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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! 🙂
I made this for our family tonight! They loved it!!!! Next time, I’ll add more carrots! They ended up being everyone’s favorite!!!
Sounds like you found a new family favorite, Stacy! Thank you for sharing your awesome review with me!
It’s in the oven for the 2nd time tonight. Loved it the first time, and it was even easier this time. So delicious!!
Wow! Sounds like you found a new favorite! I’m so happy you enjoyed this chicken recipe, Linda!
since I discovered this recipe, I make it about once a week. I never make it the same way twice, depending upon which vegetables I want. Beets are the best, and always brussel sprouts. And, of course, the Parts I cut out, become soup. tonight, I have golden beets, red beets, carrots, the last of the red potatoes from the garden, and obligatory brussel sprouts. Picture to follow!
That sounds amazing, Bill! Sounds like you have a new family favorite!
Delicious. I cooked a 6.5 lb chicken and it took almost two hours. Not sure if my oven is going or what. That said, my husband and two adult sons ate the whole thing and my little Maltese and two rescue cats whined until we fed them the leftover scraps. Thanks for the great recipe.
That’s just awesome!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review 🙂 I would recommend checking to be sure your oven is calibrated properly, oven temperatures do vary.
PS Placed black truffle butter (D’Artagnon.under skin of chicken with zest, etc. Tasty.
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Great spatchcock chicken, Natasha! Going to check out the other recipes! Thanks for sharing, and God Bless!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!
Love this recipe! I add fresh thyme or lemon thyme (about a tablespoon into the butter mix and sparingly around the veggies). This is a staple in our home! Then, I use the instant pot to make broth from the leftover bones/ meat/ neck/etc. for amazing chicken noodle soup the next day! Love your recipes! ❤
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Irene! I’m so happy you enjoyed that!
Can you cook this in the Instant Pot? If so, what would the settings be?
Hi Janice, I have not tried that in an Instant Pot so I cannot advise. I looked through the comments and couldn’t find anyone else trying that either.
Uhhh DELICOUS!!! I didn’t measure out ingredients and also added some onion powder and paprika to the skin. It was SO SO good! Will definitely be making it again!!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing that with me!
Made this spatchcock chicken tonight and we all loved it! Very tender, juicy chicken. My chicken was a bit bigger so I had to cook it longer. Yum!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Thank you, Natasha!
My husband and my father-in-law were very impressed!!! My husband actually said that potatoes were even better than the chicken, that’s how delicious they were!
I followed the recipe to the T but everything didn’t fit on one baking sheet (I guess I need to buy a bigger one!) so I used a second one for the veggies and then mixed everything together.
45 minutes was perfectly sufficient for a 4.70 lb chicken (I used a thermometer to check internal temperature).
Thank you!!!!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Lana!
Simple to prepare, and so delicious. I made this for a family of 4 and we were practically fighting over those delicious Brussel sprouts. I mean, who does that?! The bird itself was flavoursome and yet surprisingly light. Very moreish and a big hit. I will definitely be making this a again
I’m so happy you enjoyed that! Thank you for the great review!
I made this for Christmas lunch. It was SO delicious! Everything was perfectly cooked and the chicken was so juicy and perfectly seasoned! Definitely making this again.
Sounds like you found a new favorite! Thank you for sharing that with me! 🙂
I made this and it was juicy and delicious! I don’t like Brussels sprouts, so I substituted fennel. Yum!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing your great review!
This was absolutely delicious! I made this for a dinner party and all of my guests were soooo impressed! It was easy to make, and quick to cook. The chicken and veggies were done to perfection in 45 minutes, so tender and flavorful. The only thing I would do differently is to prep all of my veggies ahead of time & have them ready to go once my chicken is prepped. Thank you for sharing this great recipe…now I can’t wait to try some of your others! I’m a “follower” now!
I’m so happy you discovered our blog. Welcome! & thank you for that awesome review!! 🙂
Simply Delicious!—turned out beautifully and juicy and the vegetables were flavorful and roasted to perfection alongside the chicken. This is a ‘keeper’ for me!
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite!
Delicious. I made this for my family of 5, and the chicken was very moist and skin was nice and crispy. I doubled the garlic because we love garlic. Thanks for the recipe, I’ll be adding this to our favorites.
I’m so happy you enjoyed that and found a new favorite! Thank you for sharing that with us!
I just have to say that you’re adorable and your recipes are so great. This is a family favorite. My teenage son helps me and he’s learning to cook. Thank you for what you do. My family enjoys it.
That’s so great, Andrea! I’m so happy you are able to cook that with your son! Thank you for that wonderful review!
Great recipe. I used two Cornish Hens instead but WOW 😊
I’m so happy you loved that!!
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. It has become one of our favorite staples. I make it w/ margarine instead of butter (my daughter has a milk allergy) and the result is effectively identical to the one time I made it with butter. Make sure to halve the Brussel sprouts per Natasha’s images – this helps them burn/caramelize and makes all the difference.
Thank you for that wonderful feedback, Chris!
I made this tonight, followed it to a tee, this was the best I ever made! Maybe try it with a turkey this Thanksgiving!
I’m so happy to hear that!