‘Blast From the Past’ Recipe

Menu Mistress

Spatchcock Chicken with Rosemary, Garlic and Chilli (Serves 4-6)


January is the month for getting our diets back on track after December’s festive feasts. So, with this in mind, I thought I’d re-share this recipe, which was one of the first recipes I shared back in 2020! It’s a recipe which I go back to time and time again. It’s my healthy day recipe. When I feel that I’ve overindulged, I love the subtle seasoning of this chicken and enjoy it simply served with a good green salad. I try to resist baby roast potatoes on the side, but they sometimes win the battle (recipe here)!..

If  you get your chicken from your butcher, ask him to spatchcock it for you, alternatively it is very easy to do yourself…

How to Spatchcock a Chicken:

On the backside of the chicken, using a pair of strong kitchen scissors, cut along either side of the back bone to remove it, then flip the chicken over and press down very firmly on its breast bones, it will give a satisfying crack as it flattens! Some people like to insert skewers to help keep the chicken flat during cooking but in my experience they make no difference, so I prefer not to use them as they make it more difficult to carve the bird.

Click here to watch the video on me spatchcocking a chicken on my Instagram Page!

1 x 1.8 – 2.25kg chicken

1 teaspoon of sea salt flakes

For the marinade:

1 tablespoon freshly chopped rosemary (about 3 sprigs)

4 cloves of garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (about 20 grinds of a pepper grinder)

½ teaspoon chilli flakes

Juice of half a lemon

4 tablespoons olive oil

  1. Firstly make the marinade by combining all the ingredients together.
  2. Cover the chicken all over with the marinade – I use a brush to do this.
  3. Place it breast side up, flattened out, in a roasting tin. Sprinkle over with the sea salt flakes.
  4. Place in a preheated oven, 180’c fan, for 45-50 minutes, depending on the size of your chicken.
Unknown's avatar

Published by Menu Mistress

Cooking has always been something I've enjoyed, I have an extensive collection of cookbooks, some are well thumbed whilst others collect dust on the shelves; I can’t bear to get rid of any cook book, just in case one day I might use it for that one obscure recipe - light on a rainy day! I enjoy eating out and discovering new flavours, whether it’s just a local haunt or a ‘dress up’ to dinner restaurant - food is my hobby! In my opinion food is the one of the most important pieces of knowledge you need to know about any culture in order to really understand it, so when we go away, it’s not the local sights that I’m googling but the best place to eat! I'm not one of those fortunate cooks who can throw something together by looking at the contents of their fridge, I need a plan to work with, then I organise my fridge around the recipe. I am however a very organised person, you might even call me a control freak! I love the orderly fashion of a recipe, I find it soothing to have a plan in front of me, so the thought of trawling through my recipe books and trying new recipes is my idea of a perfect afternoon. But I realise that this is not everyones idea of fun, hence the birth of this blog. This blog is essentially for people who adore food but don’t have the time, patience or energy to search through cook books to find that winning recipe – that’s the job of Menu Mistress!

Leave a comment