Why spatchcock?

Donnie, I turned it into a leaping frog.  It's interestingly different, also, if for whatever reason the breast is cooking too fast it's easy to separate it from the lower body, then reassembled at the table for presentation!

I just like to tell people that you're eating something with **** in the name. Even though they're girl birds most of the time. Oh, and they taste good.

Did my first spatchcock turkey this year. 15 pounder on a large finished in 2 hours. It was done perfectly and even. Probably won't do a turkey on the Egg any other way. Although, the backbone removal was more difficult than on a chicken.

nolaegghead said:

I just like to tell people that you're eating something with **** in the name. Even though they're girl birds most of the time. Oh, and they taste good.

That's why I said butterflied turkey should be called spatchtom turkey, no?

dldawes1 said:

@ bodski...did you use kitchen shears ??  To me, they work much better/ less effort than using a knife to remove backbone.

I've also been using them for prepping wings...tipping and separating...works very good, I think.

@dldawes1, I started out with shears, but the bone was just too much; ended up with a knife. I use shears on chickens and hens with no problem. I probably don't have a good set of shears, although they'll slice a penny

@Zmokin, indeed, a couple of easy cuts under the rib cage, then flip out the breast. I'm trying to visualise your 'compact version', you mean move the breast behind the butt, then interlock the wings with the drumsticks?

And when there is turmoil in the forum, all you have to to is post a spatchcock with @Mickey‌ Coffee Rub and everything is OK

Zmokin said:

Zmokin said:

Canugghead said:

@Zmokin, indeed, a couple of easy cuts under the rib cage, then flip out the breast. I'm trying to visualise your 'compact version', you mean move the breast behind the butt, then interlock the wings with the drumsticks?

yes, with it completely cut in two froggy style,rotate the bottom 1/2 180 degrees and  tuck the ends of the drumsticks under the wings.  Part of the back may sit up on the tail-end of the breast.

What am I saying?!  Re-looking at the picture, rotating 180 is completely wrong.

As your froggy style is displayed.  If fully disconnected, the leg half just needs to leap frog the breast per se, then tuck the ends of the drumsticks under the wings.

can't wait to see your picture!

For a turkey, I like the look of a bird cooked by the traditional method. The spatch Turk is ugly as heck. Lol

Mattman3969 said:

All the above is correct but I'm gonna go against the grain and prepare for a forum flogging and say that I haven't spatched my last 8-10 chickens. I am either goin inverted on the stand or my favorite as of late and cooking a splayed chicken with root veggies in a hot CI skillet

But not stuffed, right? We all know that to get the stuffing/dressing to a safe temp (160ºF) the breasts are cardboard and the thighs are maybe OK. The best approach is inverted, and for those of us doing one or two at a time, spatched. 

Mattman3969 said:

... only thing stuffed in the cavity is fresh herbs and some form of fruit blocking each end. ...

@Mattman3969 ... why "blocking" each end.

Understand your flavor thought process.  I would think it's an advantage to allow the heat into the interior of the bird ... thus, it'd cook more evenly through the thickness of the breast.

If you heat from the outside only, then the skin temp is high (to drive the heat into the breast bone) and the meat next to the breast bone is the lowest.  If you heat from both the outside and the inside, then the skin and the bone are relatively even and the low temp is in the middle of the breast meat.  Thus, the skin temp doesn't have to get as high to push interior temp to your target.

@Mattman3969 - I'm in the same camp as @Jeepster47 Keep the airspace in the cavity open to circulate "cooking" air. I do put some citrus and herbs inside as it is always a nice touch, must try tangerines, usual is an old orange found rolling around in the fruit bin. That being said, I'll give plugging both ends a try, always up for something different.