Roast Spatchcock Chicken With Lemongrass Honey Fish Sauce Recipes

ROAST SPATCHCOCK CHICKEN WITH LEMONGRASS, HONEY & FISH SAUCE

Steps:

• To spatchcock the chicken, put the bird on the worktop, breast-side down, with the legs pointing towards you. Using good kitchen scissors, cut through the flesh and bone along both sides of the backbone (and either side of the parson's nose). Remove the backbone and keep it for stock (freeze until you've gathered a few). Turn over the chicken, then flatten it by pressing hard on the breastbone with the heel of your hand - you'll feel it breaking and flattening under your hand. Remove any big globules of fat and neaten any ragged bits of skin.
• To make the marinade, remove and discard the coarse outer layer of leaves and the green tips from the lemongrass. Chop the pale inner core finely, then pound using a pestle and mortar with the garlic, ginger and chillis. Transfer to a bowl, then add the rest of the ingredients. Put the chicken in a dish that will fit in your fridge. Gently loosen the skin on the breast, then work your fingers in between the skin and the flesh, including the legs. Spoon some of the marinade under the skin, then spread more marinade all over the chicken (use no more than half the marinade in total at this point). Cover the bird with cling film and chill in the fridge for a few hours, or overnight.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Put the chicken, breast-side up, in a roasting-tin in which it fits snugly (if there's too much room around the bird, the marinade will burn). Scrape all the marinade from the dish over the bird. Season all over, then roast for 1 hr 10 mins. Baste after 15 mins with all the juices from the tin. Baste again after 30 mins, then cover with foil (if the chicken isn't very brown, don't cover with foil yet - keep checking until it is brown, then cover). After 50 mins, spoon over the remaining marinade, cover with foil again and cook for the final 20 mins.
• To check that the chicken is cooked through, pierce the bird between the leg and the rest of the body - the juices should be clear. Cut into portions, then serve with rice and stir-fried green veg.

ROASTED SPATCHCOCK CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400˚ F. Rinse the chicken, pat dry and rub all over with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Generously season on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Heat a large cast-iron or other ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. When the oil is hot, place the chicken, skin side down, in the pan. Cook until the skin starts to crisp on the edges and the color is golden brown. Flip the chicken over with tongs, taking care not to splatter oil toward yourself, and add the garlic, rosemary and thyme around the chicken in the pan. Squeeze a lemon half over the top and place both lemon halves in the pan, cut sides down.
• Transfer the pan to the oven and roast the chicken (skin side up) for 30 to 35 minutes, until a meat thermometer registers 155˚ F when inserted in the thickest part of a breast. Let rest for about 10 minutes, then carve and serve with pan juices.

PERUVIAN-STYLE SPATCHCOCK CHICKEN WITH CREAMY CILANTRO SAUCE

Steps:

• Gently separate the skin of the chicken from the meat with your fingers.
• Whisk together the soy, sambal, mustard, pasilla/ancho powder, cumin, salt, lime zest and juice and a few cracks of black pepper. Pour into a ziptop bag, add the chicken and marinate, refrigerated, overnight.
• When ready to cook, place a cast-iron skillet on the bottom rack of the oven and preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.
• Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat dry.
• Carefully remove the hot skillet and lower the oven temperature to 450 degrees F. Add the vegetable oil to the skillet, place the chicken breast-side down in it and return it immediately to the oven. Roast until well browned, 20 to 30 minutes. Gently flip the chicken and cook until the breast registers 160 degrees F, about another 10 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes on a cutting board. Slice and serve with Creamy Cilantro Sauce.
• Put the cilantro, oregano, honey, mustard, cumin, serrano, lime zest and juice and garlic in a food processor. Process until smooth, scraping down the sides to evenly distribute. Add the mayo and pulse until combined. Season with salt and pepper.

SPICE-RUBBED SPATCHCOCKED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Spatchcock the chicken by using poultry shears or kitchen scissors (or a sharp knife) to cut along one side of the backbone until the chicken opens. If you like you can cut along the other side of the backbone and remove it, or leave it attached to roast with the rest of the bird. Open up the bird and place it so it lies flat, breast side up. Press hard onto the center of the breast until you feel a pop, and the breast lies more or less flat.
• In a small bowl, mix together sugar, salt, chile powder, paprika, mustard powder, oregano, pepper, allspice and bay leaves. Smear the mixture all over the chicken. Lay chicken, skin side up, on a rimmed baking sheet (or plate) and refrigerate uncovered for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours.
• Heat oven to 425 degrees. If the chicken isn't on a rimmed baking sheet, transfer it to one. Roast chicken until the juices run clear when the thickest part of the thigh is pricked with a fork (an instant-read thermometer plunged into the thickest part of the breast will read 150), 40 to 50 minutes.
• Remove from oven, cover bird with foil and let rest for 10 minutes before carving. Serve with lime or lemon wedges on the side.

SPATCHCOCK ROASTED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Lay the chicken on a cutting board breast-side down, with the legs closest to you. Use kitchen shears to cut out the backbone. Open the chicken like a book to reveal the ribs and sternum. Use a chef's knife to score the sternum vertically down the center, then use your hands and body weight to crack the sternum and flatten the breasts and rib cage. Season the chicken all over with 2 teaspoons salt and a generous amount of pepper.
• Lay the thyme sprigs in the center of a rimmed baking sheet and place the chicken on top, skin-side up. Roast the chicken until the skin is golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees F, about 40 minutes.
• Let the chicken rest 5 minutes before serving.

ROASTED CHICKEN WITH FISH-SAUCE BUTTER

Steps:

• Heat oven to 450 degrees. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season lightly with salt and pepper. (The fish-sauce butter is plenty salty, so don't overdo the salt here.) Arrange the chicken skin-side up on a sheet pan and drizzle the oil over the chicken skin, coating it evenly. Roast until the chicken is light gold and the sheet pan is pooling with hot, rendered chicken fat, about 25 minutes.
• Take the sheet pan out of the oven, scatter the bread around the chicken and toss gently to coat in the chicken fat. Place the pan back in the oven and roast until the chicken is golden, crispy and sizzling (you'll hear it), about 15 minutes.
• While the chicken roasts, combine the brown sugar, fish sauce and lemon juice in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, occasionally swirling the pan or stirring the sauce with a wooden spoon, until bubbling vigorously and the mixture has reduced by about half, 2 to 3 minutes. This part is fun: Turn off the heat and add the butter, constantly swirling the pan or stirring with a wooden spoon, until all of the butter has melted and incorporated into the fish sauce mixture.
• To serve, scatter the cilantro all over the chicken and bread and spoon some of the fish-sauce butter over each chicken thigh, reserving some to add to each plate for dipping the chicken and croutons while eating (which is divine).