Best Roasted Spice Rubbed Chicken Under A Brick Recipes

CHEF JOHN'S CHICKEN UNDER A BRICK

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Use kitchen shears to cut down both sides of the backbone. Remove backbone and discard. Cut through breastbone from the inside until chicken folds out like a book and lays flat.
• Season chicken all over with salt and black pepper, and sprinkle herbes de Provence on the inside. Let chicken sit for 20 to 30 minutes at room temperature; pat dry with paper towels. Brush skin-side of chicken with oil and season again with salt and black pepper.
• Heat an oven-proof cast iron skillet over high heat until very hot, about 5 minutes. Place chicken, skin-side down, in hot skillet and place bricks evenly on top to weigh down chicken.
• Roast chicken in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove bricks, turn chicken over, and continue roasting until juices run clear and meat is no longer pink at the bone, 5 to 15 minutes more. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
• Preheat the oven's broiler and broil the chicken until skin is crispy and golden, 1 to 3 minutes.

CHICKEN UNDER A BRICK

Steps:

• Spatchcock the chicken: Use kitchen shears to cut out the backbone from the chicken. Lay the chicken breast-side down on a cutting board and use a large knife to cut through the breastbone. Push the chicken down to flatten it out. Cut the wings off at the third joint (at the wing tip). Now locate the thigh bone. Use a small and sharp knife to cut the flesh off away from the bone, working all the way down to the joint. Once you're at the joint, bend the thigh bone back until you hear it pop and use your knife again to help remove the thigh bone completely. Repeat with the remaining thigh bone.
• Turn the chicken over, blot it dry and refrigerate on a large plate or baking sheet, uncovered, overnight to dry out the skin (this will help make it extra crispy). If you have to skip this step, then dry the chicken as best you can with paper towels and refrigerate, uncovered, for as long as you can.
• Sprinkle the chicken generously on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Heat the oil in a large 12-inch cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Lay the chicken, skin-side down, in the skillet. Add the garlic and herbs to the skillet. Now use either 2 bricks wrapped in foil or another heavy, slightly smaller skillet filled with large cans (tomato cans work nicely) directly on top of the chicken. Cook, leaving the chicken mostly undisturbed, checking every once in a while to make sure the skin is browning evenly and not getting too dark too quickly, and adjusting the heat as needed, until almost all of the meat is white (except for the very top of the breast) and the skin is a deep golden brown and crispy, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove the bricks or weighted skillet and turn the chicken over using tongs and/or a spatula, being careful not to rip the skin. Continue to cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast reads 165 degrees F, 15 to 20 minutes more.
• Remove the chicken and let rest for a few minutes before carving. Serve with lemon wedges.

CHICKEN UNDER A " BRICK" WITH ROASTED POTATOES

Steps:

• Technique: Butterfly a chicken by cutting along the length of one side of the backbone. Turn chicken and cut along the other side of backbone and remove it. Turn chicken breast side up and flatten chicken with the palm of your hand. Then pound it with the flat side of a mallet to a fairly even thickness. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
• Adjust an oven rack to the lowest position and heat oven to 450°F.
• Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a heavy bottomed 12-inch ovenproof nonstick pan over med-high heat until it begins to smoke. Swirl oil to coat the pan. Place the chicken skin side down in the pan and reduce heat to med. Place the weight on the chicken and cook until evenly brown for about 25 minutes, checking every 5 minutes or so. The chicken should be fairly crisp and brown after 20 minutes, if not turn up to med-high heat and continue to cook until well-browned.
• Mix the remaining oil, garlic, 1 1/2 tsp thyme, rosemary, pepper flakes, lemon juice, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper in a small bowl.
• Using tongs, carefully transfer chicken to a plate with the skin side up.
• Pour off any fat from pan and add the potatoes, sprinkling them with 1/4 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp black pepper and the remaining thyme. Place the chicken skin side up on the potatoes and brush the skin with the thyme-lemon juice mixture.
• Transfer pan to oven and roast until the thickest part of the breast registers 160°F on a meat thermometer 10-15 minutes. Transfer chicken to a cutting board and let rest 10 minutes.
• Return the potatoes to the oven and roast until browned and cooked through about 10 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer potatoes to a large bowl leaving fat behind. Toss the potatoes with parsley. Cut the chicken in to pieces and serve with lemon wedges.

CHICKEN UNDER A BRICK

Steps:

• Place the chicken on a cutting board, skin side down, and using your hands, press down hard to make it as flat as possible. Mix together the rosemary leaves, salt, pepper, garlic and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, and rub this all over the chicken. Tuck some of the mixture under the skin as well. If time permits, cover and marinate in the refrigerator for up to a day (even 20 minutes of marinating boosts the flavor).
• When you are ready to cook, preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Preheat an ovenproof 12-inch skillet (preferably nonstick) over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes. Press rosemary sprigs, if using, into the skin side of the chicken. Put remaining olive oil in the pan and wait about 30 seconds for it to heat up.
• Place the chicken in the skillet, skin side down, along with any remaining pieces of rosemary and garlic; weight it with another skillet or with one or two bricks or rocks, wrapped in aluminum foil. The idea is to flatten the chicken by applying weight evenly over its surface.
• Cook over medium-high to high heat for 5 minutes, then transfer to the oven. Roast for 15 minutes more. Remove from the oven and remove the weights; turn the chicken over (it will now be skin side up) and roast 10 minutes more, or until done (large chickens may take an additional 5 minutes or so). Serve hot or at room temperature, with lemon wedges.

SPICE RUBBED ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Combine the salt, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, black pepper, cayenne and lemon zest in a bowl. Wash the chicken and pat very dry. Rub the spice mixture all over the chicken. Set the chicken on a plate and refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours (to dry out the skin and promote crisp skin).
• When you are ready to cook, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Stuff the chicken with the lemon quarters, garlic and bay leaves. Arrange the onion slices to make a bed for the chicken in a large cast-iron skillet. Set the chicken on the onions and tuck the wings tips under the chicken's body. Brush the chicken all over with the melted butter.
• Roast the chicken, basting once halfway through with the pan juices, until the skin is crisp and golden and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thigh (do not touch bone) reads 165 degrees F, about 45 minutes. Let rest at least 10 minutes before carving.

CHICKEN UNDER A BRICK

Steps:

• Put the chicken on a cutting board, skin side down, and press down as hard as you can with your hands to make it as flat as possible. Mix together the minced or dried rosemary, salt and pepper, garlic, and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and rub this all over the chicken. Tuck some of the mixture under the skin as well. If time permits, cover and marinate in the refrigerator for up to a day (even 20 minutes helps).
• When you are ready to cook, preheat the oven to 500°F. Preheat an ovenproof 12-inch skillet (preferably nonstick) over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes. Press the rosemary sprigs into the skin side of the chicken. Put the remaining olive oil in the pan and wait about 30 seconds for it to heat up.
• Put the chicken in the skillet, skin side down, along with any remaining pieces of rosemary and garlic; weight it with another skillet or one or two bricks or rocks wrapped in aluminum foil. The basic idea is to flatten the chicken by applying a fair amount of weight evenly over its surface.
• Cook over medium-high to high heat for 5 minutes, then transfer to the oven. Roast for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and remove the weights; turn the chicken over (it will now be skin side up) and roast for 10 minutes more, or until done (large chickens may take an additional 5 minutes or so). Serve hot or at room temperature, with lemon wedges.

ROASTED SPICE-RUBBED CHICKEN UNDER A BRICK

Steps:

• Rinse the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. In a bowl, mix together the cumin, salt, cinnamon, allspice, pepper, and turmeric. Pat the mixture onto the chicken and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 12 hours.
• Remove the chicken from the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking. Place a 14-inch skillet or heavy-duty roasting or baking pan in the oven, along with 2 foil-wrapped bricks, and preheat the oven to 500°F for 15 minutes.
• Rub the chicken with the olive oil and press it flat. Wearing oven mitts, remove the pan from the oven and press the chicken, skin side down, on the pan. Place a brick on top of each chicken half. (Instead of the foil-wrapped bricks, you can preheat another baking sheet and/or a heavy heatproof object such as a thick cast-iron skillet to use as a weight. Place the baking sheet on top of the chicken and weigh it down with the weight.) Roast for 30 minutes. Garnish the chicken with cilantro and serve with lemon wedges.