The origins of this dish are from Northern Italy. For best results, marinate for 24 hours.
Serving size: 4
Ingredients:
1 each whole chicken
1-2 bricks wrapped in Foil
Marinade
2 oranges divided
2 lemons divided
6-10 cloves peeled garlic whole
3 tablespoons fresh rosemary divided
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup white wine
2 tablespoons fresh chives chopped
salt and pepper
Directions:
Step 1. Wash and dry the chicken. Cut out the backbone with poultry shears so that the chicken will lay flat. Turn the chicken over, skin side up and press to flatten the chicken as much as possible. Wrap the bricks in foil and set them aside.
Step 2. In a gallon Ziploc bag, squeeze and zest 1 lemon and 1 orange into the bag, and put the squeezed oranges and lemons in the bag. Add garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons of fresh chopped rosemary, olive oil, and salt and pepper. Place chicken in a Ziploc bag to marinate for at least 3 hours, 24 is better. Bring out one hour before cooking to come to room temperature.
Step 3. Heat a 12-inch heavy (preferably cast iron) skillet over medium-high heat on the grill. Very carefully place chicken in pan skin/breast side down. Add the garlic cloves to the pan placing them on top of the chicken.
Step 4. Place the foil bricks on top of the chicken. Grill for 30 minutes and check the bottom side of the chicken for doneness. If it's not a golden brown color, cook longer. Turn over the chicken and let it cook on the other side until the thermometer reaches at least 160F which will be about 15 minutes depending on your heat source. Use a thin metal spatula to pry chicken from the pan so as not to tear the skin.
Step 5. Remove chicken from the pan and let it rest for 5-10 minutes. Pour the wine in the pan and deglaze, scraping the pan to loosen the bits that are stuck to the pan. Boil for 2 minutes and place chicken back in the mixture. Slice the remaining lemon and orange into slices or quarters. Add lemon and orange slices, squeezing on chicken. Chop the remaining tablespoon of rosemary and sprinkle on the chicken along with the 2 tablespoons of chives. Inside cooking directions: Cook on top of the stove for 15 minutes, turn over, then transfer to a 450F oven and cook for 20 minutes. Chicken is done at 165F but can come out of the oven at 160 F.