Chicken Under Bricks

Tonight I grilled chicken under bricks- a Northern Italian method. The breakdown:

Take one whole chicken and snip out the backbone (using scissors) then peel out the breastbone cartilage and ribs etc using a paring knife and your fingers to get between the bone and flesh. Then - and this is the Frankenstein part - snip a slit into the skin hanging from each thigh and tuck the bottom of the drumsticks into the slit. Also tuck the wingtips behind the bird.

Here is what you get... an evenly thick steak 'o chicken. Put it in a 9x13 casserole and whip up the following:

• 1 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• Chopped fresh rosemary, thyme, parsley, and garlic
• Salt
• Red Pepper Flakes

Marinate the chicken steak in this mixture for 2-6 hours.

Sprinkle with "Creole Seasoning" and put it skin-side down on the grill. I like the following mixture of seasonings...

Lots of:

• Garlic Powder
• Paprika
• Salt

Some of:

• Cayenne Pepper
• Onion Powder
• Dried Thyme
• Dried Oregano
• Black Pepper

Cover with bricks that have been heated on the grill for at least a half hour. Rotate the chicken 45 degrees after 15 minutes to get nice crosshatch marks. Go for a total of 30 minutes on the skin side then flip it and cook till done.

Final product.
Served with mint seasoned rice, braised carrots with cress-butter and a nice red zin.