Ralf’s Roadkill Chicken
Spatchcock piri-piri butter chicken for the barbecue
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1 whole chicken
- Salt, to taste
- Pepper, to taste
Piri-piri butter sauce
- 100–150 g butter
- 2–3 tbsp olive oil
- 3–4 cloves fresh garlic, grated or finely crushed
- 100–150 g bacon, finely chopped
- 1–2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- Piri-piri sauce, as much as you like
- Optional: extra salt and pepper
Method
- Place the chicken breast-side down on a board.
- Cut out the backbone by cutting about 2 cm to the left and right of the spine.
- Turn the chicken over and press firmly on the breastbone until the chicken lies flat. This is the “roadkill” shape.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Prepare the barbecue for gentle, indirect heat. Do not start too hot.
- Put the flattened chicken on the barbecue and cook slowly.
- Meanwhile, make the sauce. Melt the butter with the olive oil in a pan.
- Add the garlic, bacon, oregano, smoked paprika, sweet paprika, and piri-piri sauce.
- Let everything bubble gently so the garlic, herbs, bacon, butter, and piri-piri come together.
- When the chicken is around 30 minutes from finished, begin brushing it with the sauce.
- Brush the chicken, turn it, brush again, turn again, and continue like this until the chicken is cooked through and the skin is shiny and full of flavour.
- Rest the chicken for a few minutes before cutting and serving.
Ralf Note
This is not a press-button-and-go-away chicken. You must stand there. Look, smell, turn, paint, turn, paint. A barbecue is a relationship.
