Butterfly Chicken
Butterfly Chicken or spatchcock chicken as it is also called, is a very interesting method for cooking a whole chicken. I will be honest and I have mentioned this in the past. I absolutely hate touching raw meat (especially chicken) and this process is not my favourite. Thankfully, I have Matt to cook this chicken because the taste is amazing. When you butterfly a chicken, you’re essentially opening it up and cooking it flat. This allows the chicken to cook faster, cook more evenly, remain juicy and lastly, creates a crispy skin.
Cooking a whole chicken can feel like a daunting task. Kind of like when you try and tackle cooking a whole turkey at thanksgiving. But truly, a whole chicken does not have to be scary and using this butterfly method makes it even easier. If you’re worried or confused about this method, check out this video.
Get Creative with the Marinade
For this recipe we have used a red bell pepper marinade. But you can actually use any marinade you like. We really loved this one we created, but we know that not everyone is a fan of peppers. You may choose to just use BBQ sauce on your butterfly chicken. Which we would recommend doing near the end of the cooking process, with about 10 minutes left. Just cover the chicken in the BBQ sauce and pop it back into the oven to finish cooking.
If you do choose to use our marinade recipe, you won’t be disappointed. It is flavourful, with a hint of red bell pepper and this chicken is so juicy. If you marinade the chicken overnight, it absorbs some of it and the flavour carries throughout the chicken. Even though you will pat the chicken to get a lot of the marinade off, the flavour will linger creating a super delicious chicken.
As we have mentioned in the past, our favourite meals are ones that are naturally gluten free. This is because they always taste the best, but they are also great for people who do eat gluten. This butterfly chicken is definitely naturally gluten free and it will please everyone.
I don’t want to make this a long post so we will leave it at that. Get creative with the flavours and use this method for a delicious, juicy piece of chicken. Depending on how big your chicken is, it should feed about 4-6 people. Don’t forget to include some side dishes, like our Mini Smashed Potatoes or Sesame Ginger Celery.
| Prep Time | 20 minutes |
| Cook Time | 1 hour |
| Passive Time | 1 hour |
| Servings |
people
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- 1 Whole Chicken
- 1 large red bell pepper
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1/2 large white onion
- 1 tbsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Pepper
- 1 tbsp White Vinegar
- 2 tbsps honey
- 1 cup water
Ingredients
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- Wash and dry produce. Take skin off onion and garlic. Chop the onion into 4-6 pieces. Deseed and cut red bell pepper into medium sized pieces. Then take all of the ingredients except the chicken, and place in a food processor. Blend until smooth. Set aside.
- Take your whole chicken (washed) and place it on a cutting board breast side down. Take good pair of sharp kitchen scissors and start cutting the spine out of the chicken, this will be directly in the middle of the chicken. Make sure you cut on either side of the spine.
- Once the spine has been removed, flip the chicken over and press down on it. Make sure you press down on all of the joints to flatten it out.
- Place chicken in big ziploc freezer bag and pour the red bell pepper marinade into the bag. Close the bag and move the marinade around the chicken until it is completely coated. Put it in the fridge for minimum 1 hour or overnight.
- After chicken has sat in the marinade for an extended period of time. Preheat oven for 375°F. Take the chicken out of the bag and let the excess sauce drop off the chicken. Then pat dry the chicken.
- Place the chicken on a wired rack that is sitting in a baking sheet or pan. Then cook it for 1 hour or until the inside has reached an internal temperature of 160°F.
- Once cooked, let rest for 10 minutes. Then cut the chicken into desired pieces. It is best to cut along the joints. Serve and ENJOY!