Butterflied Chicken Recipes

NIF'S BUTTERFLIED GRILLED WHOLE CHICKEN

Steps:

• Heat both sides of barbeque to high heat. While it is heating up, prepare chicken:.
• Place whole chicken on a baking sheet, breast side down. With kitchen shears, cut down each side of back bone and discard. Rinse chicken with cool water and place back on baking sheet, again breast side down.
• Sprinkle your desired amount of rub on the inside of the chicken and massage into the meat. Flip over, press the chicken down if it's not laying flat, and repeat the rub. Make sure you have coated the whole chicken.
• On BBQ, turn one side of grill off. Place chicken on the turned off side, breast side down. By doing that, you will get beautiful grill marks without the flare-ups and it will cook in indirect heat. BBQ for 15 minutes.
• Flip over in same area on grill and cook for another 25 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 180°F.
• Remove from grill onto a clean baking sheet or plate. Tent with tin foil for at least 10 minutes before cutting up chicken.

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.

BUTTERFLIED CHICKEN WITH THYME, LEMON AND GARLIC

Steps:

• Whisk together the oil, 2 tablespoons of the garlic, 2 tablespoons of the thyme, 1 tablespoon of the lemon zest and 1 tablespoon of onion in a large baking dish. Add the chicken and turn to coat in the oil. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to 8 hours.
• Preheat the grill to medium. Remove the chicken from the marinade and season both sides with salt and pepper. Place the chicken on the grill, skin side down and slowly grill until the fat renders and the skin becomes golden brown and crisp, about 15 minutes. Turn the chicken over, close the cover and continue grilling until just cooked through, about 20 minutes longer. Remove from the grill, loosely tent with foil and let rest 10 minutes before cutting.
• Mix together the remaining garlic, thyme and 1 tablespoon of lemon zest and sprinkle over the cut chicken.

ROASTED SPATCHCOCK CHICKEN (BUTTERFLIED CHICKEN)

Steps:

• Pat dry the whole chicken completely dry with a paper towel before adding seasoning. This helps create extra crispy skin when roasting.
• Place chicken breast-side down on a clean and dry chopping board (wearing disposable gloves helps with easy handling).
• Cut along the backbone in the middle with kitchen scissors and remove the backbone, which is about 1-inch wide.
• Make a small cut with a knife along the white cartilage that connects the breastbone and remove the breastbone by pulling it out through the cut.
• Turn the chicken over with the breast-side up and flatten it out . Tuck the wings under the chicken breasts.
• Pat dry the spatchcock chicken again to remove any excess liquid.
• In a small bowl, stir together one tablespoon olive oil, salt and pepper, until combined.
• Generously smear the seasoning mixture over the whole chicken inside and out and let it rest on a clean plate for at least 15 minutes. Make sure the seasoning covers the entire whole chicken including the inside cavity.
• Preheat the oven to 450F.
• Heat a cast-iron skillet on the stove for 5 minutes over medium high heat (or preheat the iron skillet in the oven for 5 minutes). Once the skillet is sizzling hot, sear the chicken by placing chicken breast side down in the hot skillet for 3-5 minutes, until skin gets a little crispy.
• Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake the chicken for 30 minutes until the skin on the breasts turns brown. You can add an oven-safe weight over the chicken such as a Dutch oven lid to promote browning.
• Remove the skillet from the oven and turn the chicken over with the breast side up. Tuck whole garlic cloves and sprigs of rosemary and thyme underneath the chicken to add flavour.
• Combine the remaining oil, chopped thyme and minced garlic in a small bowl and brush the seasoning mixture over the chicken breasts.
• Transfer the skillet back into the oven and continue to bake the chicken for another 10 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 165F.
• Remove the chicken from oven and place it on a large plate. Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes. Then, carve and serve.

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 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.

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 KOREAN CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 450 degrees (425 convection).
• Butterfly the chicken by placing it on a cutting board, breast side down, and cutting along each side of its backbone with kitchen shears. Reserve the backbone for stock.
• Turn the chicken over and press down against the breasts with the palms of your hands until you hear it crack. The chicken should lie flat along the cutting board.
• Mix the ingredients for the rub together in a small prep bowl. Rub the spice mixture all over your butterflied chicken. Place it breast side up in a cast iron skillet or other roasting pan. Place in preheated oven.
• Add the ingredients for the glaze to the bowl of a blender or food processor. I like my personal blender for this task.
• After 15-20 minutes, begin brushing the chicken with the glaze every 10 minutes or so. Use a baster to baste with pan juices as they accumulate.
• Roast the chicken until the breast reaches 165 degrees. (Cooking time will vary according to how cold the chicken was at the start, its size, and whether you use standard or convection roast. Typically, a smallish chicken will take about 40 minutes, and a large one about 60 minutes.)
• Remove from the oven and allow to rest about 15 minutes. Carve and garnish with sesame seeds.
• Enjoy!

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.