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This Spatchcock Chicken recipe is our favorite way to roast a whole chicken. Every part of the roasted chicken turns out juicy and so flavorful with that garlic herb butter (the same one we use on our roasted turkey!). This one pan chicken dinner is easy and so delicious!
There is no marinating or lengthy prep required. This is simple enough for a busy weeknight but it’s also a crowd-pleaser and perfect for company!
The potatoes, carrots and Brussels sprouts roast along with the chicken. This blend of vegetables bakes to perfection and every bite is supremely flavorful. The potatoes have a crisp salty skin with a creamy inside and these were some of the best tasting Brussels sprouts I’ve tried.
Watch the video on how to Spatchcock a Chicken and prepare this easy one-pan chicken dinner – one of our favorite whole chicken recipes!
Watch how to Spatchcock Chicken Video:
A whole roasted chicken can be tricky because the chicken breast can quickly dry out by the time the dark meat is cooked through, but when you butterfly a chicken (spatchcock), the chicken breast sits lower in the pan on the same level as the legs so it bakes more evenly and results in a juicy, moist and flavorful chicken.
Ingredients for Spatchcock Chicken Recipe:
For this recipe, you will need a 4 to 4 1/2 lb whole chicken. Allow the raw chicken to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before using for more even baking. The flavored butter is incredible and makes every bite memorable. We it in several of our recipes because it just works. See the full print-friendly list of ingredients in the recipe card below.
Ingredients for 1-Pan Chicken Dinner:
To make this a one-pan meal, we add potatoes, carrots and Brussels sprouts. Everything roasts together and you don’t have to toss or flip anything while it is roasting in that amazing flavored butter.
How to Spatchcock Chicken:
1. (Preheat Oven to 425˚F after step 4) Place chicken breast-side down with the wings/ neck facing towards you. Use kitchen shears to cut through the ribs right next to the spine on both sides to remove spine.** Open the rib cage and use a heavy chefs knife to score down the sternum. This will help to pop out the breast bone and flatten the chicken. Season under the chicken with about 1/2 tsp salt and a pinch of black pepper.
**Keep the spine and bones from the roasted chicken after it is carved and use them for the best homemade chicken bone broth!
2. Flip the chicken over with the breast side up and place on a parchment-lined, rimmed baking half sheet. Using the palm of your hand, push firmly over the breast bone so the chicken lays completely flat. You want it to lay flat so all parts of the chicken bake evenly. Separate the skin from the meat over breast, thigh and drumstick areas.
3. In a small mixing bowl, combine the flavored butter ingredients and mash together with a fork for a couple of minutes until most of the lemon juice is incorporated into the butter.
4. Spread 2/3 of it under the chicken skin and spread and dot remaining butter all over the chicken.
5. Place prepared vegetables all around the chicken then drizzle all over with olive oil and sprinkle generously with salt and some black pepper to taste.
6. Bake uncovered at 425˚F for 45 minutes or until instant read thermometer registers 160˚F when inserted into the thickest part of the chicken breast. Don’t over-bake or the breast will be dry. Keep in mind the temperature will rise another 5-10 degrees after it comes out of the oven. Remove form oven and rest uncovered 10 minutes on a cutting board before serving.
More One-Pan, Easy Chicken Dinner Ideas:
Here are some of the reader favorite chicken recipes on our blog.
- One Pan Chicken Breast and Veggies Dinner
- Avocado Chicken Salad (Wildly Popular!)
- 15 One-Pan Dinners for Lazy Nights
⬇Print-friendly Spatchcock Chicken Recipe:
Spatchcock Chicken Recipe Video
Ingredients
Ingredients for Spatchcock Chicken Recipe:
- 4 1/4 lb whole chicken, *
- 1/2 tsp salt, (we used sea salt)
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
Ingredients for Flavored Butter:
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 1 Tbsp olive oil, plus more to drizzle
- 1 Tbsp parsley, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 tsp lemon zest
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp salt, plus more for vegetables
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
Ingredients for 1-Pan Chicken Dinner:
- 2 lbs medium red potatoes, scrubbed and quartered
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and quartered
- 8 oz Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
Instructions
- (Preheat oven to 425˚F after step 4). Place chicken breast-side down with the wings/ neck facing towards you. To remove the spine, use kitchen shears to cut through the ribs right next to the spine along both sides. Open rib cage and use a heavy knife to score down the sternum. This will help pop out the breast bone and flatten chicken. Season inside the chicken with 1/2 tsp salt and a pinch of black pepper.
- Flip the chicken over breast side up and set on parchment-lined, rimmed baking half sheet. Using the palm of your hand, push firmly over the breast bone forcing the chicken to lay completely flat. Use your thumbs to separate the skin from the meat over breast, thigh and drumstick areas.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the flavored butter ingredients. Mash with fork for a couple of minutes until lemon juice is mostly incorporated into butter.
- Spread 2/3 of mixture under the chicken skin and and dot/spread remaining butter all over chicken.
- Place prepared vegetables all around the chicken and drizzle everything with olive oil. Sprinkle chicken and vegetables generously with salt and some black pepper to taste.
- Bake uncovered at 425˚F for 45 min or until instant read thermometer reads 160˚F when inserted into thickest part of chicken breast**. Remove form oven and rest uncovered 10 minutes on a cutting board before serving.
Notes
**Don't over-bake or the breast will be dry. Keep in mind internal temp will rise another 5-10 degrees after it comes out of oven.
Nutrition Per Serving
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Have you tried this method for roasting a whole chicken? I hope you’re excited about making it after watching this video!! If you try it, let me know how you liked loved it! 🙂
Made this recipe tonight. It was soo good. My husband always prefers beef, not a big chicken fan
He said this was the best chicken he’s ever had. Wonderful flavor!! Thank you for this great recipe.
Wow, love the compliment! Thanks so much for sharing that with us.
This is the first time I try this recipe. It has all the right flavours and timing but the butter is way too much. A heart attack waiting to happen. After I ate this I felt my arteries blocking up. (yes, over the top) but so is 4 tablespoons of butter. This recipe has so much more potential with a bit more fine (healthy) tuning.
I don’t have alternatives at the moment but I will scroll through the comments for healthier options.
Hi Joe – I’ve been making this recipe for the past couple of years, and I just skip the whole butter-mixture entirely. Instead, I rub some olive oil on the outside of the chicken and toss the vegetables in olive oil and leave it at that. Still wonderful taste and flavour!
And of course I also season the chicken and the vegetables with salt and pepper! 🙂 And you don’t have to go to heavy on the olive oil either – the juices from the chicken as it cooks provides plenty of tasty flavour.
I learned an important lesson today when I made this for my grandchildren. Don’t substitute beets for the brussel sprouts. My grandkids exclaimed that there was blood on the chicken (from the beets) and one of them would not eat it. The chicken turned out great so it’s his loss!
Oh no! Haha. Well I’m glad it turned out great still!
Delicious! Used a 6 LB chicken and roasted for 60 minutes. A new family favorite. Thanks for sharing!
Glad you liked it! Thank you for sharing.
Thank you so much for creating delicious recipes! This as with all your recipes was not a disappointment and is the best roast chicken I have ever had. Definitely the best I have ever made. The flavors and juiciness and tenderness is amazing.
Hi Shayna! I’m so glad to hear that. Thank you for sharing that with us.
This is incredibly delicious, it’s the only way I cook chicken now.
No more dry chicken! Thank you
That’s great to hear, Gayla! Thank you for sharing your experience.
This turned out perfect!!! So delicious…. I’d like to try 4 at once for th holidays. What do you recommend for adjusted ingredients and cook time?
Hi Brandon, If you’re looking to double (or 4x) this recipe, that should work well! Simple make 4x the ingredients. Bake time will like to vary (increase) if you find a way to fit all four into the oven simultaneously.
Natasha you NEVER fail to deliver. This was superb!
I didn’t have fresh parsley so just used a 1/2 teaspoon of herb’s de Provence in the butter. I also had a 5.5 b chicken so I cooked it about 15 minutes longer to reach doneness. I love ALL of your recipes. Keep smiling.
Thank you, Cris! So glad to hear that.
So delicious. Love this recipe. Turns out perfectly every time, the chicken is so moist and tasty.
Thank you for your fantastic feedback, Barbara! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
This looks delicious, I am very excited to try your recipe!
One question: What size sheet pan did you use in your video?
Hi Sue, we used this 13×18 inch Sheet pan HERE. I hope you love this recipe!
Can you replace Brussel sprouts with broccoli? This dish looks amazing.
Hi Lizanne, I haven’t tested that but here is what one of our readers wrote: “Soooo yummy. I did substitute broccoli for the Brussels sprouts for my hubby. It turned out so good and very juicy. Thanks for another great meal.” I hope this is helpful.
Hey I plan on making a larger version of this recipe. How long do you think a 6lb. Chicken would take?
Hi Ed, It will take a bit longer; I recommend checking it until an instant-read thermometer registers 160˚F when inserted into the thickest part of the chicken breast.
I have used this recipe in the past and it is amazing. Can I use this same recipe for a 4lb turkey?
Hi Kristen, that should be fine. Just use a thermometer to check for doneness.
Since we do not use butter in our home, can you let us know if there is a good substitute that we can use with your spatchcock recipe?
Hi Lawrence! I have not tested an alternative but one of my readers commented on using bacon fat in place of butter so I’m sure you could experiment with different options.
The best substitute for no butter is Mayo. Either Hellman’s or Miracle whip.
I’m giving this 5 stars just based on the scent. I cannot wait for dh to come home for dinner!
I also saw a clever way to spatchcock a chicken that also remove the ribcage essentially turning this in to a boneless chicken breast with bone-in legs and thighs. It took about 10-15 minutes off of the cook time and the end result is just lovely!
Hi Tammy! Thank you for the feedback. I hope you enjoy it.
I would have given 5 stars but I cooked 45 minutes AND used an instant read thermometer. The vegetables were not cooked through and the dark meat needed more time. It was plenty juicy and probably could’ve used at least another 10-15 minutes. This was also only a 3lb chicken.
Same for me but I have an oven that undercooks a bit plus I didn’t use a baking sheet but rather a crockery type pot with no lid.
I had some leftover bacon fat, and used ~3T of that instead of butter. Delicious, and the breasts stayed juicy! 😋
That’s a great idea, thanks for sharing!
Hi Natasha,
Many thanks for sharing. I am planning to serve this in the near future. I was wondering if I can do the herbed butter bit the night before serving the next day?
Hi Anne, it would be fine to butter it up and make it the next day.
Hi
I love the way you present your cooking, easy to follow. this is yummy
Thank you for your great comments and appreciation!
This is a terrific recipe! I made it the other night and loved it, and enjoyed the leftovers in bagel sandwiches and paella. The seasoning is perfect – tasty and supportive of the chicken flavor, but not dominating the dish. I’ll use this as my go-to for roasting chicken from now on.
Thank you so much for sharing that wonderful review with me, Carolyn! I’m so happy you enjoyed that!
This recipe never fails and is definitely a crowd pleaser! Plus, when you remove the spine, you can let it simmer and make a very flavourful gravy with that broth and the pan drippings. A winner all around!
Hi Bianca! That’s great. So glad this recipe is enjoyed. 🙂