Spatchcock Chicken
| Ingredients |
| 1 whole chicken |
| Lanes BBQ Garlic2 Rub |
| Gentry’s BBQ Smoke Stack BBQ Rub |
| 1 stick butter |
| Olive oil |
| Directions |
| Cook Details |
| Prep Time: 20 minutes (plus overnight brine) |
| Cook Time: 3-4 hours |
| Smoker Temp: 275-300 |
| Target Internal Temp: 165-170 |
| Wood: Hickory, Apple |
When it comes to chicken, there are different schools of thought. Some say brining is best; others swear by injecting. I say it’s simply a preference thing and I’m in the former. I’ve never been a big fan of how injecting has turned out. If you go the brine route, do it overnight. For this recipe I just mixed the new Lane’s BBQ Garlic2 Rub with water and let the bird chill in that bath overnight.
The next day, drain the water out and pat your chicken dry and it’s time to apply a technique called spatchcock, which is removing the backbone of the chicken in order to let it lay flat. This helps the bird cook faster and more evenly. Lay it on the counter with the breast facing up and the head facing you. Use a pair of kitchen scissors to cut right along the backbone, on either side of it, all the way down toward the tail end. Cut it all the way through until you’ve removed the backbone. Now, there’s one more thing to do before it will lay flat. Locate the breast bone, which is in the middle, about two-thirds of the way toward the head. Once you find it, use a knife to cut a slit in it, then press down until it cracks. Now, you can flatten the bird out.
Crank up your smoker to 275-300 degrees using your preferred type of wood. For chicken, I like a mix of hickory and apple. While that’s getting ready, make a compound butter by whisking together a stick of room temperature butter with some more Garlic2 Rub and then carefully lift the skin and apply your compound butter as much as possible. Be careful not to tear the skin. This will help you get flavor into the meat, since it won’t penetrate the skin. Now, coat the outside of the chicken liberally with your Gentry’s BBQ Smoke Stack Rub.
Once your smoker is up to temp, put your bird in and let it go. You don’t really need to check on it, just let it go until it reaches 165-170 degrees internally. Once it’s there, take it out, wrap it in foil, and let sit for 30 minutes. Now, you’re ready to slice it and eat! Pair it with some rice or potatoes and you’ve got a nice meal for gameday.
