toast, Bagel, Bake, Broil, Cookies, Rotisserie, Dehydrate, Ferment and Keep Warm.
It is also one of the few toaster ovens with an internal light at this price range.
However, we think that the Cosori Air Fry Rotisserie a great option if air frying and rotisserie are things that you might want to try once in a while, but NOT your primary reasons you want to use this toaster oven for.
The main reason is that it is really difficult to clean after use. Air fry convection toaster ovens are typically harder to clean compared to traditional air fryer where the food sits directly in the pull-out basket.