you CAN make a whole roast chicken

a full guide to spatchcocking + impressing everyone you know with a roast chicken dinner !!!

A few years ago when I first started getting into my cooking era, my go-to signature dish was a whole roasted chicken. For one, it’s literally so easy, you throw it in the oven and that’s that. Secondly, everyone thinks it’s so hard to do so they’re so surprised and impressed like you just made a beef wellington or some shit.

Now in more recent times, I learned of the ~spatchcocking~ technique for a chicken and tried it once prior to this time.

And when I was sitting eating this chicken with my boyfriend, I was like “tbh, there is literally no reason to make a whole chicken without spatchcocking it, it’s so good” and he was like you literally said the exact same thing last time you did this. This time I tried Carla Lalli Music’s technique to cooking it, and it SLAYED. The video + recipe are different so I’m including everything I followed below for ease.

So yeah, it’s so easy and yummy yum yum - I’m gonna hold your hand and guide you through it!

TW: raw chicken. will I say making a whole chicken is for the faint of heart, probably not. my first time I was a bit skiiidish but listen, as women we have dealt with far ickier things in life than a raw chicken and it’s giblets so I say f it, roll your sleeves up, embrace the ick, and be a boss ass bitch!! and if you’re a man reading this, you can def handle a chicken you filthy animal.

she’s so wifey roast chicken:

(aka labneh marinated zaatar whole roasted chicken)

• 1 whole spatchocked chicken*** (I prefer organic, TJ’s has a great whole young chicken)

• 1 handful dill, finely chopped

• 1 handful parsley, finely chopped

• 5 cloves garlic, grated

• 1-ish cup of labneh

• 1/3 cup pickle brine

• ample salt + pepper

• 2 tbsp zaatar (+ more for pre-baking)

• 1 lemon zested

1. mix all your ingredients in a bowl until combined. add your chicken and fully coat it in mixture. marinade in your fridge for 6 hrs - overnight.

2. remove your chicken from the marinade, letting excess drip off. wipe the chicken as dry as possible and add salt, pepper, zaatar lemon zest + olive oil until fully covered.

3. place a large cast iron skillet in the oven and set it to preheat at 500 F.

4. remove your very hot cast iron skillet with care, add about 2 tbsp of avocado oil and carefully (!!!!) place your chicken skin side down in the pan, spread eagle. press it down for about 1-2 min to make sure every surface of skin is touching the pan.

5. place the pan in the middle rack of the oven and top with another very heavy skillet or dutch oven pot (line the bottom of it with aluminum foil so it doesn’t touch the chicken).

6. bake for about 30 min until the thickest part of breast is at 150°F. (I don’t have a meat thermometer so I cut into it lol, worked great) let rest. top with more lemon zest!

7. to make a pan sauce, remove your chicken and 1/2 of the fat in the pan. add 1 diced shallot, 2 garlic cloves, red pepper flakes and saute until softened. add about 1/2 cup white wine or broth and juice from 1/2 a lemon. simmer for 1-2 minutes until slightly reduced and add a knob or two of butter. Season with salt + pepper, I also added sumac. finish with a handful of parsley. donnneezo! serve with your chickie + fennel salad!

**spatchcock 101:

spatchcocking is just removing the backbone of a chicken so it lays flat and cooks faster + more evenly + every piece of skin is crisp and golden. most importantly though the breast is juicy AF!!!

1. remove your whole chicken from the bag (in your sink to avoid spillage)

2. don’t be alarmed, there is a pouch of giblets in the chicken. you can toss it out or fry the liver in your pan and add the neck to your soup broth. same goes for the spine we’ll remove below, add it to homemade stock!!

   

   giblets aka gibby

3. now place the chicken wings side up (tip of the wings facing down). the easiest way to do this is with kitchen scissors. you just cut along one side of the backbone. and then cut the other side to fully remove the middle section.

4. now flip her, cut side facing down and with the palm of your hands just do a quick 1-2 pump at the point where the breasts connect.

5. now you shall have a flat chicken, pur! dry with paper towels and proceed to seasoning!

fennel salad (w/anchovy breadcrumbs !!)

• 1 head of romaine lettuce, roughly ripped in 2” pieces

• 1/2 bulb of fennel, thinly sliced + a handful of the fronds (the hairy things)

• juice of 1/2 lemon

• few splashes of red wine vinegar

• olive oil

• thick shavings of parm

• breadcrumbs recipe here!

1. combine everything in a bowl, toss with vinegar + oil and top with a mountain of breadcrumbs :)

YOU DID IT!!!! YOU MADE A WHOLE ROASTED CHICKEN DINNER!! Unless you just read this with no intention to ever make it…..

as always, I’m always posting throughout the week on instagram + tiktok:

instagram: @babytamagooo

tiktok: @babytamago

hope you have a juicy week <333