Easy Spatchcocked Roasted Chicken

Whole Roaster Chicken - The Economical Choice

Buying whole chicken is much less expensive per pound than buying boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs.  I don't know about you, but as a family with growing children and growing appetites we are always looking for ways to save a little money at the grocery store.  However, roasting a whole chicken can seem both intimidating and time consuming.  Trust me, I know we are all busy and do not have hours to tend to a chicken roasting in the oven and often the convenience of the boneless, skinless chicken is hard to best.  That is where this Easy Spatchcocked Roasted Chicken recipe saves the day!  Spatchcocking is a cooking technique where the backbone of the chicken is removed and then the whole chicken is laid flat on the pan.  This allows the meat to cook more evenly and subsequently much faster making a whole roasted chicken for dinner possible even on a weeknight.   

Bone Broth

The added bonus to cooking whole chicken is that you will be left with chicken bones and this means bone broth.  Chicken bone broth is full of nutrients and a staple in the kitchen.  We use it for soups, stews, sauces and gravies, I also cook rice in bone broth for added nutrition and flavor.  Additionally, making your own bone broth allows you to control the ingredients and ensure that it is gluten-free.  

Making bone broth is easy and versatile.  You can make it right away or you can freeze the bones for up to 3 months in a zip toc bag and make the broth when you are ready.  You can find my recipe for Easy Instant Pot Chicken Bone Broth recipe here.  I usually keep it simple with onion, carrots and celery, but you can add additional aromatics like garlic and herbs or other vegetables that you have on hand or need to use up.  I keep a zip top bag in my freezer full of vegetable scrapes...the tops and bottoms of the stalk of celery, the tops and skins of onions, the peels of carrots and when it comes time to make the bone broth I add them to the pot to flavor the stock.  

Bone broth can be stored in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 1 week or for longer storage, you can freeze the both for up to 3 months.  I like to use silicone soup cubes to freeze the broth in portioned sizes that are easy and convenient to use in recipes.  I promise that once you get in the habit, you’ll never want to go back to store bought broth again.

Herbs and Seasonings

Chicken is a blank slate and can be seasoned any way you prefer.  I kept it simple with this recipe using onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper.  Feel free to jazz up your chicken any way you would like.  Some of our favorite ways to season the whole chicken are below.

Poultry Seasoning - Olive oil, onion powder, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, marjoram or poultry seasoning and salt and pepper

Mexican  - Avocado oil, juice and zest of 1 line, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper

Lemon, Garlic and Rosemary – Olive oil, the juice and zest of 1 lemon, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper