A Passionate Plea to Stop Spatchcocking Your Chickens

Several of my colleagues will tell you that spatchcocking is a wonderful way to cook a chicken. The theory is that a spatchcocked bird—which has had the backbone removed, so it can lay relatively flat while cooking—"cooks more evenly in an oven" and is "easier to flip on a grill."

I disagree. Spatchcocking (the unpleasantness only begins at the name) is a terrible way to cook a bird. Spatchcocking a chicken (or turkey) does not save time, and does not make for more even cooking. It does, however, make for a very unattractive meal.

This is just my personal opinion, of course. It's by no means the official stance of Epicurious. But here are several reasons why I think it should be:

Spatchcocking Does Not Save Time

Many articles will tell you that a spatchcocked bird cooks in less time than non-spatchcocked birds, and while this may be true in some instances, spatchcocking will almost always take more time in the long run. This is because despite how "easy" some reports try to convince you spatchcocking is, it is actually a hassle. It's a hassle to find a surface big enough for prepping the bird. It's a hassle to cut out the spine if you don't have dedicated kitchen shears. It's a hassle to clean those shears if you do have them. It's a hassle to clean your kitchen afterwards, because despite your best efforts, the spatchcocked bird will flop around and brush against your counter and your stand mixer and your knife block—after which you'll tailspin into a frenzy of cleaning because cleaning up after a poultry encounter is the closest most of us will come to becoming Lady MacBeth.

Spatchcocking Is Not the Only Way to Achieve an Evenly Cooked Bird

Look, I'm not going to go so far as to say that spatchcocking cooks unevenly. But in my experience, the result is not dramatically different than roasting a bird whole. And so if even cooking is your top priority, I suggest a better, easier option. They're called chicken parts.

That's right, America—chicken is sold in parts! And guess what? Turkey is, too. So instead of spatchcocking, get yourself some chicken legs and thighs, or cut that bird into parts yourself. Not only do these individual parts cook evenly, they also have more surface area—and that means more delicious, smoky charring from a grill and more golden, crispy skin.

Don't feel like dealing with all those small separated pieces? At least get yourself a halved chicken, which you can flip on the grill with ease but can still be presented in larger pieces that are more visually appealing than a splayed-out spatchcocked chicken.

And speaking of visuals...

3. Spatchcocked Poultry Is Ugly

Point of evidence:

I rest my case.

Originally Appeared on Epicurious