No Waste, Whole Grilled Chicken
Chansons de Le Chef et Le Chat
I wanted to shine a light on this Elvis guy, I think he’s so good. No, I am just kidding. I love Elvis almost as much as grilled chicken. I usually pick more underappreciated songs and artists but this song just puts me in a great mood.
And don’t forget, F*** Colonel Parker.
Grilled chicken is the reason for the season.
Ingredients:
Whole Chicken
Seasoning of Choice
Chicken Sauce:
Chicken Innards
Chicken Spine
Mirepoix
Onions
Carrots
Celery
Whole Garlic
Bay Leaf
Butter
Flour
Peppercorns
Salt and Pepper
Consider adding:
White Wine
Lemon
Fresh Herbs
Mushrooms
Caramelized Onions
Instructions:
Prep Chicken
Spatchcock your chicken! I would suggest watching a tutorial before doing this, but in essence, it is removing the spine from the chicken or turkey.
Using heavy-duty scissors, cut down the left and right of the spine. The width between your cuts should be about 1 to 2 inches depending on the size of the bird.
Put the spine aside, open up the chicken from the back, and press down on the sternum until the whole chicken is flat. This will require decent effort and should make a cracking noise as you break the bone.
Season liberally and put aside to develop flavor.
Season your Chicken spine as well to create a consistent flavor profile into your sauce, later.
Prep Sauce
We are going to make a quick chicken stock. Roast your chicken spine and innards at 425 for around 20 minutes, at least until there is decent browning. The innards will cook faster so you may want to add them in at the 10-minute mark.
While this cooks, prep your mirepoix. Everything will be strained out, as we just want the liquids, so you can toss in the scraps as well. I would suggest peeling the carrots, and if you want a lighter sauce, in color and flavor, discard onion peels. These are, however, perfectly delicious, should you want to include them.
The mirepoix should be cut but it doesn’t have to be small. Medium-sized is fine.
Add your mirepoix and garlic into a pot with a spoonful or so, of peppercorns and 2 bay leaves.
Add your roasted chicken spine and innards, making sure to completely scrape the roasting tray. You can shock it with cold water to help release some fond.
Put just enough water to cover and simmer, uncovered, for as long as you can. Or just until it starts to thicken.
Grill Chicken
Grill on both sides but allow time for the grill to do its job. We want a nice char on both sides to add flavor.
Chicken is done at 165 degrees but it is better to pull at 160 and allow it to rest, for a juicier final product.
Finish Sauce
Strain the liquid into a smaller pot and simmer on medium-high until the sauce becomes thick.
At this point, you can add some white wine if you want, and allow it to reduce.
Whisk in some butter.
Season to taste, and serve immediately.
My internet went out as I typed my final sentence so I lost my progress on this whole post. I sat in my chair for a good 10 minutes just mad at the world until I thought about why I was writing in the first place. Charred, grilled, smokey chicken! I was inspired to rewrite this post and you know what? I’m happy I did.
I know this recipe seems simple but the power is in your hands, I am just providing the template. You can use a barbeque seasoning, maybe Asian, Caribbean, Mexican, or Mediterranean. Just today, I made a yogurt marinade for my chicken breasts and grilled them up for chicken gyros. I’ll post a recipe for that eventually, it is one of my top 10 summer meals. But they both share something special… GOING OUTSIDE. As a cook, there were many days that I would come to work in the wee hours of the morning, and by the time I walked outside for the first time it was night. I don’t smoke so I didn’t have an excuse to go outside. It was so depressing. Now I can stand outside in the warm sunlight or even at dusk when the ambiance is just right, and enjoy myself.
Cooking is throwing the tennis ball to my dog as the smoke makes the neighbors jealous. Cooking is being the one to do all of the work so that you can listen to your loved ones pause their conversations in appreciation after each bite. It’s s’mores and ghost stories. It’s leaving your Tupperware at your aunt’s house because everyone was too stuffed for another bite. It’s bringing snacks to your friend’s backyard every day between grades because he is the only one with a pool. Cooking is the freedom to go outside and laugh with the ones you love.
