Spatchcock

§ Summary

To spatchcock (also called butterflying) a chicken or turkey, you cut out the backbone with poultry shears and press the bird flat. That one move solves the central problem of cooking whole poultry: a round bird cooks unevenly, leaving the breast overdone by the time the thighs are safe. Flattened, the whole bird sits at one level — so white and dark meat finish together and every inch of skin faces the heat at once for even Maillard browning. It also cooks dramatically faster — a spatchcocked turkey roasts in around 80 minutes instead of hours. On the grill it shines over a two-zone fire (or around a vortex for crisp skin), bone-side down so it slow-roasts without scorching. Kenji popularized the method for the modern home kitchen — his spatchcocked Thanksgiving turkey above all — and it's now the default for anyone who wants even, crisp-skinned poultry.

§ At a glance

The cut: Backbone removed with poultry shears; bird pressed flat
Also called: Butterflying
Why: Even cooking, crisp skin all over, faster, easier carving
Chicken: ~1 hr at 350–400°F (vs 1.5+ hrs whole)
Turkey: ~80–90 min (vs 3+ hrs conventional)
Pull at: Breast ~157°F, thighs ~170°F — carryover finishes both

§ Prep

Before you cook.

Equipment: Sturdy poultry shears or kitchen scissors (not a knife — you're cutting through ribs), a heavy cutting board, paper towels, and an instant-read thermometer.
The cut: Bird breast-down. Cut up both sides of the backbone from tail to neck, remove it, flip the bird over, and press hard on the breastbone with your palms until it cracks flat.
Dry brine: Salt all over and air-dry uncovered in the fridge overnight — the single biggest lever for crisp skin.
Save the backbone: Don't toss it — it makes excellent stock or the base for gravy.

§ Best for

What to cook with it.

Whole chicken

The everyday win — even cook, crisp skin, ready in about an hour.

Whole turkey

The Thanksgiving game-changer — done in ~90 min with no dry breast.

Cornish hens & poussin

Small birds flatten and crisp beautifully.

Quail & game birds

Even faster; the flat shape keeps delicate meat from overcooking.

Grill, smoker, or oven

Works anywhere — the geometry is what does the work.

Skip

Pre-cut parts

Already cooking thighs, breasts, or wings separately? There's no whole bird to flatten — spatchcocking is specifically for cooking a bird whole.

§ Variations

Other ways to do it.

Brick chicken (al mattone)
Weigh the flattened bird down with foil-wrapped bricks or a heavy pan so even more skin presses onto the grate — maximum contact, maximum crisp. Malcom Reed's Big Green Egg version is the backyard take.
Dry-brine + air-dry
Salt and rest the bird uncovered overnight before cooking. Not optional if you want shatter-crisp skin — the dried surface browns far better than a damp one.
Spatchcock + vortex
Ring a spatchcocked chicken around a vortex cone for screaming-hot, even, crackly skin on a kettle.
Butter under the skin
Loosen the skin and spread compound butter or herbs underneath before flattening — the flat shape holds it in place and bastes the breast as it cooks.

§ Common pitfalls

What goes wrong.

Used a knife, not shears
The backbone cut goes through ribs — a chef's knife slips and is dangerous. Use poultry shears or sturdy kitchen scissors, cutting just alongside the spine on both sides.
Skin didn't crisp
Wet skin steams. Dry-brine uncovered overnight and pat bone-dry before cooking — surface moisture is the #1 reason skin turns flabby instead of crisp.
Burnt bottom on the grill
Direct high heat scorches the skin before the inside cooks. Grill bone-side down over indirect heat (a two-zone fire), saving any direct searing for a quick skin-side finish.
Uneven cook persists
If the breast still outpaces the thighs, aim the thighs toward the hotter zone and the breast toward the cooler side — the flat shape lets you point the heat where the dark meat needs it.
Pulled at one temp
White and dark meat finish at different temps. Check the breast (~157°F) and the thigh (~170°F) separately — pulling the whole bird on a single reading overcooks one or undercooks the other.

§ Hear from the experts

What each of them says.

4 of the people we trust have covered this. Read or watch each in their own words.

01
J. Kenji López-Alt
Serious Eats
Spatchcocking — removing the backbone and pressing the bird flat — is the quickest, most even way to cook poultry. Flattening exposes all the skin to the heat at once for uniform browning, evens out the cook between fast-cooking white meat and slow-cooking dark, and slashes the time (a whole turkey in about 80 minutes). Dry-brine and air-dry the night before for the crispest possible skin.
Read on Serious Eats→
02
Meathead Goldwyn
AmazingRibs.com
Cut out the backbone with poultry shears and press the bird flat. The payoff: you can season every side evenly, it cooks faster with less moisture loss, white and dark meat finish together, and carving is easier. Grill or roast it bone-side down so it slow-roasts without drying out or burning, and pull it around 160°F.
Read on AmazingRibs→
03
Susie Bulloch
Hey Grill, Hey
Cut up both sides of the backbone with sharp kitchen shears, remove it, and flip the bird to flatten. The flat shape cooks evenly on the grill — no raw thighs next to overdone breast — and exposes maximum skin to crisp up. Season simply, cook through, and finish with a glaze or BBQ sauce.
Read on Hey Grill, Hey→
04
Malcom Reed
HowToBBQRight / YouTube
Malcom spatchcocks a whole chicken and weighs it down with foil-wrapped bricks on a 300°F Big Green Egg — the 'brick chicken' method presses maximum skin onto the grate for even contact and crackly skin.
Watch on YouTube→