It seems, these days, that people predominantly get excited about sides on Thanksgiving. There’s a veritable geyser of recipes for “the absolute best” mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, and mac and cheese — enough to make you pity the once-reigning bird, or at least its social media handlers.
But when the big day rolls around, the turkey is still the unequivocal star. No matter how perfect the stuffing, the collective gaze of the dining table will always drift towards turkey. (As long as you eat meat and celebrate Thanksgiving, of course.)
Having said that, there’s no reason to be dogmatic about it. There is, of course, a Rockwellian vision of a huge, bronzed bird, roasted whole and carved at the table, that springs to mind when we think of Thanksgiving. But I’d caution against this approach. Turkey is a great blank slate for experimentation, the results of which can turn out quite well if you practice and prepare; sticking a whole bird in the oven is, more likely than not, a recipe for burnt skin and uneven cooking. It also requires that you carve it while your family is waiting at the table, when one’s knife skills are presumably not operating at full capacity. There are better ways.
I like to butcher the turkey into parts well ahead of time, separating the white and dark meats for optimal cooking and allowing you to thoroughly salt each part for a few days. This can be tricky, though, and it’s best to practice. This is where the chicken comes in.
Chicken is cheaper and smaller than turkey, which makes it great preparation for Thanksgiving. If you’re on turkey duty, I humbly suggest this weekend that you pick up a small chicken for a dry run; you can spatchcock it, break it down, or halve and debone it in classic restaurant fashion, as I explore below. Whichever you choose, you’ll familiarize yourself with all the same nooks and crannies that you’ll encounter in your turkey, which will help you deliver a stunning bird.
Pan-Roasted Half Chicken
Ingredients
1 whole chicken, roughly 3-4 pounds
4 tablespoons butter
1 bunch thyme
2 cloves garlic, unpeeled
Coarsely ground black pepper
Lemon (for garnishing)
Instructions
I recommend watching this video as you follow along and butcher/debone the chicken; it’s a great visual guide for all the steps.
Butcher the chicken.
Start by removing the wishbone; then, positioning it breast-side up with the legs facing you, use a boning knife or small chef’s knife to start cutting away the right breast. The breast bone runs down the middle and you’ll want to cut just to the right of that, and then keep your knife up against the keel bone as you cut away. Always use the tip of your knife to make small, precise incisions.
Use your knife to find the wing joint; cut around it and then break the wing joint away from the carcass.
On the lower part of the body, cut away the thigh and find the thigh joint, breaking it apart in the same way. Cut away any remaining attachments between this half of the chicken and the carcass, and you now have a half chicken.
Here you can fully debone it if you wish (I think this is better for cooking and eating). Turn the chicken half skin-side down so you can see the leg bone; run the tip of your knife along the leg bone, tracing an incision. This part is a little more difficult, but very precisely use your knife to cut away the meat from the bone. You can use your fingers to get under the bone and pry it out without losing too much meat. Be very careful to avoid piercing the skin.
Finally, about 1 inch or so away from where the drumstick ends, slash the skin around the bone in a circular motion (definitely consult the video here). This will help pull out the bone entirely and make it easier to find tendons.
Use your knife to remove any tendons (white stringy things in the leg meat).
Once you have your deboned half chicken, you can do the same thing to the other half and then salt it very generously all over. Set it on a wire-rimmed rack in the fridge, uncovered, for 2 days.
Pull the chicken out of the fridge about 20 minutes before you’re ready to cook, to let it come to temperature.
Set a large stainless steel or cast iron pan over high heat. Add a neutral oil and heat until it just starts to begin smoking; you want it hot, but not outrageously hot.
Add a liberal amount of cracked black pepper to the chicken and add it to the pan, skin side down. Press down on the chicken with a spatula for a couple minutes.
Cover the pan and let it cook for a few minutes. The half chicken will cook somewhat fast, and should be ready to flip by 10 minutes at the absolute most. When the skin is golden brown, lower the heat fully and flip.
Add the butter, thyme, and garlic. Baste the chicken until the breast registers about 150 degrees F. (It will come to temp as you rest.)
Remove from the pan and rest the chicken. If you have any trouble with the temp at this point, stick it in a 350-400 degree oven for a bit until you hit the right breast temp.
Serve with lemon, olive oil, and flaky salt.