Monday, August 2, 2010

Chicken grilled under a brick

A friend recently reminded us of a recipe where you cook a whole chicken under a brick. In the September 2009 issue of Bon Appetit, Chef Rob Suhanosky of Sfoglia restaurant in New York describes perfectly how this is done.
Of course we were in "town" (this requires a 45 mile round trip) and the local grocer had beautiful, plump, whole chickens for $.79 a pound. We bought one over 4 pounds but did not have the recipe with us. So we improvised and we were pleased with the results. You can marinade this chicken any way you wish. The technique is what makes this so good and so much fun.
Cut on either side of the backbone and remove it. Flatten the chicken with the palms of your hands. Marinade overnight. We used what we had on hand....olive oil, lime juice, (could be lemon), oregano, Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper and a couple of cloves of garlic.
We decided to grill over charcoal and indirectly for fear of flare-ups. You can do this directly over charcoal or gas grill. In fact, the Chef cook his at 400 degrees in the oven.

We layed two aluminium wrapped bricks on top of the back of the chicken to first give the breast a nice browning. Left it for about 15 minutes. Then turned the chicken over and again put the bricks on top for about 30-40 minutes.


The chicken was very juicy and tender. It almost cooked itself.

14 comments:

  1. I've never tried this, but it looks like fun!

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  2. Oooooooooh, self cooking chicken!
    Your power is back, I trust?

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  3. Pretty nifty! I'll just have to try this! :)

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  4. What a good idea. Next barbecue we have....... Diane

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  5. I saw this done with a large cast iron skillet somewhere recently too. It looks delicious! I will definitely have to try it.

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  6. This is a great way to serve a really flavorful chicken. I now know that in addition to your other fine attributes you both have great memories and can improvise. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  7. Susan, I'm just jumping back in to thank you for letting me know about OPB's inclusion in Food News Journal. I would have missed it. I'm super busy trying to get the house ready for my favorite visitors. Take care....Mary

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  8. YUMMY! I am going to have to try this! SOOOOOO, we missed you on the way to Montana this year.. :( I hope we can see you on the way back.. :) AND that you enjoy your trip!

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  9. I've heard and read abaout this chicken; always wondered.Now you have me wanting to try this; looks so good.
    Rita

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  10. Dear Susan,
    many thanks for your lovely wishes - I´m very pleased about it -
    all the best for you -
    Ruth

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  11. What a great way to do chicken on the grill. I'll give this a try.
    Sam

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  12. I've been wanting to try this and now I will after seeing yours. It looks delicious!

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  13. Now that is worth a try!

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  14. This sounds like a really good idea! We will definitely have to give this a try

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