A Darn Good Rostissierie Chicken at a Bargain Price

Tonight I was shopping at Tony's Finer Foods on North Elston when I decided to pick up a rotissierie chicken for dinner. I have to tell you this is one good market purchased chicken.

The difference appears to be a good marinating in Mojo Criollo before the cooking procees begins. It's no monster chicken like that forund at Pico Rico or Brasa Roja. It's not cooked over coals.

It is brown with a crispy seasoned skin, fall off the bone tender and full of good flavor.

The best part? According to my shopping receipt, it was only $3.99.

Good call! Mrs. JiLS and I have been enjoying Tony's rotissierie chickens for two years now. I guess I didn't know how good we had it and therefore hadn't bothered to post about them. They are very good, and unbelievably cheap. $3.99 provides dinner and a lunch for two people -- then I boil the carcass to make really delicious chicken soup; all it needs is a handful of salt. In fact, I've got a 4-quart Tupperware full of Tony's chicken soup in the fridge right now.

JiLS

And this brings up a much disputed topic/technique...can you get a really good, true blue chicken soup out of a, in this case, cooked rotisserie chicken carcass? I've never really had much luck with this method--JimInLoganSquare--do you have any tips on extracting the most amount of flavor from a pre-cooked chicken carcass?

Yes. First, don't expect too much. Second, boil the heck out of it; it takes a while and you'll probably be adding water two or three times before you're done. Third, as indicated above, hit it with a salt hammer. Fourth, as an optional addition, toss in a little bit of white vinegar (don't ask why; I did it whimsically one time, and it just seems to help). Keep in mind this is really not a way to make a beautiful soup, rather a way to extract some tasty broth out of an already bargain-priced bird. It is delicious, in a greasy low-down sort of way, but it is not subtle. Those seeking truly great chicken soup should seek elsewhere; but it's so easy to do this one, I can't resist.

You'd probably do well to roast the carcass on high heat for 20-30 minutes with some carrots, onions and celery before adding it to your stock pot. That will produce a browner deeper flavored soup base.

Thanks for the tip, JILS.

I have used a rotisserie chicken carcass to make soup on occasion. It can be pretty weak stock if you don't add additional chicken to it. I would recommend adding a few raw necks to the stock and some chicken feet, if possible.

jlawrence01 wrote:I have used a rotisserie chicken carcass to make soup on occasion. It can be pretty weak stock if you don't add additional chicken to it. I would recommend adding a few raw necks to the stock and some chicken feet, if possible.

Yes, I should have mentioned I typically reserve some of the fatty meat and browned skin to throw in the mix, which I then skim out at the end. This also addresses the color issue (i.e., I could roast the carcass as Will suggests, which would probably be ideal, but I'm lazy). And the birds from Tony's come without necks, feet, etc., so I'm stuck using just what I am given. Think of it like the episode of Star Trek where Kirk has to make a gun out of native materials to shoot the Gorn -- only somewhat less dramatic results.*

JiLS

* That episode is titled "Arena." I wasn't sure whether to admit I knew that, but part of me is rather proud of it.

I also add some Knorr's chicken boullion in making a soup from a carcass.

Rotisserie chicken is a frequent purchase for me [altho a fresh roast chicken is better & doesn't take that much work... but ok, I'm lazy some times]. I always save the skin, bones and anything else I don't want to eat & make stock out of it. This usually goes into the freezer and is used to make stock with the next bird or two or three. Often a carrot, onion, bay leaf, celery or parsley stalk will end up in here, too. Fat & nasty bits are always strained out of the concoction. After a couple of generations of this, there is a rich stock to be had.

Sometimes I'll add chicken stock batter [from The Spice House] to this if I want to make an actual dish sooner rather than later.

Just made a gumbo with a couple quarts of stock made like this. [Made with smoked chicken from Bobak, fresh Polish sausage from Paulina, and shrimp from someplace or other. Delight is in my house.]

Giovanna

Giovanna, that gumbo sounds fantastic! However, at some point I think we may need to rename this thread Stone Soup

I guess this part of the process should be obvious, but just in case: you need to let the broth cool down, then strain it to take out the skin, bones and gristle. By this time, the meat should be easily separable from this effluvia, and you can just toss that back into the Tupperware with the broth.

Since I now walk by Tony's on my way home everyday, I'm able to get there early enough to get a chicken (which is exactly what I did last yesterday).

At risk of echoing YPW's post, this is a darn good grocery-store bird. It's a nice dark brown color, very tender, and very flavorful.

It's also amazing that I can buy a chicken and a stack of El Milagro tortillas and still get change back from a five.

Thanks for the tip. I forsee quite a few nights of Tony's chicken in my future.

Hmmmm....Tony's chicken.....that makes me think that I need to get back to LSC very soon.

Best,
Michael

eatchicago wrote:It's also amazing that I can buy a chicken and a stack of El Milagro tortillas and still get change back from a five.

Well, now I need to bring a ten. Tony's chicken has been raised from "ridiculously cheap" ($3.99) to "reasonably priced" ($4.99). A pack of fresh tortillas has risen a nickel from 25 to 30 cents.

Still, a damn good bird for the price. Half of a Tony's rotisserie chicken, fresh tortillas, hot sauce, and a six pack of High Life are a nice way to relax after work while watching the NCAA games.

Best,
Michael

eatchicago wrote:A pack of fresh tortillas has risen a nickel from 25 to 30 cents.

The tortilla prices will probably be going up more soon.

Chicago Journal had an article last week about rising corn prices, due to the emphasis on ethanol, and the effect this is having on local tortilla and tamal manufacturers.

Since President Bush announced a plan in his Jan. 23 State of the Union Address to require the production of 35 billion gallons of alternative and renewable fuel by 2017, corn prices have been climbing. This is because corn is the main ingredient in ethanol, a non-petroleum based fuel.
....

Cash prices for the white corn used to make tortillas have more than doubled over the past year to an average of $4.86 per bushel in February, according to the United States Department of Agriculture, up from $1.92 per bushel in January, 2006.

eatchicago wrote:

eatchicago wrote:It's also amazing that I can buy a chicken and a stack of El Milagro tortillas and still get change back from a five.

Well, now I need to bring a ten. Tony's chicken has been raised from "ridiculously cheap" ($3.99) to "reasonably priced" ($4.99). A pack of fresh tortillas has risen a nickel from 25 to 30 cents.

Still, a damn good bird for the price. Half of a Tony's rotisserie chicken, fresh tortillas, hot sauce, and a six pack of High Life are a nice way to relax after work while watching the NCAA games.

Best,
Michael

As I nibble on the Tony's chicken carcass here in my fridge (though, in my case, accompanying the SACD of Pierre de Manchicourt's Missa de Requiem, performed by the Choir of the Church of the Advent, rather than the NCAA's Missa de Orbis Tergi), I agree ... a damn good bird, for the price or a buck more.

3.99? Is it quality?

Where is this place?

Snark wrote:3.99? Is it quality?

Where is this place?

It's a great bargain at $3.99, a little less so at a buck more. Still good though.

Tony's can frustrate me. I've been there for the express purpose of buying cilantro and El Milagro tortillas and they've been out of both. The parking lot can be ..trying.. at times, too.

Snark wrote:3.99? Is it quality?

Where is this place?

The subject of my most recent post was the fact that the price was raised to $4.99.

Is it quality? Well, again, read the thread and you'll hear from a few people who enjoy it.

Tony's has multiple locations in and around Chicago. I've been buying the chickens at the north Elston location (Elston at Hamlin).

Best,
Michael

I really like the rotissierie chickens at Edgewater Produce. These have a lot more flavor than the Jewel/Dominicks chicken. The skin is not so crispy but that's understandable as they are held in those plastic containers. The skin is delicious, thought, even in a non-crispy state. One of those chickens, a pack of tortillas, tomatoes & avocadoes make a quick & tasty weeknight meal.

I've found a new source for $3.99 rotissierie chicken. I stopped by Fiesta Market in Mount Prospect tonight just to pick up just to pick up some tortillas and maybe some produce. I wound up grabbing some housemade chorizo and one of their $4 birds. I'd rate not as highly as the Tony's version but really quite good. I also picked up a pint of their great salsa verde for a buck.

Dinner's loking pretty good tonight.

Fiesta Market

1902 S. Elmhurst Rd.
Mt Prospect, Il 60056
847-427-9500

How are the ones at Costco? (and how much are they?)

I want to say they're $5, maybe $6?

I don't find them to be very good at all, but others like them.

leek wrote:How are the ones at Costco? (and how much are they?)

$4.99 but they weigh at least 3lbs each... We used to like 'em... but over-ate them so seldom buy now. We'd purchase one, shred all the meat off and use it little-by-little over the week as an accompaniment to other dishes on rice, in pasta sauce, on salads, in wraps, in sandwiches, etc...

A quick potluck idea is to buy one of these giant birds, take your cleaver out, chop it Asian-style into bone-in pieces. Take the "sauce/broth" that resides in the pan and mix in a bowl w/ Hoisin, Asian chili paste, sesame oil & soy and drizzle over the bird with diced scallions and toasted sesame seeds... voila!

Jay "Sandra Lee" K

I apparently shop in the unshaved armpit of the Tony's Finer Foods' corpus ciborum, here at Central Park and Fullerton, but that said, the cheap roasted birds are a major incentive to keep shopping here. In fact, I may take a break from this keyboard to make a Tony's roti chix sammich, right now. Probably use some good quality Miracle Whip, or some such jarred suspension of fat, on that sangwich.

Jay K wrote:
A quick potluck idea is to buy one of these giant birds, take your cleaver out, chop it Asian-style into bone-in pieces. Take the "sauce/broth" that resides in the pan and mix in a bowl w/ Hoisin, Asian chili paste, sesame oil & soy and drizzle over the bird with diced scallions and toasted sesame seeds... voila!

Jay "Sandra Lee" K

That's an excellent and practical idea Jay K, and I plan to replicate it soon and call it my own. Truly worthy advice.

-ramon

Living within walking distance of Tony's, I was perplexed as to why I had never gotten one of their chickens. Problem solved last weekend. I give it a thumbs up. Reasonable price-$4.99, still warm, very juicy, nicely golden brown. The one thing I dislike about grocery store chickens, is that they are usually very salty to me. Tony's was not salty in the least.
All in all a good thing. Especially with some black beans, great .79 aguacates & Tony's still warm tortillas.

BrendanR wrote:I've found a new source for $3.99 rotissierie chicken.

Fiesta Market
1902 S. Elmhurst Rd.
Mt Prospect, Il 60056
847-427-9500

The cluckin' syndicate must be at work:
The chickens are now $4.99. That's still pretty good but I might not go out of my way as often to hit them up. The salsa verde and pico de gallo (available only on weekends, I learned today) still rocks.


I've been trying to take more photos.

I can smell that chicken, BrendanR.

-ramon