This was after the thermometer rang in at 175, and I had turned the burners off.
Last Thanksgiving, I saw directions for “spatchcocking” a turkey. What is that? I wondered…it sounds dirty. Well, it is. But not in the way you’re thinking. It turns out, spatchcocking is cutting along either side of a bird’s spine and removing it, then smushing it flat, so it grills faster.
I spatchcocked a chicken today. I was going to take pictures, but I had all kinds of chicken stuff on my hands, then I pinched my finger in the kitchen shears, so I had some issues with the camera. I was going to have the girl help me, but she was on http://www.lego.com again (it’s like Facebook… for imaginary people?). She spends more time with fake Legos than real one, these days.
Anyway, no pictures of the process of cutting it up, which is gross, but easier than I expected. It goes fast- indirect grill for 15 minutes skin side down, then skin side up until you get to 175 degrees on the thigh, like another 15-20 minutes For slightly more expert advice… try http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/butterflied-chicken-recipe/index.html I think you can do it in the oven, too, and it would speed things up.
I know there are those of you who are opposed to chicken on the bone, but I think it has more flavor. And you can’t beat the price- whole young chickens are pretty cheap.
I wondered about the word origins, being the word nut I am, and it turns out that a lot of other people wondered, too. http://www.nakedwhiz.com/spatchdef.htm No clear answer about what language it’s from- I like the Irish story best, but really, who knows?
Strawberry Fields for Breakfast 