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Spatchcocked Roasted Chicken with Lemons

January 22, 2013 by Renee

Spatchcocked Chicken with Lemons

Spatchcocked Chicken with Lemons

There is nothing better than a simple roasted chicken. Especially a juicy bird with crisp skin and lots of flavor.  This Spatchcocked Roasted Chicken with Lemons is very flavorful, juicy and has a delightful crisp skin. I often roast a whole chicken, rubbing butter (or oil) onto the skin and coating with whatever herbs I have handy, or I’ll place leaves of sage under the skin and fill the cavity with vegetables (that I later discard) then truss the legs and set the entire bird to cook for an hour or so. But more often, I spatchcock the bird which yields a very crispy skin, lots of flavorful pan drippings and has the added bonus of a reduced roasting time.

Spatchcocking is nothing more than a chicken that has been butterflied. Its a very simple technique to master but depending on your weapon tool of choice, will determine how much time it actually takes you to complete. First you must remove the backbone.  The easiest way would be to remove it with a pair of poultry shears by cutting along each side of it, pulling it off and setting it aside for stock. But since we don’t actually own poultry shears or scissors strong enough to cut more than construction paper I used a sharp chef’s knife. This method of de-backboning takes some brute strength and patience. (Neither of which I have much of!)

Start with a chicken that has been cleaned (remove the neck and innards!), washed and patted dry with a paper towel. Set the bird breast side down on a large board with the legs up and facing you.  Insert your knife into the cavity with the blade tip starting at the neck and running to tail along one side of the back bone. With the heel of the blade apply a lot pressure and cut through the small bones all the way up along the side of the backbone. Repeat on the other side of the back bone and remove the entire thing. It usually takes me a while to get through all the small bones so this is where it may take you some time as well and use up some bone breaking energy! Once the backbone is removed you can set it aside and use it to make stock or pitch it. Up to you! (This particular chicken was comical as I had to stand on a chair to get enough leverage and downward strength to force the knife through…even that was not enough and I ended up hitting the knife with the meat tenderizer!  I need the shears!)

Once the backbone is removed, then you can flatten the bird out by pushing down on the breasts and pulling the wings and legs out to each side.

Now it’s ready for butter/oil and herbs. But first, preheat your oven to 450 degrees F. You want to roast the bird at a high temperature to get a crisp on the skin and then reduce the heat to cook the chicken through.

One of my favorite ways to make roast chicken is to use a lot of sliced up lemons, shallots and herbs.  For this chicken I sliced four lemons leaving the seeds in and on a well oiled sheet pan, I placed the lemons in a small layer and placed my chicken directly on top of them. Then I carefully pulled back the skin and slid several slices into each piece.

After the lemons were inside, under and around the bird, I rubbed the entire skin with butter. Then I salt and peppered the bird liberally and added some minced rosemary, thyme, tarragon and sage from my garden (you can use dried as well.) For an extra kick, I also added some garlic powder.

From here the chicken goes into the hot oven to roast for 20 minutes. While this is happening peel and slice 8-10 small shallots in half and toss with a tablespoon of olive oil.

At the twenty minute mark, reduce the heat to 400 degrees F, place the shallots all around and on top of the chicken and roast for another 30 minutes or until the thickest part of the breast reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.

Once the chicken reaches the correct temperature, remove it from the oven, but let it rest on the pan for ten minutes. Cut the chicken up into 8 or 10 pieces (depending on if you want to split the breasts) and arrange on a serving platter.

The very best part of the entire dish is all the crispy shallots and the pan drippings on the sheet pan. I arrange some of the roasted lemons around the platter and scoop up as much of the pan drippings as I can to drizzle over the top of each piece.

Serve with roasted potatoes or rice and a simple vegetable (broccoli or asparagus) and you will have a quick and healthy mid-week meal.

20130117-IMG_7616-2

Spatchcocked Roasted Chicken with Lemons
 
Print
Prep time
15 mins
Cook time
50 mins
Total time
1 hour 5 mins
 
Author: Renee
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 3-4lb chicken, cleaned with backbone removed and flattened
  • 4 medium lemons, sliced
  • butter
  • Sprigs of rosemary, thyme, tarragon and sage, minced
  • 2 tsp. Garlic powder
  • Salt & Pepper
  • 8-10 small shallots, minced
  • olive oil
Method
  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. You want to roast the bird at a high temperature to get a crisp on the skin and then reduce the heat to cook the chicken through.
  2. Slice four lemons leaving the seeds in and on a well oiled sheet pan, place the lemons in a small layer and lay the prepared chicken directly on top of them.
  3. Carefully pulled back the skin on the chicken and slide several lemon slices into each piece.
  4. Rub the entire skin of the chicken with butter. Salt and pepper the bird liberally and add some minced rosemary, thyme, tarragon and sage. For an extra kick, add some garlic powder to the skin.
  5. From here the chicken goes into the hot oven to roast for 20 minutes. While this is happening peel and slice 8-10 small shallots in half and toss with a tablespoon of olive oil.
  6. At the twenty minute mark, reduce the heat to 400 degrees F, place the shallots all around and on top of the chicken and roast for another 30 minutes or until the thickest part of the breast reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
  7. Once the chicken reaches the correct temperature, remove it from the oven, but let it rest on the pan for ten minutes. Cut the chicken up into 8 or 10 pieces (depending on if you want to split the breasts) and arrange on a serving platter.
  8. The very best part of the entire dish is all the crispy shallots and the pan drippings on the sheet pan. Arrange some of the roasted lemons around the platter and scoop up as much of the pan drippings as you can to drizzle over the top of each piece.
  9. Serve with roasted potatoes or rice and a simple vegetable (broccoli or asparagus) and you will have a quick and healthy mid-week meal.
3.2.1275

 

 

 

Filed Under: Eat, Featured Posts, Poultry Tagged With: Lemons, Roasted, Spatchcocked, chicken

Asparagus Tart and Crispy Fried Asparagus Recipes, Spring Has Sprung!

June 1, 2011 by Renee

AsparagusOne of my favorite vegetables is asparagus and even though you can find them all year round, its Spring and Summer when I purchase them every week for us to enjoy. I prefer the nice plump ones to the thin ones because I feel that the fatter ones have the most delicious flavor. There are so many great recipes for asparagus that I could post about them for a week, but here’s a few ways we like to enjoy them.

First off, there is grilling with just a bit of salt and a squeeze of lemon over top. Simple, easy and perfect for the outdoor dinner.

The most classic way to cook them is to peel them, lop off the extra thick ends and blanch them briefly in boiling salted water. You can serve them immediately or you can refrigerate them and eat them cold with a tangy vinaigrette to dunk the spears in to.

Then of course there is roasting them. Drizzled with a bit of olive oil and salt, roast them on a sheet pan covered with foil in an oven that’s been preheated to 425 degrees for about a half hour or until tender. Roasting the asparagus brings out the sweet essence of the vegetable and is so simple yet so incredibly delightful, you’ll end up eating all of them before they arrive at the table if you are not careful.

Two other ways to enjoy this very versatile vegetable is to encase them in cheese and puff pastry or to batter and fry them. We have enjoyed both ways!

 

Asparagus Tart

Ingredients

Flour, for work surface

1 sheet frozen puff pastry

1 pound asparagus spears, tough ends trimmed

1 egg yolk + 1 tbs water, beaten to blend

1/2 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese

1 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded

1 tsp. nutmeg

Salt and pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. On a floured surface, roll out the puff pastry into a 16-by-10-inch rectangle. Trim uneven edges. Place pastry on a baking sheet. With a sharp knife, lightly score pastry dough 1 inch in from the edges to mark a rectangle being careful to not cut all the way through the dough. Using a fork, pierce the dough inside the markings (called Docking) to prevent air bubbles from forming and puffing up the center too much. Bake until a pale golden, about 10 minutes. Remove pastry shell from oven, and set aside.

In the meantime, mix the ricotta cheese with the Gruyere, nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste.

Spread the cheese mixture over the center of the pastry and arrange the asparagus spears in a single layer over the top alternating the ends and the tips.

Brush the edges of the pastry with the egg wash and bake until spears are tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

 

Crispy Fried Asparagus With Ancho Chili Mayo

 

Ancho Chili Mayo

Ingredients

½ cup mayonnaise *homemade is preferable, but you can use jarred too and not worry about the raw eggs

½ lemon, zested and juiced

1 tsp. Ancho chili powder

½ tsp. turmeric

½ tsp. cumin

½ tsp. hot sauce (Tabasco works nicely)

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tbs. extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

In a medium bowl combine all of the ingredients and mix until the spices are blended through.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate while you are making the asparagus to let the flavors meld together. Be sure to taste to see if it spicy or tangy enough for your tastes and adjust seasonings as necessary.

 

Crispy Fried Asparagus Spears

Adapted from Fine Cooking Magazine’s  April/May 2011 Asparagus Fries with Smoked Paprika Aioli.

Ingredients

1 lb. asparagus, rough ends trimmed

½ cup all purpose flour

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. black pepper

2 egg whites

2 tbs. cold water

½ lemon, zested and juiced

1/3 cup Panko bread crumbs

¼ cup plain bread crumbs

3 cups vegetable oil

Method

Cut the asparagus to about 4-5 inches long. (You can save the stalks for another recipe!) If they are very thick you can split them lengthwise.

Create your breading station by laying out three large shallow dishes with rims.

In the first shallow dish, mix the flour, salt and pepper.

In a second shallow dish, combine the egg whites, water, and lemon juice.

In a third shallow dish, mix the Panko bread crumbs, plain bread crumbs, and the lemon zest.

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan over a medium flame. If you have a candy thermometer or deep fryer heat the oil to 375 degrees F. If you don’t have a thermometer, you can tell if the oil is ready by dropping in a few of the Panko crumbs and if they bubble and rise to the top then the oil is ready.

Divide the asparagus into 4 smaller bunches, first toss them into the flour mixture, shake off the extra, and then dip them into the egg whites, and then into the Panko/ bread crumbs.

Carefully place the asparagus into the oil and fry for 3-4 minutes until they are golden brown.

Remove the asparagus from the oil with a slotted spoon or tongs, and drain on a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt.

Repeat the process for the remaining asparagus.

Serve with the Ancho Chili Mayo on the side.

 

Enjoy!

 

 



Filed Under: Eat, Featured Posts, Appetizers, Vegetables Tagged With: Ancho Chili, Asparagus, Blanched, Fried, Fried Asparagus, Gruyere, Panko, Recipe, Ricotta, Roasted, Roasted Asparagus, Tart

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