Spatchcocking Is Not Enough

For years now, spatchcocking has been lauded as the ultimate chicken roasting method. (Trussing is utterly passé.) Its popularity hinges on the promise of perfectly cooked legs and breasts: By removing the bird’s backbone and flattening the body, the meat cooks more evenly and quickly, with the breasts reaching 150℉ (or 160℉, depending who you ask) around the same time the legs reach 170℉.

The problem—according to Chris Kimball—is that legs and thighs cooked to 170℉ are “still pretty gnarly.” Collagen, a primary building block of connective tissue, begins breaking down around 160℉-170℉. Pull the legs the moment they hit that temperature range, and the collagen will only partly have converted to gelatin—and gelatin is what gives roasted chicken thighs their much craved, sumptuous richness.

This is why chicken legs are best at 195℉ or above. The collagen has had all the time it needs to convert to gelatin, eliminating the “gnarliness.” He’s right. It wouldn’t be fair to say that I doubted him, but I did confirm his claim by roasting two chicken thighs—one to 175℉ and one to 195℉—and the difference in texture and flavor was startling, in favor of the hotter thigh. (This is also why most BBQ recipes will have you take a piece of meat with lots of connective tissue to 205℉; no one wants gnarly pulled pork.)

Spatchcocking can bridge a temperature differential of 20 degrees, but taking the dark meat 40 degrees hotter than the light meat, while both are still attached to the body, is impossible, no matter how aggressively you flatten. The solution is obvious: Break down the bird. If you don’t want to do any butchery, ask an actual butcher to do it for you. (It is their job!) Give the parts a dry brine, then roast them to their relative “perfect” temperatures. Try it once and you’ll never go back.

Another thing you should be cooking a bit longer is broccoli. Our Olive Oil-Poached Broccoli is cooked in a generous amount of extra-virgin olive oil—½ cup to be precise—for over half an hour. It doesn’t render it mushy; instead, you get stalks that are supple and tender, with a depth of flavor and richness you can’t get from steaming or simmering. It’s also hands-off, and infused with the fresh and floral flavor of lemon zest.


We take a similar approach with our Olive Oil-Poached Carrots. They’re generously slicked with olive oil and cooked in a moderately hot oven until velvety-tender. They have pure, clean flavor that’s complemented by a little warming ginger and a tangy finishing flourish of vinegar, honey and chives.

Speaking of carrots, this Carrot-Tahini Quick Bread with Candied Ginger and Pistachios is a reader-sourced fan favorite. Imagine a carrot cake, only less sweet and more aromatic, with nutty tahini and bright, bracing flavors. (And with long-cooked chicken thighs and slowly poached vegetables, it’s nice to add something quick to the menu.)

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Claire Lower

Claire Lower is the Digital Editor for Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street, with over a decade of experience as a food writer and recipe developer. Claire began writing about food (and drinks) during the blogging boom in the late 2000s, eventually leaving her job as a lab technician to pursue writing full-time. After freelancing for publications such as Serious Eats, Yahoo Food, xoJane and Cherry Bombe Magazine, she eventually landed at Lifehacker, where she served as the Senior Food Editor for nearly eight years. Claire lives in Portland, Oregon with a very friendly dog and very mean cat. When not in the kitchen (or at her laptop), you can find her deadlifting at the gym, fly fishing or trying to master figure drawing at her local art studio.