How to Cook Chicken Under A Brick

Serves: 4

Preparation time: 15 mins + 2 hours (inactive)

Cooking time: 20 mins

Ingredients needed to make Chicken Under A Brick:

• 3 lb whole chicken
• 1 cup olive oil
• 2 tbsp minced garlic
• 2 tsp creole seasoning
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 1 tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
• ½ tsp red pepper flakes, crushed
• 1 tbsp lemon zest, finely grated
• ½ cup fresh lemon juice
• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 ½ tsp salt
• 2-3 bricks, wrapped in aluminum foil

Cooking instructions for Chicken Under A Brick:

• Slice the chicken open and place it on your working counter with its skin side facing up.
• Press down the breastbone firmly with your palms to flatten it out and set aside in a non-reactive baking dish
• Whisk the chopped fresh herbs, garlic, lemon zest, crushed red pepper flakes and a tsp of salt into the lemon juice until well combined and beat in olive oil until all of it is used up and incorporated into the mixture to form a uniform marinade.
• Drizzle this marinade all over the chicken and flip it over to coat either side of the bird.
• Place a lid on top and set aside in the fridge for a couple of hours to marinade.
• Meanwhile, warm up your oven to 500 degrees F and heat up a grill to moderate low at the same time.
• Place the foil-wrapped bricks in the oven and preheat them for about 20 minutes.
• Drain the chicken out and rub the creole seasoning, ground black pepper as well as rest of the salt all over the chicken.
• Place the seasoned chicken on the hot grill rack and arrange the hot bricks on top to cover every inch of it.
• Grill the chicken for about 10 minutes or until prominent grill marks are imprinted on it.
• Flip it over and sear the other side of the chicken, without the bricks for another 10 minutes, or until the juices oozes out of it and its internal temperature rises to 165 degrees F.
• Remove the chicken from grill and set aside on a plate for about 5 minutes.
• Slice and serve alongside lemon wedges.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons