How to Spatchcock Your Bird

Like the rest of America, during the summer we spend a lot of time outside grilling. And when we want to cook a whole chicken over the hot coals, we spatchcock it, that is, we split it open so it lies flat like an open book. It’s handsome presented this way, and makes a nice wide, flat surface for slathering with compound butter or for piling sautéed chanterelles on. It also makes carving the breast meat and cutting up the bird easier. But more than any of that, the reason we spatchcock is because the whole bird grills evenly, with all its round and protruding parts essentially flattened out and equally exposed to the smoky heat below.

So, how exactly do you spatchcock a chicken? Here’s how:

After you’ve removed the package of gizzards from the cavity of the chicken, and rinsed and patted the bird dry with paper towels, take a sharp kitchen knife, or better still, a pair of kitchen shears, and cut out the entire backbone. Begin at the business end of the bird next to the tail (colloquially called the pope’s nose) and cut along one side for the entire length of the backbone. Cutting through the wishbone up toward the neck can be a little harder than the other bones, but just use more pressure to get through. Then cut along the other side until the backbone is free.

Open the chicken up and trim off any loose pieces of the rib cage, excess fat, and/or skin. Save these bits, along with the meaty backbone and the package of gizzards, to make a flavorful stock, if you like.

Turn the chicken over so it is skin side up and with some force, press down with both hands to flatten it out. There you have it. Spatchcock. Now fire up the grill.