Recipe For Whole Grilled Chicken

Best Fire To Use: Two

Grilled Whole Chicken Spatchcock Style – Flattened Juicy Chicken (Charcoal BBQ) – Recipe # 111

There are two goals when you’re cooking chicken on the grill. The meat needs to cook through to the center, and the skin needs to be well rendered and crisped. The order in which these two goals are best achieved is up for debate, and something I’ll address in the next section.

For now, we can agree that the goals are not necessarily in harmony with each other.

See, for the moistest, juiciest meat, slow and gentle cooking is ideal. The hotter the temperature at which a chicken cooks, the bigger the temperature differential between the very center and the exterior. At very high temperatures, the outer layers of a delicate chicken breast will overcook, turning dry and stringy before the inner layers even have the chill taken off of them.

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

On the other hand, crisp skin requires some degree of high heat. The process of skin crisping involves first removing moisture and rendering excess fat, followed by setting and browning of proteins. This last phase requires relatively high temperatures to achieve.

What this means is that in order to get both results, you need the adaptability of a two-zone indirect fire. That is, a fire with all the coals piled up on one side. This gives you a cooler side to cook gently on, and a hotter side for crisping.

How To Spatchcock A Chicken

Most any butcher will be happy to spatchcock a whole chicken for you, saving you time and mess, but its also easy enough to do yourself. Good kitchen tools and a little confidence are all you need to spatchcock, or butterfly, a chicken at home. Heres how to do it yourself:

Cut the backbone out of the chicken, starting from the thigh end and working upwards. Youll snip through the rib bones as you go, but it shouldnt be too harda good, sharp pair of poultry shears or kitchen scissors really help with this step. Get as close to the backbone as you can, and once youve removed it, dont toss it! Its great for making chicken stock.

Flatten that bird! Flip the chicken over so that it is skin-side up, and press down hard on the breastbone to flatten the chicken out. Remember: the goal is to make the chicken as evenly-splayed out as possible for quick, even cooking on the grill.

P.S. Friendly reminderdont rinse your chicken! And wash your hands super thoroughly before and after handling raw chicken. And, while were talking chicken and food safety, always check that your chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165°F before you pull it off the grill or out of the oven.

What Is The Nutritional Information For This Grilled Chicken Recipe

With each serving of this delicious chicken, you get 350 calories, 1 gram of carbohydrates, 26 grams of fat with 9 grams being saturated fat, 119 milligrams of cholesterol, and 500 milligrams of sodium.

On the plus side, you also get 30 grams of protein, 320 units of vitamin A, 20 milligrams of vitamin C, and 16 milligrams of calcium as well as 2 milligrams of iron and 275 milligrams of potassium. The amounts will vary depending on the cut of chicken you eat and whether you remove the skin.

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What You Need To Make A Spatchcock Chicken

Sharp Kitchen Shears: Using sharp poultry or kitchen shears will make removing the breastbone very easy. Use kitchen shears like these for the best results.
Large Knife and Boning Knife: Sharp knives help with breaking and/or removing the cartilage and rib bones. This is the boning knife I use: .
Instant Thermometer: Checking the Grilled Spatchcock Chicken temperature is the best way to determine the doneness and ensure it is properly cooked. This instant thermometer is less than $10 and works well: .

How To Grill A Whole Chicken

Remember to have already spatchcocked the chicken or you can ask the butcher to do that bit for you! Then follow these steps :

1) Season the chicken well. I like to salt the chicken first on all sides with kosher salt, and it’s important to get underneath the skin as well with some salt.

TIP: You can even do this step one-night in advance and let the chicken air-chill in the fridge to allow the salt to season and tenderize the chicken.

2) Mix together the olive oil, lemon juice, spices, herbs, and loads of fresh garlic in a small bowl. Whisk to combine well. Apply the marinade particularly underneath the chicken skins and all over. Set the chicken in the fridge for 2 to 4 hours to allow the marinade a chance to impart flavor.

3) Grill over indirect heat. Preheat gas grill to 400 degrees F . Place the chicken on the grill and turn off the burner or burners directly below it, leaving the burners around it on . Grill for about 45 minutes to 1 hour or until the chicken’s internal temprature at the thickest part reaches 165 degrees F. You’ll see in the video below, my friend Adam uses a meat thermometer similar to this one .

Tip: Check every 15 minutes, and if the chicken looks browned on one side, rotate it at about 90 angle. The side of the chicken closest to the direct heat will begin to brown quickly, rotation will allow for a more evenly browned skin.

Also Check: Bang Bang Chicken Cheesecake Factory

Best For Barbecue: Roasters

Roasters are the largest, coming in between six and eight pounds. The carcasses of mature chickens , they have a more pronounced flavor than their smaller counterparts, but are also more difficult to cook evenly because of their large volume.

Cooking a roaster is an exercise in patience. It can take up to 45 minutes or so on the cooler side of the grill before it’s ready to be crisped up. This means that if you’re the type of cat who likes to add wood chips to their grill for some intense barbecue flavor, this is the chicken for you. Slow cooking gives it plenty of time to soak up that smoky flavor.

Why Would You Want To Grill A Whole Chicken

Grilling the whole bird makes sense whether youre cooking chicken for another recipe, or feeding a cookout crowd. Try it once and youll never go back to skinless boneless again.

Whole chickens are substantially cheaper than pre-cut, and have been processed less.
Whole chickens are fresher, and stay fresh longer than packages of cut meat.
When you roast the whole chicken it doesnt dry out on the grill, and remains juicier. The complete covering of skin acts as an insulator and keeps all the flavor in.
You can use the carcass for making amazing stock, so that chicken will keep on giving.
It makes a great presentation, everybody will oooh and aaah.

Ingredient Swaps And Additions

Butter if you need to keep this recipe dairy free you can swap the butter for ghee.

Veggies feel free to use only carrots or celery as a base for the bird if you only have one of these veggies on hand. You can also add a few more root veggies to the skillet if you like. Parsnips or potatoes are always great options.

Lemon fresh lemon juice and zest is the way to go in this recipe for the best flavor.

How To Spatchcock A Chicken ~

How to Cook Whole Chicken | Traeger Staples

A good pair of kitchen shears is the best tool for spatchcocking a chicken. You want to place your chicken with the legs facing you, breast-side down. The backbone will be facing up. With your kitchen shears, you want to cut along the backbone, about an inch or so away from the center. Then, make the same cut on the other side of the backbone. Remove the whole backbone and discard
Turn the chicken over, open it up, and flatten the breast out firmly with the palm of your hand so it lays relatively flat.
Season the chicken with salt and pepper to taste, or a spice rub if you are using one.

The nutritional information for recipes on this site is provided as a courtesy and although theviewfromgreatisland.com tries to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.

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Expert Tips For Making A Grilled Whole Chicken

Thoroughly pat the chicken dry after removing it from the packaging. This helps the oil and seasoning stick better to the chicken.
I use neutral-flavored oils with a higher smoke point when grilling, like canola or grapeseed oils.
If you’re a minimalist, salt and pepper is really all you need, but I often reach for a jar of seasoning mix from the grocery store. It’s a simple way to amp up the flavor even more.
Resist the urge to open the grill and check on the chicken. You release heat every time you do that, which prolongs your cooking time.
Make sure you let the chicken rest for at least 15-20 minutes after you take it off the grill. This allows the juices to redistribute and moist, tender chicken.

What Does It Mean To Grill On Indirect Heat

Grilling your chicken on indirect heat is important because it helps the meat cook properly. You do not want the breasts to get dried out while trying to cook the thigh meat properly. Just turn the burners on one side of the grill and place the chicken over the other side.

If you have a charcoal grill, this takes a little more creativity and skill. Use about 45 briquettes on one side of the grill and place the chicken on the other side. Another way to do this is to place a drip pan in the middle of the grill and the charcoal on the sides. Cook the chicken over the drip pan.

Tips For Crispiest Roasted Chicken

Butterfly the chicken. With a flattened chicken, as I mentioned earlier, we have more surface area foro browning.
Salt your bird in advance. In Salt Fat Acid Heat, Samin Nosrat shares one of the simplest tricks to attain a delightfully succulent, crispy-skinned bird. Her trick, in one word: SALT.And when it comes to whole chicken, salt early. Seasoning in advance gives salt plenty of time to diffuse evenly throughout the bird, doing it’s quiet work of flavoring and tenderizing.
Air chill the chicken. Once salted, another element that is equally important here is air. Chill your generously seasoned bird in the fridge uncovered and with the skin side up.The constantly circulating air dries out the skin. The bird will look, as Samin puts it, “scarily fossilized.” But, the dried-out skin cooks up golden and glassy…the crispiest you’ll ever have!

Too Strong For Your Taste Here Are Three Ways Toum Can Mellow

For some who need their toum to be less powerful, three things you can do:

Leave it in the fridge a few days. Time in the fridge will take a bit of the edge off.

Place the peeled garlic in ice water for 30 minutes or so before making the garlic sauce. But be sure to dry the garlic very well before you start.

Add cooked potato or a couple tablespoons of Greek yogurt. Either of these items will thicken the toum sauce and take a bit of the garlic edge off. You would add a little bit at a time during the process. I don’t do this because the toum is not the same with these additions and I’d rather have the real deal.

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Grilled Spatchcocked Chicken Marinade:

Once spatchcocked, the only other prep involved with grilled whole chicken is seasoning the bird. Feel free to keep things as simple as youd like, using your favorite spice blends or dry rubs, or whip up a quick grilled chicken marinade.

This particular grilled spatchcocked chicken recipe calls for a flavor-forward chili-lime wet rub, made with loads of fresh lime & garlic, staple spices, & honey for subtle sweetness to offset the zesty & spicy flavor.

How to use this chili lime marinade. Stir together fresh lime zest & juice, honey, & spices , drizzling in a little neutral oil to bring everything together. This marinade is a very thick paste, similar to wet rub. Slather it all over the spatchcocked chicken. Be sure to use your hands to work the marinade between the meat & skin, which helps ensure super flavorful grilled chicken.

Suggested marinating time. Aim to marinate the chicken at least 60 minutes prior to grilling, though 12-24 hours is ideal.

How Long To Roast

Over one hour, depending on the size of your bird. This 4 pound bird took one hour and 20 minutes cooking time, then a resting time of 10 minutes to keep all of those juices in before slicing.

Usually Ill pass on chicken breasts because juicy crispy chicken legs are my favourite! BUT! In this roast chicken recipe? I eat it ALL. The breasts come out so moist. NO dry meat happening on this plate!

Do you see that crispy skin happening down there? Thats the part we fight over at the table. PLEASE tell me we are normal and your family fights over crispy skin too?

SOOOO soft and juicy inside!

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Ingredients In Lemon Cauliflower Pasta With Grilled Chicken

This lemon cauliflower pasta recipe is made in two parts: the cauliflower sauce and the grilled chicken! Of course, it all comes together with the addition of spaghetti noodles.

Pasta

Pasta: Any pasta will work in the amount of 1 16oz box. I prefer to use regular spaghetti or long noodles.

Lemon Cauliflower Sauce

Butter: First up for the sauce is 2 tbsp of butter.
Garlic: Add flavor by including 4 cloves of minced garlic.
Cauliflower: For the veggie portion, use 1 large head of cauliflower. Break it into florets before adding to the recipe.
Water: 1 cup of water will be necessary to get the saucy consistency.
Salt & pepper: Add additional seasonings with 1 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of pepper.
Lemon: Finish off the sauce by adding the juice of 1 large lemon.

Lemon Grilled Chicken

Chicken breasts: 10 servings of this delicious pasta calls for 5-6 thinly sliced chicken breasts. I like to buy them thinly sliced, but regular slices will also work! Either butterfly thicker pieces or pound them down.
Lemons: Begin adding flavor to the chicken by using the juice of 2 lemons.
Olive oil: Next, you will need 1/3 cup of olive oil.
Garlic: Add flavor with 3 cloves of minced garlic.
Spices: Then, include spices by using the following: 1 tsp of oregano, 1/2 tsp of salt, and 1/2 tsp of pepper.
To garnish: Garnish with fresh parsley!

How To Cook A Whole Chicken On The Grill:

Best Way to Grill a Whole Chicken | SAM THE COOKING GUY

The trickiest part of learning how to cook a whole chicken on the grill is striking the perfect balance of cooking it all the way through without drying it out & creating beautiful crispy chicken skin without it completely burning. It may seem like an impossible task, but its a lot easier than it seems.

This grilled butterflied chicken recipe leverages 2-Zone Grilling, slowly cooking the chicken with gentle, indirect heat before finishing with direct heat for a beautifully charred finish. The process is almost entirely inactive, making grilled butterflied chicken perfect for lazy Sunday afternoons or backyard entertaining!

How to grill a spatchcock chicken:

Light the grill: Prepare your grill for 2-zone grilling, creating one zone of direct high heat & a second zone of indirect heat. If using a gas grill, simply light half of its burners to their highest setting. If using a charcoal grill, simply distribute all of the lit charcoal to one side of the grill. The side of the grill directly over the heat source is the direct heat zone, while the other side is the indirect heat zone.

Finish the chicken over direct heat: For a crispy finish, carefully move the chicken to the direct heat side of the grill, flipping it so the skin comes into contact with the grill grates. Grill for 3-5 minutes, until the grilled spatchcock chicken is as charred & crispy as you like!

Also Check: Grilled Chicken Sandwich Mcdonald’s

The Best Barbecue Sauce Is Your Favorite Barbecue Sauce~

Im not above using store-bought barbecue sauce for my summer grilling, there are lots of great options out there , but if you want to have a go at making your own, I say go for it! Here are some tasty suggestions:

A Classic BBQ sauce recipe from Add a Pinch.
Southern spiked sauce from food.com.
My friend Mary from Barefeet in the Kitchen makes a mean spicy barbecue sauce.
And Jamie Oliver makes a fruity Bourbon sauce thats to die for.

Spatchcocked Chicken: How To Grill A Whole Chicken Without Losing Your Mind

Spatchcocked chickenalso known as butterflied chickenis a whole chicken that has been split by removing the backbone, and then flattened out. Splitting and flattening the bird is dual purposeyou significantly reduce the cooking time, and ensure even cooking. While spatchcocked birds are great for roasting, theyre the hands-down best for grilling. In fact, the dictionary definition of the word spatchcock is literally chicken or game bird split open and grilled.

Read Also: Raw Chicken In Air Fryer

Grilled Whole Chicken With A Dressing

We love making this Grilled Whole Chicken in the summer. This is why:

the chicken is prepared on an outdoor grill
the interior of the grilled chicken is juicy and tender, and the exterior is crispy and golden
the preparation is simple and great for all grill lovers
make it for picnics, celebrations, or Sunday lunch
serve as a main dish or in salads, wraps, tortillas
it feeds the whole family, and you can easily store or freeze any leftovers