Split Grilled Chicken

Split Grilled Chicken

Andrea has been asking me to post this one. The first thing to mention is that there are many advantages to buying a whole chicken vs. chicken parts. First, you have better control on the quality of the bird. Second, scraps can go to the stock pot for homemade stock. Third, you can go with any variety of recipes whether you roast it whole or cut it up into parts.

For this recipe we try to get a smaller bird (2.5 - 3.5 lbs). Most of the technique came from Cook's Illustrated magazine.

Preparation:
Two things that seem to help this recipe are the same things you would do with a roast chicken:
1) Prepare a day or so ahead and 2) leave it uncovered in your fridge to dry out overnight.
The rub = 2-3 cloves garlic minced + zest of 1 lemon + chopped fresh rosemary (1-2 tbs) + salt and pepper to taste. Add a bit of olive oil and mix.

This is easily varied and you can swap out the rosemary for any appropriate herb or just use salt and pepper. The salt also plays the important role of soaking up excess moisture so don't skimp on it. A dry bird results in very crispy skin.

To prepare the chicken - pat it dry, then cut out the backbone using either a strong knife or a kitchen shears. Then lay the chicken flat and pound it with a mallet a bit if you like to even it out.

Apply the rub all over - the important part is to get a fair amount underneath the skin. You should be able to get under there with your fingers. That's it, then leave it sit for as long as you can. Before grilling take it out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature.

To grill: its really easy if you have a gas grill, especially with multiple burners and a solid lid. The key is to use indirect heat. To start, light all the burners and let the grill heat up. Your goal is to keep the temperature around 375 - 400 deg F. When the grill is hot, turn off one side and place the bird skin-side- down here. Grill covered for about 45 - 50 min. You might flip it once during this period for about 10-15 minutes, but mostly it should cook skin down. The first time we tried this I had all burners on and there were constant flare-ups and we ended up with charred chicken. By using indirect heat you can evenly cook the chicken. Position so the legs are closest to the heat source. If your grill has a thermometer keep a close eye on it. Adjust the other burners as needed to stay in the ~400 degF range. The point is to avoid charring but achieve an even heating. After 45 minutes or so check the temperature. You're looking for 160-165 degF internal temperature. You may want to place the bird over direct heat for a few minutes at this point to finish. The goal is to have the skin deep brown and crisp but not charred. I've noticed another way of telling its done is of the thigh separates from the breast as your trying to turn it.