Pollo al mattone
Ingredients
- One young chicken such as a 'fryer'.
- For the marinade:
- The juice of a freshly squeezed lemon
- 1-2 cloves of garlic peeled and minced
- 1-2 sprigs of fresh rosemary minced
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil
- To weigh down the chicken:
- A terracotta 'mattone' as shown in the photos
- A cast iron or other heavy skillet covered in aluminum foil
- Bricks covered in aluminum foil
Instructions
- First, spatchcock the chicken by cutting out and removing its backbone, then opening the bird and flattening it out.
- Lay the chicken in a large bowl or baking dish. Mix the marinade ingredients and pour the mixture over the chicken, making sure it's well covered top and bottom. Marinate for at least an hour, or as long as overnight.
- Heat your grill until it's very hot and grease the grates well with oil. Place the chicken on the grill, skin side down. Weigh the chicken down with the special purpose round terracotta mattone, cast iron skillet, or one or more bricks covered in foil.
- Grill the chicken until golden brown on both sides. This should take about 30-45 minutes for a smaller to medium-sized chicken.
- Let the chicken rest for 10-15 minutes before cutting it into pieces and serving.
Notes
To spatchcock aka butterfly a whole chicken, turn it breast-side down on a cutting board. With a large sharp knife (or poultry shears if they have a pair) cut all the way down one side of the backbone so the chicken splits apart. Cut along the other side of the backbone until it detaches entirely. (The backbone can be saved for making broth or stock, or simply discarded.)
Turn the chicken over, breast-side up. Using the back of a skillet or meat pounder or just your hands, press down on the breast until you hear the breast bone crack. Continue to flatten out the chicken as much as you can.