Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken is super delicious and easy, but it isn’t a quick meal. Following Martha Stewart’s methodology requires several hours of letting the chicken marinate in the refrigerator. The grilling part is quick, though! And the results are so scrumptious.
Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken. Believe me, it doesn’t look so great, but that charred black skin is amazing.
Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken Tasty & Impressive
Hi. It’s Lois at Recipe Idea Shop, with a recipe for some delicious Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken. Have you heard of spatchcocking? I hadn’t until about a year ago when I read about it in a magazine. You know how you think you have never heard of something and then all of a sudden, that thing is everywhere? That’s what happened to me with spatchcocking.
I looked up the history of spatchcocking and it has been around since the 18th century. But in 2002 New York Times food “minimalist” Mark Bitman created a video about spatchcocked turkey and all of a sudden, the term was trending. His video is entertaining. He shows you exactly how to do it and then puts a big clock around his neck to show you the turkey will be done in 45 minutes. And it looks like it’s about a 12-pound turkey.
Preparing Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken
When you make Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken, you cut the backbone out (save it for making broth) and flatten the bird to increase the cooking surface. I adapted Martha Stewart’s recipe and the combination of onion, garlic, herbs, olive oil, and lemon in the rub made it so tasty.
Mark Bitman, on the other hand, simply put a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and peeled garlic cloves on it right before roasting (which he did in an oven probably at 375F or 400F degrees, but he didn’t say), and his turkey looked terrific. Take a look at my Easy Oven Roasted Spatchcocked Chicken. It’s SO easy.
Don and I found the flavor of the chicken to be fabulous. It was juicy and fully cooked in about 35 minutes over a medium-high heated grill using the indirect method of cooking. “Indirect” means that the area where the food is being cooked does not have flames or hot coals directly under it. The heat surrounds it on either side instead.
Sometimes Ya Gotta Eat Fat
This Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken was so good I plan to use this method in the future every time we are cooking a whole chicken (unless, of course, I’m making soup). It’s easy, quick and delicious. It is, however, very high in fat. I think this is from the chicken skin. To test this theory, I reduced the amount of oil in the recipe and re-did the nutrition label, and the results were about the same. You can see this in the second nutrition label. If you are trying to reduce fat, I suggest you don’t eat the skin!
When you try Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken, please comment on your results and share your photos on social media with the hashtag #recipeideashop.
Use indirect heating to make Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken.
Other than the grill, we didn’t use many special tools. I used my kitchen shears to cut the backbone out, but you can use a sharp knife. I also used measuring cups and spoons, a small paring knife, my chef’s knife, a cutting board, and my small food processor. And of course, our Char-Broil Gas Grill.
We ate our chicken with a small Roasted Beet Salad and some Gluten Free French Bread. Yum! What would you pair it with?
Check out the recipe…
Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken Recipe
Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken
Ingredients
- 5 pound whole chicken
- 1 medium onion peeled and quartered
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- 1/2 cup fresh herbs I used tarragon, thyme, oregano, and rosemary, leaves only
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
To Spatchcock the Chicken
- Using a sharp knife, cut the backbone out of the chicken, slicing down both sides of the backbone and removing it. Freeze the backbone to make broth in the future.
- Place the chicken on its back and squash it to open it and flatten it.
To Make and Apply the Rub
- Using a small food processor, puree the onion, garlic, herbs, olive oil, lemon, and zest until smooth.
- Spread the puree under the breast skin and over the entire bird.
- Refrigerate for several hours (up to 8).
To Cook
- Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and wipe off most of the rub.
- Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Let the chicken rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Heat the grill to medium high heat.
- When the grill is hot, turn the middle burner off and place the chicken in the center, breast side down, and close the cover.
- Cook for 15-20 minutes using this indirect heat method until charred and then flip the chicken to its back.
- Cook for another 15-20 minutes (more or less, depending on your grill), covered, until the thickest part of the chicken breast reaches an internal temperature of 165F degrees.
- Let rest 10 minutes before serving.
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Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken Nutrition Information
Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken Nutrition Label. Each serving is about 1/4 pound of chicken.
Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken made with 2 tablespoons olive oil (half of the amount listed in the recipe).
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