Elevate Your Grilled Chicken Game with This Foolproof Recipe
Growing up, grilled chicken was always a bit of a letdown—dry, overcooked meat slathered in a thick, burnt layer of BBQ sauce. Every summer, it was the same story: charred skin, bland meat, and a sauce that did all the heavy lifting (and not very well).
Thankfully, things changed. As I got older, I discovered that grilled chicken could be so much more than a backyard afterthought.
My turning point? A whole chicken, flattened like a book—a technique I’d later learn is called spatchcocking. Grilled low and slow, bone-side down, it emerged juicy and tender, with perfectly crisp skin and a smoky aroma that made my mouth water before the first bite. No sticky sauce required.
Inspired by that unforgettable experience, I created this grilled spatchcocked citrus herb chicken recipe. By removing the backbone and cooking the bird bone-side down, the chicken roasts evenly and gently over the grill—no dry breast meat, no burnt skin. Just perfectly balanced dark and white meat, infused with citrus, herbs, and that irresistible kiss of smoke.
Grilled Citrus Herb Spatchcocked Chicken Recipe
Makes:
Takes:
Ingredients
- 4 pound whole chicken
- 2 teaspoons Morton Coarse Kosher Salt
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
These recipes were created in US Customary measurements and the conversion to metric is being done by calculations. They should be accurate, but it is possible there could be an error. If you find one, please let us know in the comments at the bottom of the page
Method
- Prep. To spatchcock the chicken, use kitchen shears or poultry shears to cut along both sides of the backbone. Remove the backbone.
- Turn the chicken over and flatten it by pressing down on the breasts with your palms. You may hear the breast bone crack, which is fine.
- Prepare the citrus herb paste by combining the salt, lemon zest, rosemary, paprika, oregano, thyme, garlic powder, and olive oil in a small bowl. Blend well until all ingredients are incorporated into a paste.
- Rub the chicken skin all over with the citrus herb paste.
- Fire up. Prepare a smoker for indirect cooking. Alternatively, you can set up a charcoal grill for 2-zone cooking by placing a chimney full of pre-heated charcoal briquets on one side of the grill's charcoal grate in order to create direct and indirect cooking zones. Adjust the smoker or grill vents to bring the temperature to about 325°F (162.8°C) and add 2 to 3 chunks of your favorite smoking wood to the charcoal for flavor. On a gas grill, adjust the temperature knobs so that one half of the grill is off and the other half is heated enough to maintain a temperature of approximately 325°F (162.8°C) on the indirect side.
- Cook. Place the spatchcocked chicken skin side up on the indirect side of the grill, positioning it so that the legs are facing the heat source.
- Cover the grill and allow the spatchcocked chicken to cook until it reaches an internal temperature of 160°F (71.1°C), approximately 1 hour. Place the chicken skin side down over direct heat and cook until the skin is crisp, approximately 4 minutes.
- Serve. Remove the chicken from the grill, carve, and serve immediately with any juices from the cutting board.
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