Oven roasted spatchcock chicken (also known as butterflying) is my new favorite way to cook chicken. The chicken cooks faster when it is spatchcocked, making your roasted or baked chicken scrumptious: moist, juicy chicken with deliciously crispy skin.
Easy Oven Roasted Spatchcock Chicken
This isn't your momma's chicken—at least it's not mine—and it's so much better. In the past, I have roasted whole chickens. That's pretty simple, but it takes a long time—usually 1½ hours in the oven, plus 15 minutes of resting time.
I needed a faster cooking method, and this oven-roasted spatchcock chicken is ready to eat in about an hour. Once you are good at it, it takes less than 10 minutes to prepare it. Plus, the chicken skin is so crispy and amazing!
What You Need
This cooking method requires a good pair of poultry shears or a sharp knife.
I use a jelly roll pan instead of a roasting pan, but you can use any rimmed baking sheet.
And measuring spoons, of course. I like the magnetic type of measuring spoons.
Why Spatchcocking is Different
Spatchcocking is almost foolproof. The chicken cooks evenly because you cut the breast bone out (save it for homemade chicken stock) and flatten the chicken before baking it. That makes it so most of the parts of the chicken are equal in thickness, and it cooks evenly and quickly.
True confession: I have only cooked a chicken this way five times, once on the grill and four times in the oven. But I don't think I will ever cook another whole chicken the old-fashioned way again.
Use this trick: Be sure to cook some small potatoes sliced in half and place sliced side down on the pan to prevent your chicken from splattering all over your oven. The added advantage is having nice, roasted potatoes to eat with your chicken dinner.
The first time I did it, I made it the way Martha Stewart said to make it. It took hours. Six to eight hours marinating the chicken, 15 minutes of prep, and about 35 minutes to cook it. Our Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken was excellent.
Oven Roasted Spatchcocked Chicken
On the other hand, this Oven-Roasted Chicken took one hour and 10 minutes, including resting time. It is my new favorite way to make chicken. It's not only delicious but gorgeous and simple. And I roasted the potatoes in the same pan at the same time.
Ingredients:
- 1 whole chicken 4 pounds or so, parts removed; there's usually a bag in the cavity
- 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and sliced into strips
- 6 sprigs about 2" long fresh rosemary
- ½ teaspoon Herbes de Provence
- 1 lemon sliced
Instructions:
-
Heat the oven to 450°F.
-
Spread two tablespoons of oil long the baking sheet. Don't put too much oil or it will splatter all over your oven unless you line your pan with potatoes or vegetables.
-
Place the sprigs of rosemary and garlic slices in the middle so that they will be completely covered by the chicken when you place them on the pan.
-
Using a sharp knife or kitchen shears, cut the backbone out of the chicken, cutting down both sides of the backbone and removing it. (Save the backbone in a bag in the freezer to make broth in the future.)
-
Place the chicken, backside down, opened wide, on the baking sheet over the rosemary and garlic.
-
Press on the breast to flatten the chicken.
-
Drizzle the chicken with the a little olive oil.
-
Sprinkle salt, pepper, and Herbes de Provence over the chicken.
-
Spread the sliced lemon around the chicken and on the pan.
-
Bake the chicken at 450°F for 40-50 minutes until nice and brown and the internal temperature reaches 185°F degrees (breast). When you poke it, the juices run clear.
-
Remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving and serving.
Why Rest the Chicken?
Or meat, for that matter? There's a science behind it. As you cook the chicken (or meat), the juices ooze out and gather in the pan, which can dry out your food. As it rests (10-15 minutes for chicken, 15-20 minutes for roasts), the juices are slowly reabsorbed into the meat, making it juicy and flavorful.
So, it's best to let your meat sit on the counter in the pan for a few minutes (rest) before carving. Trust me, it will stay hot.
Roasted Spatchcock Chicken With Vegetables
Author: Recipe Idea Shop
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken 4 pounds or so, parts removed; there's usually a bag in the cavity
- 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and sliced into strips
- 6 sprigs about 2" long fresh rosemary
- ½ teaspoon Herbes de Provence
- 1 lemon sliced
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 450°F.
- Spread two tablespoons of oil long the baking sheet. Don't put too much oil or it will splatter all over your oven unless you line your pan with potatoes or vegetables.
- Place the springs of rosemary and garlic slices in the middle so that they will be completely covered by the chicken when you place it on the pan.
- Using a sharp knife or kitchen shears, cut the backbone out of the chicken, cutting down both sides of the backbone and removing it. (Save the backbone in a bag in the freezer to make broth in the future.)
- Place the chicken, back side down, opened wide, on the baking sheet over the rosemary and garlic.
- Press on the breast to flatten the chicken.
- Drizzle the chicken with the a little olive oil.
- Sprinkle salt, pepper and Herbes de Provence over the chicken.
- Spread the sliced lemon around the chicken and on the pan.
- Bake the chicken at 450°F for 40-50 minutes until nice and brown and the internal temperature reaches 185F degrees (breast) and when you poke it, the juices run clear.
- Remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving and serving.
Notes
Variations
I like this recipe just as described here, but you can make some variations if you're missing some of the ingredients or want to customize it to your taste.
For example, you can replace the fresh garlic with garlic powder (garlic paste will work even better; I keep a tube of this Amore garlic paste in my pantry).
You can replace the olive oil with avocado, vegetable oil, or a couple of tablespoons of butter (use herb butter for more flavor).
Add more veggies: roasted vegetables are the perfect side dish.
Use a chicken spice blend to jazz it up. This delicious spice rub perfectly blends kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic: YUM!
Lemons are a great addition to chicken. You can add lemon zest, lemon juice, and even a few lemon slices if you like roasted lemon, like I do.
Roasted Spatchcock Chicken With Vegetables
Author: Recipe Idea Shop
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken 4 pounds or so, parts removed; there's usually a bag in the cavity
- 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and sliced into strips
- 6 sprigs about 2" long fresh rosemary
- ½ teaspoon Herbes de Provence
- 1 lemon sliced
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 450°F.
- Spread two tablespoons of oil long the baking sheet. Don't put too much oil or it will splatter all over your oven unless you line your pan with potatoes or vegetables.
- Place the springs of rosemary and garlic slices in the middle so that they will be completely covered by the chicken when you place it on the pan.
- Using a sharp knife or kitchen shears, cut the backbone out of the chicken, cutting down both sides of the backbone and removing it. (Save the backbone in a bag in the freezer to make broth in the future.)
- Place the chicken, back side down, opened wide, on the baking sheet over the rosemary and garlic.
- Press on the breast to flatten the chicken.
- Drizzle the chicken with the a little olive oil.
- Sprinkle salt, pepper and Herbes de Provence over the chicken.
- Spread the sliced lemon around the chicken and on the pan.
- Bake the chicken at 450°F for 40-50 minutes until nice and brown and the internal temperature reaches 185F degrees (breast) and when you poke it, the juices run clear.
- Remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving and serving.
Notes
More Chicken Recipes
- How To Spatchcock a Chicken
- Croatian Grilled Chicken
- Easy Chicken Marsala
- South Beach Balsamic Chicken
- Easy Fried Chicken
- Baked Chicken Breast With Stuffing
- Spicy Shredded Chicken
Easy Oven Roasted Spatchcock Chicken, just like Valerie Bertinelli's roast chicken. 1 hour, 10 min to superior chicken.
Kathy acquired the blog, Recipe Idea Shop in 2024. She was raised on a farm in Arkansas where having a big garden and good food to eat was the norm. She shares recipes for homemade comfort food and new trending dishes.
Kathy began her blogging journey in 2011 when she founded PetticoatJunktion.com, a home décor blog focused on repurposing and upcycling furniture, and thrift store finds.
