Rotisseries add variety

Chicken is still big, but accessories allow colorful vegetables and a variety of meats to twirl in full view as they cook

Long used as a cooking and warming display case for chicken, rotisseries are becoming more versatile. With accessories, they can be used to cook beef, ribs, fish and vegetable kabobs.

"Some of our stores are using baskets to cook pork chops or country-style ribs, which are big now. The ribs are thick and cut into single portions before being put into the baskets," says Cindy Schroeder, bakery/deli counselor at Minneapolis-based wholesaler and operator Nash Finch. "Others are featuring a split chicken breast." Schroeder recommends rotisseries that can be fitted with baskets that accomodate a range of products, including polish sausages, hot dogs and chicken parts.

"Sales are higher when product is cooking because of the aroma and the visual effect," she adds. "Announcing the fresh products over the intercom also helps."

The rotisserie Unit itself can give operators a chance to differentiate themselves from their competition. For example, a freestanding, wood-fired rotisserie from Wood Stone Corp., Sumas, Wash., offers supermarket shoppers a no-glass peek at wood-fire cooking. The rotisserie can hold 36 chickens; the company also offers a more traditional gas-fired version. Clamshell baskets "envelop and close" the product without piercing it, says Paul Wright, vice president of operations; other products cooked in the rotisseries include racks of lamb, turkey breasts and legs and pork loins.

NOT JUST MEAT

Naturally, vegetables are another good addition. "Squash is good, as it adds a splash of color and variety to the display and makes people notice it," Wright says. "Other operators are cooking Yukon Gold potatoes and adding them to a larger meal." Vegetable kabobs can be cooked on a spit or in a basket.

"People are doing more vegetables because they are self-basting," says John Carver, marketing director at Henny Penny Corp., Eaton, Ohio. "However, the biggest seller is still chicken. The company's electric rotisseries, with a range of 140 to 450[degrees]F, accommodate sheet baskets in which cookies can be baked, though that is not a popular use.

Stacked rotisseries are popular, because many operators face space constraints. A hot dog rotisserie such as the one made by Tomlinson Industries, Cleveland, typically houses a bun warmer on top of the machine.

While operators may want to introduce new products on a traditional rotisserie, it's important to follow safe food cooking and handling principles and to avoid cross-contamination. "People need to understand that they can't mix products that don't cook at the sametime and temperature," warns Barry Bergstein, vice president of sales and marketing at BKI, Mauldin, S.C.

To solve that problem, the company recently introduced its first gas powered rotisserie, featuring a split rotor system that allows products to be cooked or held at different temperatures within the same unit. The rotisserie gives operators the flexibility to cook raw product on one side while holding cooked items on the other, to cook different types of products on either side or to stagger cooking times.

BACK TO BASICS

For all the rotisserie innovations available, operators still must offer the old stand-by, chicken. Dave's Marketplace, a six-store retailer based in Warwick, R.I., offers whole chickens and turkey half-breasts and has a hard time keeping up with demand, according to Lou Aragao, director of perishables. Four of the stores sell between 80 to 100 chickens a day, at about $5 each, a price too good for many to pass up. "They're an impulse buy, placed right next to our poultry case," Aragao says. "The price and the placement are just right."

Dave's started its rotisserie program about four years ago with pork, beef, chicken and turkey, but the beef and pork didn't take off, Aragao says. The retailer has been very successful with flavored chickens: Italian, lemon pepper, barbecue, traditional and Cajun.

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