Today on The Stay At Home Chef
I'm showing you how to make the juiciest Spatchcock Chicken.
Hey! Chef Cayt here!
I want to show you guys this recipe and trick on how to make a chicken juicy, moist, and evenly cooked.
To get this perfectly cooked chicken we are going to spatchcock it.
Spatchcock is kind of a weird term,
but let me explain it to you.
It's taking the whole bird in its round entirety,
where we're going to cut out the spine and squish it flat.
Why we do that is because it's really important for the internal temperature to be 165,
and by doing this it's gonna give it some more even surface cooking temperature.
I love cooking it the spatchcock way because it ensures that my thigh meat and my breast meat is going to finish around the same time.
To start you're gonna need one thawed chicken.
Using a clean surface we're gonna go breast side down.
Our bird is breast side down.
Identify the parson's nose,
and what we're going to do is cut down both sides of the spine.
So using a good pair of kitchen shears,
cut or basically crunch your way down both sides of the spine until it is completely removed.
You can also use a serrated knife to do this, but it's a little more tricky and you have to be extra careful.
But once the spine is completely removed, discard it or save it for some stock.
Now you want to flip the bird over and rotate out the leg quarters.
In using both hands you want to give a firm press right on the center of the bird.
Sometimes it's a struggle to get them to lay flat,
so don't get discouraged, just keep working at it.
Once you're happy with how flat it is,
wash up those hands and let me show you how to make the most delicious brine for it.
To start the brine you're gonna need a large bowl or a large bag.
In that bowl we're going to add 4 cups of buttermilk.
I know that sometimes it's kind of hard to find buttermilk in stores,
so let me show you a trick if you can't find it.
To make your own buttermilk substitution at home,
you're going to add 4 cups of milk into a bowl.
Then you're going to add 4 tablespoons of lemon juice,
and give that a light stir.
Let it rest like this for a few minutes.
The lemon juice is going to make the milk get thicker and will be the perfect substitute for buttermilk.
Once your buttermilk is in the bowl you're going to add 2 tablespoons of kosher salt and 1 tablespoon of black pepper.
Last add in 1 tablespoon of garlic powder and stir.
Now you're going to gently place that bird into the brine.
Make sure it's covered up.
Cover with Saran Wrap and place that bird in the fridge for at least 4 hours.
4 hours is the minimum I recommend to have that bird in the brine,
overnight is even better.
But once you're ready to cook that chicken, preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Then grab a cutting board and cut up about 2 pounds of potatoes into nice sized chunks.
And cut up about 2 pounds of carrots, I prefer larger chunks.
Lastly, chunk up 1 yellow onion.
Slide those veggies aside and get yourself a cooking sheet lined with parchment paper if you've got it,
if not use some cooking spray.
Place your bird on the sheet and discard the rest of the brine.
I like to tuck the wings to ensure that they don't get burned,
and also make sure that those thighs are rotated out.
Now neatly toss your vegetables around the bird,
topping those vegetables with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil plus some salt and pepper.
Then cooking it all in that preheated 400 degree oven until that chicken hits an internal temperature of 165,
which will be about an hour,
but because all birds are different in size and ovens do vary,
you need to make sure you check the internal temperature of that bird with a thermometer so that you ensure your safety.
Once it's done, let it rest for about 20 minutes and then you are ready to eat.
Thanks for watching.
You can find the full written recipe in the video description below.
I'm chef Cayt.
We'll see you later!