Grilled Split Chicken

This one is so easy and delicious, I just had to share...

Marinated and Grilled Split Chicken

1 3 lb. chicken
1/2 cup olive oil
juice of 3 lemons
1 tbsp minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste

1. Prepare the chicken by "splitting it." Turn the chicken so the breast side is down. Using sharp knife or poultry shears, cut along the back bone on one side, than the other. Remove the backbone. Using your hands, push down on either side of the chicken so it is flat. Tuck the wing and leg under, use the palm of your hand to flatten the joints of the thigh and leg. Salt and pepper to taste and place in a non-reactive dish.

2. Prepare the marinade. (Olive Oil, Lemon Juice, Garlic)

3. Put chicken in flat container (casserole, baggie, whatever you have on hand to pour marinade into) and pour marinade over chicken. Turn chicken over a couple of times in marinade so it is well coated. Marinate for 2-3 hours or overnight in the refrigerator, turning once or twice.

4. Heat grill. When grill is heated, take chicken out of marinade and put on grill, skin side down and grill for about 15 minutes. Turn over, baste with leftover marinade and grill for another 15 minutes. Turn chicken over 1 more time, and grill another 12 minutes or until done. Remove from grill and serve up!

Now, I happen to have a mattone, which is essentially a terracotta weight for cooking chickens. It makes the chickens extra crispy and still keeps everything moist. I did wrap the top of my mattone (you can use a brick too..) in aluminum foil, spray with olive oil, and put this on top of the chicken when I started grilling. Really all this does is weight the chicken down - if you have a brick or mattone, give it a try- if not, just grill away!!!

Delicious!