Home › Poultry and Game › Broiled Chicken
Broiled Chicken
After the chickens have been drawn, split through the back, flatten with a cleaver or chopper and lay on a heated gridiron over a bright fire. They must be constantly watched and turned several times. When done, lay on a hot platter, season with pepper, salt and butter, and serve with giblet sauce.
A spatchcocked broiler over live coals, written for a cook who owned a gridiron and judged the fire by eye. The method translates directly to a grill or a broiler pan, provided the bird is small.
- "Drawn" and splitDrawn means gutted; the head and feet may still be on. Split through the back and flatten is what is now called spatchcocking — press hard on the breastbone until the bird lies flat, which is what makes the thickness even enough to broil.
- Bird sizeA broiling chicken of this period was generally a small bird, on the order of 1½ to 2½ lb; the recipe's plural "chickens" is consistent with that, though it may simply reflect cooking for a table. A modern 4 lb roaster will scorch outside before the thighs are done; buy poussins or small broilers, or use a 3 lb bird cut into halves.
- A bright fireCoals burned down to a steady glow with no flame, not fresh fuel. On a gas grill or under a broiler, medium-high with the bird 5–6 inches from the heat is the equivalent; too close and the skin blackens while the joints stay pink.
- DonenessThe original leaves this to judgement. Reckon 25–35 minutes for a small bird, turning every 5 minutes, and take it off at 165F at the thickest part of the thigh.
- Season at the endThe pepper, salt and butter go on after cooking, on the hot platter. Whatever the reason, it suits the method: butter dripping into coals flares. The butter melting into the resting juices is the sauce.
- Giblet sauceMade from the neck, heart and gizzard (not the liver, which turns bitter) simmered to a stock, then thickened with a butter-and-flour roux. Simmer the giblets while the chicken broils and you will have it ready.
- YieldHalf a small broiler per person, so two birds serve four.
Broiling was the fast, high-heat option in a wood- or coal-fired kitchen, and it belonged to young birds: by the later nineteenth century poultry was commonly sold by age and weight, with young spring birds of a pound or two sold for broiling and older birds for roasting or stewing. The gridiron — a grid of iron bars on short legs, set directly over the coals of an open hearth or in the firebox of a range — is the vessel the recipe assumes, and the instruction to watch constantly and turn several times is not fussiness but the only control available when the heat cannot be dialled down. The seasoning and butter are added after cooking, and the giblets turned into a separate sauce, so the flavour is built at the platter rather than in a marinade.