Customer Reviews

George Foreman GR82B George Jr. Rotisserie

5 star:		(45)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I've read different reviews about the bigger version of this one and also about the Ronco version. I only have experienced the Jr. version of rotisserie cooker. From what I've seen so far, this thing is fantastic. The first two days I used it, we cooked whole chickens. Just rubbed a little seasoning salts all over, and they tasted alot like grocery store rotisserie. Nice and juicy. quite nice. Clean up was really easy. The wife said she thought it would be alot harder to clean, but was pleasantly surprised that it was so easy. The next day I cleaned it, and she was right. It WAS easy to clean. The oven did get pretty hot, but so does my conventional oven, so proper precautions are required. I have many ideas for the use of this appliance, like hot dogs, italian sausages, ham, the list goes on and on. I have to say, this product seems to live up to it's claims. I also have the Lean Mean Grilling Machine, and I haven't been disappointed so far by Big George. I hope George keeps putting out quality products like these.

Oh man, Salton and George did it right, mostly. This machine produces some tasty chicken. The advice I read in the other reviews was good, too. Always line the drip tray with aluminum foil to make clean-up easy. Fryers cost less than Roasters, per pound. The reflector shield in the rotisserie WILL stain (they made it out of a material that does not resist grease AT ALL).

The construction quality is good, but not great. Using and cleaning the unit is easy, after you accept that the back reflector is impossible to clean, even if you remove it from the unit and soak it for an hour. Give up on that before you waste your life.

Buy some string to tie down the legs and wings on your chickens, or they will get too close to the heating element and may burn before your chicken is done.

Yes, I'm a turncoat - former user of the *other* famous rotisserie with the "moviehouse" title.

There's good and bad about both the George Jr. and the Showtime, but having tried both, I'd have to go with the Junior. For starters, the half-cylinder design and molded base make for a sturdier unit. (With the Showtime, you have to pull down a glass door secured by small pins that lock into a track that in itself is very flimsy and breakable, as others have reported.) Also, I have to admit that I wasn't looking forward to another go-around with Customer Service for my Showtime - would be great if long-time users would share their George Jr. CS experiences, here.

I'd also give the edge in terms of easy cleaning to the George Jr. Yes, the reflector thingie will never again attain it's perfect mirror finish after use, and I will update here if it loses any cooking speed once well "seasoned". As for heating up the kitchen - well, yes, it's un-insulated and needs to be kept well away from cabinetry, etc. so as not to do damage or start a fire! (As with any rotisserie of this type, it's advisable to stand it on a heat-resistant surface, as well.) But I'd say it really doesn't heat up my mid-sized kitchen noticeably, with the fairly open floor plan of our home. (I wouldn't even try this appliance in close quarters, though.) Oh, and for removing your cooked items, be sure to get yourself a good pair of heat proof gloves - no, *not* fabric, the rubberized, non-combustible kind - should be less than $... from the BBQ area of your local home store. The removal tool that comes with the George Jr. is ingenious, but I still find I need hand protection.

I do miss the Showtime's squeaky old rotisserie assembly. The chicken "skewering" plates were awkward, but held the birds (or roasts) quite securely for rotating. The George Jr. has nicer (bigger) turning gears for slow and silent rotation, but the actual skewer/plate things (check one in a store if you can't envision what I'm talking about) are more of a partial vice, complete with nut-screw tightening. Looks good, but in practice it seems a little insecure and you *really* have to truss a bird good in order to keep it from making contact with the heating element, which would be a fire hazard.

Which brings me to a final comment about the Junior - it doesn't seem to have quite the capacity of the full sized Showtime, although it claims to be able to handle two chickens, etc. I'd probably have bought the BIG George if I could find it in stores these days...and I can't imagine that the <even smaller> "Baby" George would really be suited for anything much bigger than one little chicken or a hefty game hen.

In my opinion, other than maybe BBQ, no chicken tastes better than a horizontal rotisserie chicken. It's not that much extra work, it's fun to watch, and it's a shame that there aren't more players in this appliance's arena updating and improving the designs. But until that happens, the George Jr. looks like a step up in usability and durability.

I would recommend this product to others. The product is well designed - compact, easy to use and all parts fit together well. The food cooked in this rotisserie tastes better than the same food cooked in the traditional oven - it cooks more evenly and all of the fat is collected in the bottom tray. Actual cooking times are shorter than the times listed in the cookbook - a 3 1/2 lb leg of lamb took only about 2 hours. The rotisserie is easy to clean - almost all of the parts are removable and can be washed in a diswasher. I've given this product 4 stars because the skewers are not very easy to use and also some rust developed on the removable parts after washing. Also, it would be nice to have a lock for the front cover to ensure that the rotisserie is securely locked during operation.

I have been reading reviews on rotisserie's for months trying to decide which to get. Decided to try a Ronco from an Amazon partner in spite of some of the bad customer service experiences I read. Well the thing never arrived and they wouldn't reply to my requests for a refund. However, I trusted Amazon and sure enough they made it right and gave me my refund when the 3rd party vendor wouldn't. So in spite of some bad reviews I decided to try this Foreman Rotisserie, again trusting Amazon would make it right. They won't need to. Its a great product. Some of the negative press about what a pain it is to clean must have been written by people that grew up with dishwashers and have never actually washed a dish. This thing has a reflector shield and drip pan that slide right out. That is what gets most soiled and wiping down the rest of the interior is a snap. The unit DOES take up alot of counter space and it does get really hot so I would not recommend it in a cramped kitchen unless you take the trouble to find it an open spot (away from overhead cabinets) while cooking. But if you can live with this you'll love it. The chicken literally slid off the bones and was so tender and moist! The hardest part about using this is learning how to tie up a chicken which I had never done. I read a review suggesting unwaxed dental floss and that actually worked out great. Once I got the knack of how to tie up the wings and legs to keep them from flopping around and hitting the heating element it was no big deal. Lastly, if you like spicy food then season the heck out of a whole bird. I learned on my first try that just seasoning the outside of the bird isn't enough for my taste. The crusy outside was DElicious but the inside was just ok as far as seasoning goes. Now I cut slits in the breast and get alot of seasoning way into the meat. The rotisserie takes care of the rest and the food is incredible. Can't wait to try vegetables in it. Never even thought of that when I bought it. I highly recommend this product.
Very Satisfied Customer
in NJ

I read all the reviews and did my research before purchasing a rotisserie and decided on my old friend, George. I've had other George Foreman products for years and they haven't let me down yet, so I thought I'd give the George Jr. Rotisserie a try. And I was definitely NOT disappointed! And this comes with everything you need without having to purchase any additional accessories. I have made a chicken, using the deli recipe from the instruction booklet and it was awesome. The skin was crispy while the inside of the chicken was tasty, tender and moist. Rump roast? YUM! Once again, very crisp on the outside, very juicy on the inside. But my favorite was a pork loin roast. The best pork roast I have ever had....period.

Previous reviewers had stated their problems with the back reflector being very difficult to clean and I do unfortunately agree with them. It will not come completely clean no matter what I do and I do wish it came with some heatproof and stainproof gloves, which would make taking food off the spit much safer. But those are the only complaints I have in regards to this product, as the good far outweighs the bad. The food tastes great and the inside of the oven and the spit rods are a breeze to clean. I especially like that the door is removable, which makes the cleaning that much easier. I'd recommend this machine to anyone. Definitely!

Even though the majority of the reviews raved about this rotisserie, I was a little hesitant to purchase it based on the approximately 4 negative reviews. I was concerned that it would end up unused, be a pain to use, or terrible to clean. Well, I received my rotisserie two days ago and used it for the first time last night. Several of the negative reviews can already be discredited due to the fact the manual clearly advises you on what to do (for example, someone complained about the chicken legs and wings flopping and you are supposed to tie them with string). I sprayed the drip pan and rotisserie prongs with Pam before use. It took about 5 minutes of prep for the chicken and only about 2 minutes to tie it up with string, put it on the rotisserie and set the rotisserie. 1 hour and 15 minutes later, we had a cooked-to-perfection chicken just like we pick up from our local grocers. It was crispy on the outside, and moist and delicious on the inside. I will probably use this rotisserie at least several times a month, and cannot wait to try some other things such as roasted vegetables. I didn't have a problem cleaning the unit after it cooled. The splash panel slides out and with a mesh scrounge, it came perfectly clean. The prongs and drip pan, which I coated with non-stick spray, were a breeze to clean. I have never reviewed another product on Amazon, but had to take the time to write. I would definitely recommend this product!!!

We bought a "Junior George" rotisserie about six weeks ago, and are absolutely over the moon with it.
The advantages are that it cooks faster than an oven; the chicken browns evenly all round; the taste is brilliant. Juicy and cooked exactly right.

As with all these type of products, there is more to clean that an average oven.
That is offset, by the quality and taste of the product.

The unit is easily assembled, with a double spit for chickens and joints, and an adjustable basket for chicken breasts, steak etc.
There is also a round basket, which will cook potatoes or fries. Plus six kebabs skewers that fit around the spit.

The back plate reflector comes out for cleaning, as does the drip tray. The door also is removable.

The only problem that we had was cleaning the back plate. (We don't have a dishwasher.) Soaking and scrubbing will not remove all the splash stains no matter what we tried. I would like to ask anyone out there who has had the same problem to let us know how they got over this wthout scratching it.

I haven't reduced the star rating because of this. This unit does the best job of any small rotisserie that we have ever seen. I would recommend this to anyone who has never yet cooked food in this way.

My husband and I frequently enjoy the local supermarket's rotisserie chicken; however, by the time we get to the market after work we often end up with lukewarm chicken that's been sitting in the warmer for awhile. Having heard so many rave reviews about owning your own rotisserie oven, I decided to shop for one. After reading all the reviews for this George Foreman Rotisserie and the Showtime that I could on Amazon and other Internet sites that I could I decided to buy this GR82B George Jr. for its size and price. We used it the first time two nights ago on a 3 1/4 lb chicken. (I marinated the chicken overnight with the following: Rubbed a mixture of seasoned salt and fresh ground black peppers onto the chicken, squeezed some fresh lemon juice all over, and stuffed some lightly smashed garlic cloves under the skin at various parts of the body.) Before cooking I used cooking string (that I got for free from the meat department at the market) and tied the wings and legs. Then set the cooking time for 1 hour as suggested. It turned out to be the best rotisserie chicken we have ever had. (My husband continues to rave about it!) It was beautifully browned and slightly crispy on the outside, and really juicy and tender on the inside. (In fact neither of us remember ever having such a juicy chicken.) And clean-up was easy. I had taken the advice of some other experienced users and sprayed the drip tray with Pam in advance. After the pan cooled the fat rinsed right off. The fat on the grill piece took a bit more effort to scrub off but it was not difficult (presumably as long as you clean up soon after the piece cools). Tonight we grilled hamburgers using the flat pan/basket attachment. (I sprayed Pam on the drip pan as well as the flat pan/basket.) I decided not to buy the extra lean ground beef I would have used if I had to pan fry as usual (not having an outdoor grill); we used 85% lean meat figuring the excess fat will drip off on the pan and some fat will be needed to self baste. The burgers were juicy and tasty. I bought a Rotisserie cookbook and found lots of delicious sounding recipies that I cannot wait to try. As you can tell, we are very pleased with this purchase.

This rotisserie will not actually do an average thirteen pound bird. In fact, it can not accomodate the average ten and a half pound bird, which is the first size I tried and ended up having to revert to my oven. Believe me, I spent over an hour situating it every which way and it simply doesn't fit. I guess I'll have to stick to seven or eight pounds (do turkeys come that small?) I just wish the ads would have been more straightforward instead of making grandiose claims the machine can't live up to. I suppose you could find, with a lot of searching, a small in size but extremely dense turkey---but that is absurd.