Tonight's Dinner - Chicken

[George K]

https://flavorthemoments.com/roasted-spatchcock-chicken/

EASY ROASTED SPATCHCOCK CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS

(1) 3.5 lb. whole chicken
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 lb. baby potatoes (halved if on the large side)
2 medium carrots, chopped into 1/2" chunks
2 medium parsnips, chopped into 1/2" chunks
1 fennel bulb, halved and sliced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme or 2 teaspoons dried

INSTRUCTIONS
Spatchcock a Chicken and Why You Should Do It. If you're not comfortable doing it yourself, just ask your butcher!

Combine 2 tablespoons olive oil with the paprika, 1 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Rub all over the chicken and underneath the skin onto the breast meat. Allow to come to room temperature for 30 minutes prior to cooking.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Toss the potatoes, carrots, parsnips and fennel with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper to taste.

Place the chicken in a large cast iron skillet (I use this one) or a rimmed baking sheet. Place the potatoes and vegetables around the chicken.

Roast the chicken for 45 minutes to one hour or until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers at 165 degrees. Remove from the oven and cover loosely with foil and allow to rest for 10-15 minutes before carving. In my experience, the chicken is so tender it comes right off without a knife like a rotisserie chicken!

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I didn't have a fennel bulb, so I used some fennel seeds.

Also, didn't have any parsnips, so I used brussel sprouts.

Pictures:

Once everything is assembled, ready to go into oven:

It took a LONG time to cook. 45 minutes? Hah! More like 90 minutes for the potatoes to get tender. I had to add some butter to the skillet to get some juices to baste the chicken and veggies with.

Here's what it looked like when I took it out of the oven:

Ready to carve the chicken, and serve the veggies:

Thoughts:

1. Even though this was a chicken that was only 3 ¾ lb, it took a long, long time to cook. Almost an hour and a half. Once done, it was pretty flavorful, but because of the extended cooking time, it was a bit drier than I expected. Not bad, but not juicy.

2. Brussel sprouts. Nope, nope, nope. The strong flavor permeated the chicken and I'd definitely not use them again.

3. This dish needs more moisture, and that's why I added some butter for basting.

[George K]

Bump for @Mik and @brenda .

Comments?

[Mik]

Looks fantastic. Spatchcocked is definitely the best way to cook a whole one. Im going to bookmark that recipe.

[Mik]

I think maybe the surrounding vegetables shut down convection around the chicken. Maybe a bigger pan? At 400 it should cook pretty nicely.

[George K]

@Mik said in Tonight's Dinner - Chicken:

Looks fantastic. Spatchcocked is definitely the best way to cook a whole one. Im going to bookmark that recipe.

Let me know how it turns out, Also, what veggies you decide to use.

I think it came out not as juicy as I wanted is because the potatoes were not done, so I kept on adding more time to it.

[Mik]

That’s possible. Might want to nuke the taters a bit before going in the oven. I would probably use beets, carrots, parsnips or turnips. Any combo of root vegetables. But i would make sure they were not Right up on the side Of the bird.

[brenda]

Brussels sprouts are a challenge in some dishes like that. I like them, but they don't always play nice with other foods during cooking. They could cook in their own dish in the oven. Root vegetables are always a pretty safe bet, including rutabaga. Poor rurtabaga gets forgotten so often.

I have never spatchcocked a chicken. I like to truss it up and put seasoning inside it. Lemon, onion, and herbs are all terrific flavors to fill the inside of a chicken.

Your cooking is wonderful, George. I like trying new recipes all the time, but many people don't. Stay adventurous, and cooking won't get boring.

[Mik]

That's right. My brother and wife were here Saturday so I made New Zealand Red Deer shanks braised in 4 heads of garlic, mushrooms, wine and stock. delicious.

Braising produces the most wonderful dishes and kitchen smells.

[George K]

@brenda said in Tonight's Dinner - Chicken:

I have never spatchcocked a chicken.

I found this yesterday, it's a "different" way to spatchcock a chicken that looks easier.

Use a serrated bread knife!

Link to video

I also have a frozen turkey breast that's itching to be made. Perhaps I'll spatchcock it and see what happens.

[brenda]

@George-K said in Tonight's Dinner - Chicken:

@brenda said in Tonight's Dinner - Chicken:

I have never spatchcocked a chicken.

I found this yesterday, it's a "different" way to spatchcock a chicken that looks easier.

Use a serrated bread knife!

Link to video

I also have a frozen turkey breast that's itching to be made. Perhaps I'll spatchcock it and see what happens.

LOL
I haven't watched it yet, but based on the title, I can already picture Aqua in this video. (Not as the chicken!)