This recipe is one of my own and has been inspired by the method from the Portuguese chicken recipe in spatchcocking the chicken, and the flavours of the roasted chicken wings with roast potatoes, oregano and garlic recipe to come up with this Spanish spatchcock chicken recipe. It turned out really well with the delicious flavours of the seasoning and a subtle heat from the chilli flakes - I'll definitely be making it again and will try different seasonings too.
The first time I made it, I added some new potatoes, peppers and red onion to the tray with the chicken so that everything was cooked at the same time - I've included this as an optional serving suggestion below.
As we're currently in the middle of a lockdown due to the COVID 19 pandemic, we're unable to share our food with any family or friends, so we did have leftover chicken...and made good use of it! We topped a pizza with some one night for dinner and had the rest in bagels for lunch one day along with a bowl of chunky mixed vegetable soup.
Tips
- If you have the time, spatchcock and marinate the chicken the day before cooking. If not, don’t worry, 6 to 8 hours marinating in the fridge will be fine.
- Feel free to try out other seasonings – the cooking time will be the same, depending on the size of your chicken.
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Ingredients
- 1.6kg to 1.9kg whole chicken (preferably free range – they’re juicier!)
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 tsp pimentón (or smoked paprika)
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 0.5 tsp chilli flakes
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Optional Serving Suggestion
- 1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into chunks
- 1 green pepper, deseeded and cut into chunks
- 500g new potatoes, sliced lengthways
- 1 large red onion, halved and each half cut into 6 wedges (keep the root intact)
- olive oil, for drizzling
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
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Instructions
- Prepare the marinade in a small bowl - mix together the chopped garlic, pimentón, dried oregano and olive oil.
- Line a baking tray with greaseproof baking paper. Now it’s time to spatchcock that chicken: using sharp kitchen scissors, cut the chicken either side of the backbone. Remove and discard the backbone. Open the chicken out, turn it over and flatten it by pressing down with the heel of your hand along the breastbone. Place the now spatchcocked chicken on the prepared baking tray. Spread the marinade over the chicken, cover and leave to marinate in the fridge overnight or for at least 6 to 8 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan.
- If you’re including the potatoes, peppers and red onion, arrange these around the chicken on the tray, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Also now season the chicken with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast for 60 to 70 minutes, occasionally (at least 3 times) brushing the pan juices back over the chicken and the vegetables. Check that the temperature of the breasts are 74C – I use my Thermapen to do this.
- Remove the chicken from the oven, transfer the potatoes to a serving dish, and keep warm. Cover the chicken with tin foil and let it rest for 5 minutes.
- Serve the chicken with the optional potatoes and vegetables, or some chunky oven chips and salad.
Spanish Spatchcock Chicken
Ingredients
- 1.6kg to 1.9kg whole chicken preferably free range – they’re juicier!
- 3 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 tsp pimentón or smoked paprika
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 0.5 tsp chilli flakes
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Optional Serving Suggestion
- 1 red pepper deseeded and cut into chunks
- 1 green pepper deseeded and cut into chunks
- 500g new potatoes sliced lengthways
- 1 large red onion halved and each half cut into 6 wedges (keep the root intact)
- olive oil for drizzling
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Prepare the marinade in a small bowl - mix together the chopped garlic, pimentón, dried oregano and olive oil.
- Line a baking tray with greaseproof baking paper. Now it’s time to spatchcock that chicken: using sharp kitchen scissors, cut the chicken either side of the backbone. Remove and discard the backbone. Open the chicken out, turn it over and flatten it by pressing down with the heel of your hand along the breastbone. Place the now spatchcocked chicken on the prepared baking tray. Spread the marinade over the chicken, cover and leave to marinate in the fridge overnight or for at least 6 to 8 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan.
- If you’re including the potatoes, peppers and red onion, arrange these around the chicken on the tray, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Also now season the chicken with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast for 60 to 70 minutes, occasionally (at least 3 times) brushing the pan juices back over the chicken and the vegetables. Check that the temperature of the breasts are 74C – I use my Thermapen to do this.
- Remove the chicken from the oven, transfer the potatoes to a serving dish, and keep warm. Cover the chicken with tin foil and let it rest for 5 minutes.
- Serve the chicken with the optional potatoes and vegetables, or some chunky oven chips and salad.
Notes
- If you have the time, spatchcock and marinate the chicken the day before cooking. If not, don’t worry, 6 to 8 hours marinating in the fridge will be fine.
- Feel free to try out other seasonings – the cooking time will be the same, depending on the size of your chicken.
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