This easy recipe will show you how to spatchcock chicken so it’s perfectly juicy with golden, crispy skin! Plus, my delicious Mediterranean seasoning blend and fresh veggies to roast alongside.
If you’ve been here a while, you know I’m all about simple, delicious meals that don’t require cheffy techniques. That’s why you can trust me when I say: spatchcocking a chicken is worth the extra step!
While I love the look of a whole roasted chicken, if I’m cooking for myself or my family I’m almost always spatchcocking it first. The meat cooks quicker and more evenly, and you get that perfectly golden skin. I’m even known to spatchcock my grilled chicken!
For this simple spatchcock roast chicken recipe, I season the meat with a fragrant blend of allspice, nutmeg, paprika, and garlic, which brings bold Middle Eastern-style vibe. I know you’ll be making this on repeat!
Table of Contents
What is Spatchocking?
Sometimes called “butterflying,” spatchcocking is simply removing the chicken’s backbone so it lays flat. Starting with the whole bird is great because it’s often cheaper by the pound than the broken-down pieces. Plus, you get to enjoy both the light and dark meat. Here’s why I love spatchcocking before roasting:
- The chicken cooks faster.
- The meat cooks evenly, so you dry chicken breasts is a thing of the past.
- It’s extra crispy! The flat surface means can sear the skin in a pan before roasting.
Ingredients for this Spatchcocked Chicken Recipe
You don’t need any fancy ingredients or equipment to make spatchcock chicken. Here’s what I used:
- Whole chicken: Look for about a 4 pound chicken. You can often ask your butcher to spatchcock it for you, but it’s easy enough to do it yourself.
- Spices: I used a warming, savory blend of allspice, garlic powder, sweet paprika, ground nutmeg, salt and pepper. Chicken is a pretty neutral base, free to experiment with the spices you love–Italian seasoning, Greek oregano, ras el hanout, baharat, the list goes on!
- Olive oil: Use a high quality extra virgin variety for the best flavor.
- Veggies (optional): I love tomatoes, onion, and green olives along with the chicken, but feel free to skip this or swap with other quick-cooking vegetables like mushrooms and carrots.
How to Cook Spatchcocked Chicken
Spatchcocked chicken takes about 50 to 65 minutes to cook in a 425°F oven, but I like to crisp the skin first. Here are the steps:
Spatchcock the Chicken
- Cut out the backbone. Place a 4-ish pound chicken on a cutting board with its backbone facing you. Using a pair of sturdy kitchen shears, cut along both sides of the spine.
- Remove the backbone: Don’t throw it away! Save for chicken stock, in your freezer if you don’t plan to make it right away.
- Flatten the chicken. Flip the chicken over and push down on the breast with your palms to flatten. You may or may not hear a crack. Congratulations, you have now spatchcocked–also known as butterflied–a chicken!
Season and Sear the Chicken
- Salt the chicken (if you have time, do this the night before). Generously season the chicken all over with salt and pepper, then place in a shallow roasting dish with the breast side up. If you have the time, refrigerate uncovered overnight to dry out the skin. One hour before you plan to roast the chicken, pull the chicken out of the fridge and set at room temperature.
- Get ready to roast. Set one oven rack near the middle of your oven and one near the bottom. Preheat to 425°F.
- Season the chicken. Mix 1 1/2 teaspoon allspice, 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg in a small bowl, then rub all over the chicken. Pull the skin up and apply some of the spice mix underneath as well.
- Sear the chicken. Coat the bottom of a 12-inch cast iron skillet in a thin layer of olive oil and set over medium-high heat. As soon as the oil is shimmering, add the chicken with the breast side down. Allow to brown undisturbed for 6-8 minutes, then flip and brown on the other side, another 5 minutes or so.
Roast the Chicken
- Roast the chicken. Transfer the cast iron skillet to the middle rack of the hot oven. Slide it all way to the back of the oven.
- Rotate the chicken. Roast for 20 minutes, carefully turn the skillet 180 degrees (so the handle points the opposite direction). Push to the back of the oven again. Roast until the chicken is cooked through, another 30 to 45 minutes. The chicken should be brown all over, with the thickest part near the leg bone reading 165°F.
- Meanwhile, roast the vegetables (optional). About 20 minutes or so before you pull the chicken out of the oven, add 8 Campari tomatoes tomatoes and 1 quartered onion to a small roasting dish. Toss with olive oil and salt. Place on the lower rack of the oven to roast.
- Rest and serve. Let the chicken rest at room temperature for 10 minutes before carving. Add a handful of green olives to the roasted veggies. Enjoy!
What to Serve with this Spatchcock Chicken Recipe
This spatchcock chicken is a versatile protein to serve with all sorts of sides and salads, but these go particularly well with the warming Middle Eastern-style seasonings:
- Salad: Tabouli or Fattoush.
- Grains and rice: Smoky freekeh or golden Persian rice.
- Sides: Batata Harra (Spicy Potatoes) or Roasted Carrots with Dukkah and Mint.
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Spatchcock Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 (4 pound) whole chicken
- Kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon allspice
- 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Extra virgin olive oil
To Roast Alongside (Optional)
- 8 Campari tomatoes
- 1 large sweet onion, peeled and quartered
- Handful of pitted green olives
Instructions
- Spatchcock (butterfly) the chicken. Place the chicken on a cutting board with its backbone facing you. Using a pair of sturdy kitchen shears, cut out the backbone by cutting along both sides of the spine. Remove the backbone (save for stock). Flip the chicken over and push down on the breast with your palms to flatten.
- Salt the chicken (if you have time, do this the night before). Generously season the chicken all over with salt and pepper, then place in a shallow roasting dish with the breast side up. If you have the time, refrigerate uncovered overnight to dry out the skin. One hour before you plan to roast the chicken, pull the chicken out of the fridge and set at room temperature.
- Get ready to roast. Set one oven rack near the middle of your oven and one near the bottom. Preheat to 425°F.
- Season the chicken. Mix the spices in a small bowl, then rub all over the chicken. Pull the skin up and apply some of the spice mix underneath as well.
- Sear the chicken. Coat the bottom of a 12-inch cast iron skillet in a thin layer of olive oil and set over medium-high heat. As soon as the oil is shimmering, add the chicken with the breast side down. Allow to brown undisturbed for 6-8 minutes, then flip and brown on the other side, another 5 minutes or so.
- Roast the chicken. Transfer the cast iron skillet to the middle rack of the hot oven. Slide it all way to the back of the oven. Roast for 20 minutes, then use oven mitts to carefully turn the skillet 180 degrees (the handle is now pointing the opposite direction). Push to the back of the oven again. Roast until the chicken is cooked through, another 30 to 45 minutes. The chicken should be brown all over, with the thickest part near the leg bone reading 165°F.
- Meanwhile, roast the vegetables (optional). About 20 minutes or so before you pull the chicken out of the oven, add the tomato and onion to a small roasting dish. Toss with olive oil and salt. Place on the lower rack of the oven to roast. When done, add a handful of green olives to the roasted veggies and return to the oven for a few minutes to warm.
- Rest and serve. Let the chicken rest at room temperature for 10 minutes before carving. Enjoy!
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Notes
- Shop this recipe: Visit our shop to browse quality Mediterranean ingredients, including the olive oil and spices used in this recipe.
- When to salt the chicken. If you don’t have time to salt the chicken and refrigerate overnight, do this as early as possible the day of (even 2 hours or so before cooking will help).
Nutrition
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How long can I leave the chicken in the refrigerator after salting? Is sixteen hours acceptable?
Hi, Ron. Yes, 16 hours will work! Hope you love the recipe!
Yum 😋
Extra-Ordinary, Suzy — Thanks so much for sharing!
Made it last night as instructed.
Probably the best chicken I’ve ever prepared or eaten.
Crispy skin — totally juicy — cooked to perfection.
And, the olives, tomatoes and onions — Get out of town!
My side was a lemon, butter orzo, which was just perfect.
I’ll make this again and again!!!
BTW — mine was a 5.5 pounder and it didn’t even require the reccomended time.
What a FANTASTIC recipe — and so easy!!!
Wonderful to hear, Chuck! Thank you!
I’ve done this with slices of crusty italian or peasant bread – sear the chicken and remove it from the pan. Then put down slices or chunks of bread and the chicken, skin side up on top. The bread soaks up those delicious juices, and is a perfect accompaniment to a fresh tomato and onion salad!
That sounds amazing, Ann! Thanks for sharing!
This is one of my all time favourite roast chicken recipes. Absolutely love it and have made it more than once! With the searing it never takes as long to roast in the oven as the recipe suggests. I start checking after the second 20 mins. Our chickens are also probably about 3 lbs, not very large,I use a 10” cast iron skillet and it’s perfect. Thank you!!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts here, Penny! Very helpful!
Our local grocer had whole, fresh chickens on sale. How could I resist? Suzy at Mediterranean Dish always has a recipe for most anything and this definitely filled the bill! So moist and tasty. I will definitely make it again. Thanks for the inspiration!
Dave
It’s our pleasure, Dave! So glad you enjoyed it!
This is THE BEST chicken I’ve ever made! Perfect every time!
Delish! I quartered potatoes and onion and threw in around 2 1/2 to 3 cups grape tomatoes and tossed them in a little olive oil and salt and pepper. Browned the chicken, removed to plate, then added in the veggies to the cast iron skillet. Set the chicken on top to roast. Was SO good!! Husband raved–said it was the best whole chicken I’ve ever made. 😊 Next time I’ll add lemon and finish the veggies on the stove top to caramelize them a bit.
LOVE this! Thanks, Terri!
First time making this recipe but not the last. The chicken cooked perfectly, and the spice rub made it delicious. I served with roasted fennel, cauliflower, onions and radishes. The whole meal was perfect. Thanks!!
Yay! So glad to hear it, Todd!
My first spatchcock but not my last! Added some preserved lemon and green olives to tomatoes and off we went to Nights in Tunisia!
Wonderful!! Thanks, Steve!
I’m planning to make this but I see what looks like slivered nuts of some kind in the pictures that aren’t called out in the recipe. What nut are they? Thank you.
Hi, Mike. The nuts used here were pine nuts and sliced almonds. Totally optional. I just added them as I had some on hand to use up. Enjoy!
Cool. Thanks.
Hi Suzy,
Can i put the chicken in a dish on a grill plate,
Cheers,
Rob
Hi, Rob. Are you referring to grilling the chicken on an outdoor grill?
Would this work on the barbecue using the same method of turning the pan one way and then the other. Would it be direct or indirect heat on the barbecue? Lid up or down?
Hi, Sue. We actually have a recipe for grilling a spatchcock chicken: Grilled Whole Chicken
My family LOVES this! I have made it 3 times since discovering your website. This time I added some Harissa (ordered from your page 😉 )and it was once again a hit. I forgot to toss in some tomatoes this time, so I just made a salad and used some Greek dressing from a local small Greek restaurant. (I did tomatoes and onions as a side with the lemony chicken and potatoes from your site the other night.) A yummy crusty bread was perfect for sopping up juices. Salting early and letting it sitting in fridge as well as browning first really makes a huge difference and is worth the time.
Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by and comments, Summer! So glad you enjoyed it!
The first time I tried this I strayed from the recipe a bit by adding sliced cherry tomatoes to the onions and olives and using that as a bed to lay the chicken on as it cooked – similar to your one pan recipes. Once served, my family dug into it before I had a chance to even try it and they asked me, “What glaze did you put on these vegetables?” I hadn’t done anything other than add olive oil and salt, but when cooked all together a deliciously sweet glaze had begun to caramelize over the veggies! Definitely would recommend!
Yum!! Thanks, Chris!
What should you do if you do not have a cast iron skillet?
Hi, Rachel. You can just use a use a different type of oven-safe pan or skillet.
I made it tonight … it was super delicious. Love all your recipes !!! Wish I could send you a picture!