Flattened Chicken

The weather finally picked up again and I thought firing up the BBQ was in order. I’d heard about flattened chicken and seen it at the grocery story in the poultry section. I was intrigued when I came across a recipe for it in Kraft’s little promo magazine a while back. It seemed pretty easy and foolproof. The bonus is that you can grill a whole chicken in less time due to it being flattened.

I picked up a nice little chicken at Saslove’s and asked them to flatten it for me. If you buy a whole chicken at the grocery store, you could ask the butcher to do it for you. Of course, you could always do it yourself (strong scissors are recommended instead of using a knife – that’s why I had it done for me).

With our BBQ I needed to shift it around a bit due to the uneven heat and it took longer as well (but again, that could be our BBQ). I picked up a better meat thermometer so next time should be better. The recipe suggested using foil, but next time I’ll pick up a disposable foil tray. The foil kept ripping under the weight of the chicken when I moved it around, causing some flare-ups.

It turned out quite nicely. I’d recommend keeping an eye on it the first time you try this, depending on your BBQ.


Maybe Thanksgiving dinner will be done on the barbie.

Grilled Flattened Chicken (adapted from What’s Cooking, published by Kraft Canada)
3/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tbs fresh rosemary, chopped
1 roasting chicken (3 lb)
Mix first 3 ingredients until well blended. Place chicken in a shallow dish (or freezer bag) and coat with dressing mixture. Refrigerate 2 hours to marinate, occasionally turning chicken over. Heat bbq to medium heat. Cover grate with heavy-duty foil and coat with cooking spray or oil. Remove chicken from marinade and grill chicken, breast-side down, 10 min. or until grill marked. Turn over and grill another 35 min. or until chicken is done (170ºF). Transfer to cutting board. Tent with foil; let stand 10 min.
Balsamic vinaigrette: olive oil, balsamic vinegar, minced garlic, oregano, parsley, basil, salt and pepper