A Guide to choosing the best Spit Roaster for you
A spit rotisserie is a really versatile piece of equipment that produces great food, and hassle-free cooking, and can cater for anywhere from 1 or 2 people up to a delectable feast for your family and friends at a large gathering. If you’re one of the many BBQ-ers who have overlooked a spit rotisserie as part of their BBQ arsenal, you’re missing out.
When it comes to BBQ spits, there are so many options available that it may be easy to become overwhelmed by them or to overlook essential considerations that must be made in order to enjoy utilising the spit. Here are some crucial factors to think about when making your decision.
Quality
If your budget allows for it, there are many rotisserie spits that are available at cheaper price ranges. Just be aware that a cheaper spit would logically be made with less expensive materials, so keep that in mind while comparing prices. Thicker spit walls will disintegrate more quickly, chrome-plated spit rods and grills may flake and fracture, and motors may handle less weight in the food despite being rated at unreasonably high loads. If your budget allows, search for a spit with food-grade stainless steel rods, forks, discs, and grills, as well as strong wall construction, high-quality motors, and motor weight ratings appropriate for the food you intend to cook.
Fuel
You can use either charcoal or gas as your fuel source, or a dual-fuel spit rotisserie lets you use both. In general, charcoal delivers the most flavour and gas is more practical.
For more on choosing between a gas and charcoal spit check out our blog post: Choosing a gas or charcoal BBQ spit
Versatility
It would be simple to believe that a spit just shines at rotisserie cooking and offers little else. A rotisserie would be worthwhile only for the food it produces, but the one you select can probably do a lot more for you. You can grill meals in a rotisserie with grills, and you can also roast food over charcoal in a rotisserie with hoods. The Cyprus spit, which can be used with three bigger skewers, twelve smaller skewers (all motor-driven), multi-use baskets, gyros discs, rotisserie forks, and a height-adjustable grill, is my particular favourite in the versatility area (which is very useful when grilling with charcoal).
Size
Spits are available in a wide range of sizes. Naturally, price is a factor when deciding which rotisserie size is best for you, but it also depends on where you fall on the sliding scale between portability and cooking capacity.
With the exception of our heavy-duty portable spit, camping and portable spits are the most portable and have an approximate 8 kg cooking capacity.
Small spit rotisseries have a bit more capacity, ranging from 8 to 15 kg per engine, and can be wheeled to various locations (or in certain cases, can fit in the car).
Large spit rotisserie provides the most food capacity possible, feeding large groups with motors able to handle 100kg. Naturally, this category of spits is less portable than the others because of its larger size.
Make sure you have the knowledge you need to choose the right spit rotisserie by downloading your FREE spit-buying guide
You might also be interested in:
Free spit roasting recipe book
Blog: What is the perfect cooking height when roasting on a spit?
Blog: What spit roasting accessories do I need?
If you have any questions about choosing a spit rotisserie or any of our products we’d be happy to help – please get in touch!