Butterflied Roast Chicken Recipes

BUTTERFLY CHICKEN RECIPE

Steps:

• Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and turn the chicken breast side down on the board. Using strong kitchen scissors ( the Jamie Oliver ones I have are great), start at the tail and cut up each side of the backbone and cut the backbone out.
• Turn chicken breast side up and press down with the heel of your palm onto the breast bone until you hear a snap.
• The chicken should now be flattened and ready for flavor bombing!
• Preheat oven 400ºF/200ºC
• Take a long strip of rind off the lemon using a potato peeler (or as much lemon as you want). You don't want any white pith. Reserve the lemon.
• Using a mini food processor or similar appliance, process lemon rind, herbs, garlic and chilli flakes, if using, with 1/4 extra virgin olive oil until finely chopped and looks a bit like pesto.
• Season with 2 teaspoons salt and freshly ground pepper
• Place the chicken in a roasting pan breast side down. Squeeze over the juice half of the lemon,
• Spoon a 1/3 of the herb/oil mixture over the chicken and spread evenly and into all crevices.
• Turn chicken over breast side up. Squeeze over the juice of the remaining lemon half.
• Slip your fingers gently between the breast and the skin to make a pocket to fill with goodness.
• Spoon some of the herb/oil mixture into the pocket you have just made then spoon and spread the rest over the chicken.
• Drizzle over remaining oil and sprinkle with extra salt (or to your taste).
• Roast for 1 hour. Check at 50 minutes. (see recipe notes)
• When cooked, remove and cover with loosely with foil to rest for 10 minutes.

BUTTERFLIED ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Pat the chicken dry with paper towel. Flip the bird breast side down. Using kitchen or poultry shears, cut alongside the backbone about 1 inch from the center. Then make the same cut along the other side and remove the backbone (save and freeze for homemade chicken stock in the slow cooker or Instant Pot).
• Make a small cut at the beginning of the breast bone. This will make the bird lay flat. Cut away any extra skin or fatty parts and pat dry the inside as well. Transfer butterflied chicken breast side up to a casserole or simmer dish.
• To make the marinade, in a small bowl whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, and minced rosemary.
• Season the entire top side of the the chicken with salt and pepper. Then spoon about half of the marinade over the bird. Rub the seasoning and marinade all over with your hands to make sure every part of the skin is covered.
• Flip the butterflied chicken over and repeat with more salt, pepper, and the rest of the marinade.
• Let the chicken marinate for at least half an hour (at room temperature) or overnight (in the fridge).
• When you are ready to roast the spatchcock chicken, preheat the oven and a large cast iron pan to 500°F. Put the preheated pan on a cutting board and place the chicken breast side down inside of it.
• Arrange the lemon slices and rosemary sprigs on top and around the chicken.
• Turn the oven heat down to 450°F and bake the chicken for 30 minutes.
• Then flip the chicken around and roast about 15 minutes more until the internal temperature at breast reaches 160°F and 175°F at the thigh.
• Let the chicken rest over with a pan or aluminum foil for 15 minutes before carving.
• To carve, make a cut where the wing attached to the breast. Then separate the leg, and divide the leg into thigh and drumstick pieces. Separate the 2 breast pieces and cut away the ribs from behind. Then slice the breast into even strips.

BUTTERFLIED ROAST CHICKEN WITH LEMON AND ROSEMARY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking pan with aluminum foil. Place a rack on top of foil.
• Rub olive oil on both sides of chicken and generously season with salt and black pepper. Arrange lemon slices and rosemary on the rack and place chicken, skin-side up, onto the rack.
• Roast in the preheated oven until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, 45 to 55 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
• Transfer chicken to a serving platter and tent a piece of aluminum foil over it. Discard lemon and rosemary and remove rack.
• Pour wine into the baking pan and gently loosen the bits of food in the pan with a wooden spoon, being careful not to tear the foil. Strain pan juices into a saucepan and bring to a boil; cook until sauce is slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Spoon sauce over chicken.

BROILED, BUTTERFLIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Position the oven rack 8 inches from the flame/coil and turn broiler to high. Crack peppercorns with a mortar and pestle until coarsely ground. Add garlic and salt and work well. Add lemon zest and work just until you can smell lemon. Add just enough oil to form a paste.
• Check out your refrigerator for onions, carrots and celery that are a little past their prime. Cut vegetables into pieces and place in a deep roasting pan.
• Place chicken on a plastic cutting board breast-side down. Using kitchen shears, cut ribs down one side of back bone and then the other and remove. Open chicken like a book and remove the keel bone separating the breast halves by slicing through the thin membrane covering it, then by placing two fingers underneath the bone and levering it out. Turn chicken breast-side up and spread out like a butterfly by pressing down on the breast and pulling the legs towards you. Loosen the skin at the neck and the edges of the thighs. Evenly distribute the garlic mixture under the skin, saving 2 teaspoons for the jus. Drizzle the skin with oil and rub in, being sure to cover the bird evenly. Drizzle oil on bone side of chicken as well.
• Arrange bird in roasting pan, breast up, atop vegetables.
• Place pan in oven being sure to leave the oven door ajar. Check bird in 10 minutes. If the skin is a dark mahogany, hold the drumstick ends with paper towels and flip bone-side up. Cook 12 to 15 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. Juices must run clear. Remove and place chicken into a deep bowl and cover loosely with foil.
• Tilt pan so that any fat will pool at corner. Siphon this off with a bulb baster. (This fat is great in vinaigrettes). Set pan over 2 burners set on high. Deglaze pan with a few shots of red wine and scrape brown bits from bottom using a carrot chunk held with tongs. Add chicken stock, thyme, the remaining garlic paste and reduce briefly to make a jus. Strain out vegetables and discard. Slice chicken onto plates or serve in quarters. Sauce lightly with jus and serve.

SPATCHCOCKED (BUTTERFLIED) ROAST CHICKEN RECIPE

Steps:

• Place oven rack in upper-middle position and preheat oven to 450°F (232°C). Using sharp kitchen shears, remove backbone from chicken and cut spine into 5 to 6 one-inch-long pieces. Set backbone aside. Flatten chicken by placing skin side up on a cutting board and applying firm pressure to breastbone. Transfer to a wire rack set in a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Position chicken so that breasts are aligned with center of baking sheet and legs are close to edge.
• If using herbs: using your fingers and starting from the neck end and working your way down towards the legs, gently separate chicken skin from the breast and thigh meat; be careful not to tear the skin. Carefully push the herbs under the skin, distributing them as evenly as possible all over the breast and thigh muscle.
• Combine 1 tablespoon (15g) kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper, and 1 teaspoon (5g) baking powder (if using) in a small bowl. Sprinkle all over chicken skin and cavity sides, then return to skin-up position. Drizzle chicken skin with 1 tablespoon (15ml) oil, rubbing to distribute evenly.
• Roast chicken until thickest part of breast close to bone registers 150°F (66°C) on an instant-read thermometer and joint between thighs and body registers at least 175°F (80°C), about 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat remaining 1 tablespoon (15ml) oil in a small saucepan over high heat until shimmering. Add chicken backbone and cook, stirring frequently, until well browned, about 3 minutes. Add onion, carrot, and celery and cook, stirring frequently, until beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Add bay leaf and deglaze with vermouth or sherry and 1 cup (240ml) water, using a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits from bottom of pan. Reduce heat to maintain simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Strain out solids and return liquid to pan. Boil over medium-high heat until approximately 1/3 cup (80ml) remains, about 7 minutes. Whisk in soy sauce, butter, and lemon juice off heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Remove chicken from oven, transfer to cutting board, tent loosely with foil, and allow to rest 5 minutes before carving. Serve with hot jus.

BUTTERFLIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Mix the chopped rosemary, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper together in a small bowl to make a paste.
• Place the chickens on a sheet pan, skin side up, and loosen the skin from the meat with your fingers. Place 1/2 of the paste under the skin of each chicken. Rub any remaining paste on the outside and underside of the chickens.
• Turn the chicken skin side down and scatter the lemon slices and sprigs of rosemary over each chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Roll each chicken up, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Heat a grill with coals. Spread the coals out in 1 dense layer and brush the grill with oil. Unroll the chickens, place them on the grill and cook for 12 minutes on each side.

CRISP-SKIN HIGH-ROAST BUTTERFLIED CHICKEN WITH POTATOES

Steps:

• Dissolve salt and sugar in 2 quarts cold water in large container. Immerse chicken and refrigerate until fully seasoned, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 500°.
• Line bottom of broiler pan with foil and spray with nonstick vegetable cooking spray. Remove chicken from brine and rinse thoroughly under cold running water. Following illustrations 1 through 6, butterfly chicken, flatten breastbone, apply flavored butter (if using), and position chicken on broiler pan rack; thoroughly pat dry with paper towels.
• Toss potatoes with 1 tablespoon oil, salt and pepper to taste in medium bowl. Spread potatoes in even layer in foil-lined broiler pan bottom. Place broiler pan rack with chicken on top. Rub chicken with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil and sprinkle with pepper.
• Roast chicken until spotty brown, about 20 minutes. Rotate pan and continue to roast until skin has crisped and turned a deep brown and an instant-read internal thermometer registers 160° in thickest part of breast, 20 to 25 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to cutting board. With potholders, remove broiler pan rack; soak up excess grease from potatoes with several sheets paper towels. Remove foil liner with potatoes from broiler pan bottom and invert foil and potatoes onto cookie sheet or second cutting board. Carefully peel back foil, using a metal spatula to help scrape potatoes off foil as needed. With additional paper towels, pat off remaining grease.