Greek Fire Roasted Chicken
- Carbohydrate 4.2559275 g
- Cholesterol 241.90375 mg
- Fat 59.90299 g
- Fiber 1.9109999370575 g
- Protein 44.8425875 g
- Saturated Fat 25.9531295 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (296g)
- Sodium 430.244 mg
- Sugar 2.34492756294251 g
- Trans Fat 4.73037200000001 g
- Calories 733 calories
Step-by-step
- Soften the butter and mix in the feta and about 1/2 of the oregano. Shape into a log by rolling it in parchment paper and squeezing into shape. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes or long enough to be firm.
- Using your fingers, separate the skin from the meat in several areas around the breasts and thighs of the chicken. Work about 1/3 of the compound butter and all of the diced olive into the pockets. Don't worry if it crumbles, mine did. You can move some of it down into the legs and hard to reach areas by "massaging" or pushing it along from above the skin.
- Crumble about 1/2 of the butter mixture on top of the spatchcocked chicken and season with the salt, pepper, and remaining oregano. (This will leave some leftover compound butter. It's great to spread on bread and then toasting in the oven.)
- Roast the chicken skin side up on a grill set up for indirect cooking at 350f. You'll want to use some sort of drip pan because this one will get messy as the butter starts to melt and baste the chicken with it's magic.
- Setting for cooking on the BGE: Plate setter in legs up, drip pan on top, bird on the plain grid. If you want crispier skin, you could use a raised grid ("grid extender"). I was using plain lump, bottom vent open about 1-11/2". Most of the time the DMFT was closed with the daisy wheel open.
- Setting for charcoal/gas grills: It's ideal to have heat sources on both sides of the chicken. For example if you have a left, middle and right burner, have the left and right ones on with the chicken over the middle (turned off) burner. If you can only have heat on one side, you'll want to rotate (not flip) the chicken every 15 minutes for even cooking.
- Setting for oven: Preheat a cast iron skillet in the 350f oven for a good 10-15 minutes. After you put the butter under the skin BUT BEFORE you put it on top, place the chicken skin side down in the skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes to get a quick sear on the skin. Flip the chicken over in the skillet. Now top with the butter mixture, seasonings and herbs and roast as directed.
- Roast the bird until it his 180f internal temp in the thighs and 160f internal in the breasts. This should take from 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours but go by temp. About 1 hour into the roast, sprinkle the juice of the lemon over the chicken.
- Let rest for 10 minutes, carve and serve.
Spatchcocking a whole bird removes the backbone, flattening the carcass so the breast meat and legs absorb heat at a more uniform rate. When the butter, feta, and olive mixture melts into the pockets beneath the skin, the milk solids in the dairy brown while the fat renders down into the muscle fibers, protecting the lean breast tissue from drying out during prolonged cooking. Because whole roasted poultry yields generous portions, repurposing the chilled remnants requires specific storage and handling strategies to preserve moisture.
Transforming Chilled Leftovers Safely
Refrigerate carved meat within two hours of roasting inside an airtight container, consuming the portions within four days. Cold poultry dries out rapidly when reheated directly under high dry heat. Instead, submerge shredded portions into simmering broth or fold them into warm grains where residual moisture prevents protein tightening. Always verify that internal temperatures reach 165 degrees Fahrenheit during reheating before serving.
- Store leftover compound butter separately for up to five days to melt over toasted bread.
- Rest carved meat for precisely 10 minutes to allow muscle fibers to reabsorb escaping juices.
- Monitor breast temperature until it reaches 160 degrees Fahrenheit while thighs hit 180 degrees Fahrenheit.
