Oven Roasted Spatchcock Chicken

spatchock chicken with roasted zucchini on a white platter.

5 from 22 votes

Oven Roasted Spatchcock Chicken

If you love tender, juicy chicken my spatchcock chicken recipe is just what you're looking for. Spatchcocking the chicken helps it cook faster, and more evenly.

Prep Time15

Cook Time1 20

Total Time1 35

Course: Entree

Cuisine: American, French

Servings:

Calories: 349kcal

Author: Chef Ryan Littley

Ingredients

4 - 5 lb Chicken look for a roaster
1 teaspoon marjoram
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon ground sage
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon sweet paprika
2 tablespoon salted butter melted

Instructions

Add the marjoram, rosemary, sage, thyme, black pepper, nutmeg, and sweet paprika to a small bowl. Whisk the seasonings to combine. This is our poultry seasoning dry rub.
Remove chicken giblets and neck from the cavity of the chicken.
Place the whole chicken breast side down on a cutting board.
Find the backbone of the chicken from the cavity side, then carefully slice down the backbone on one side (or use sharp kitchen shears to cut out the backbone).
Then, repeat the step and cut the other side of the backbone. Save for soup or discard.
Flip the chicken back over so the breast side is up, and press down on the chicken to crack and flatten it so it lays flat.
Pat the chicken skin dry with a paper towel.
Flip the chicken over and dry the cavity with a paper towel. Season the cavity side of the chicken with poultry seasoning, rubbing it into the cavity.
Turn the chicken back over and sprinkle with the poultry seasoning blend on the skin, coating all of the exposed skin. Then rub the seasoning into the skin.
Place the seasoned bird on a sheet pan witted with a screen (or flat on a sheet pan or roasting pan. Setting the chicken on the grate will let the air circulate around the bird, helping it to cook more evenly and crisp up.
Let the chicken sit for 20 -30 minutes to let the dry rub penetrate the meat and to allow the bird to come to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place the sheet pan on the center rack of the preheated oven and roast for one hour.
After one hour, remove the chicken from the oven and brush the bird with melted butter. This will help give the skin a golden-brown crispy skin.
Increase the oven temperature to 375 degrees and place the pan back in the oven and continue to roast for another 20 -30 minutes, or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees.
Let the chicken rest for 10 - 15 minutes before serving to allow the juice time to redistribute into the meat.

Notes

I like to use a roaster for this recipe. It’s generally a larger bird and with all poultry, the larger the bird the meat to bone ratio increases.

You can use fresh herbs to make this recipe, or you can use your favorite seasoning blend. In fact using a different seasoning blend every time you make it will definitely shake up your weeknight dinner menu.

Some of my favorite blends are lemon pepper, cajun seasoning, Italian seasoning, and Old Bay.

*Always place your meat thermometer into the thickest part of the breast meat, not the dark meat. The breast is thicker and will take longer to cook.

*Cooking time will vary depending on the size of the chicken.

To carve a spatchcock chicken, first remove the leg quarters and wings, then slice the breast meat. Here's a general guide: Start by cutting through the skin between the leg and breast, then use a knife to separate the leg quarter from the breast. Finally, slice the breast meat against the grain.

Nutrition