"The Full Spatch" - spatchcocking with a few easy extra steps for a better bird.

[realdocBBQ]

Ok I went back and found the video from ATBBQ on spatchcocking a turkey from last year which shows him doing the 'full spatch'.

The trimming section is from around the 2 minute mark to around the 7 minute mark.

He cuts out the backbone and snips the internal breast bone to get it flat - this is all there is to the quick and easy traditional spatchcock. However, then he removes the lower ribs and what I think of as the pelvis, detaching these bones from the hip joints, leaving the hip ball, this allows really really good access under the skin to season all that leg and thigh meat, then pull the skin back over it. Then he removes the blade bones up by the shoulder, these are analogous to shoulder blades, but are long and thin and stick up on the back (bottom when spatchcocked), so this allows the breasts to lay down more flat in this style of cook. Then he removes the wishbone, which leads to a super easily-carved bird all the way around when it's cooked and rested.

I did this method with numerous turkeys last year and have done it with a bunch of chikkins since then. I find this to be a really great way to achieve a consistent result that is super easy to get seasoning on ALL the meat under the skin and makes for a really easily carved bird when finished. I'm gonna go post this up as its own topic again, because I think it is so good, and Chef Tom at ATBBQ does a great job of explaining and demonstrating techniques.

I think I may remove the breast bone this year as well, which I saw on the Meat Church video. That looks like one more way to flatten things out and make carving at the end absolutely caek.

Here's the Meat Church video, which was just posted 3 days ago. Again, the spatchcock method starts about 2 minutes in, the breastbone removal is at 3:30.

It's odd, that thing ends up coming out looking like a pork butt blade bone.


Anywho, that's gonna be my method this year. I think I'm going to wet brine on Tuesday, then pull it out, dry it off Wed at noonish and it'll go on the smoker around 10AM Thursday. About 98% sure I'll be cooking on my small offset in the backyard, as to my knowledge I'm only doing 2 turkeys this year, one for us, one for our neighbors across the street.

Happy Turkey Day to everyone this year! I look forward to this day, it's a day of food debauchery, which is at the heart and soul of my being. lol. Although I don't go nearly as all out for food like I used to, it's still a good day and we do some dishes we don't do hardly any other time of the year, so I'm all about it. Turkey, homemade dressing, deviled eggs, maybe ham, whatever. I'm stoked. And I get 4 days in a row off work, I'm loving it.

Only thing that would be better is if I had somewhere to go deer hunting Friday morning. Oh well. Life can't be perfect, can it? lol

[Jerod Broussard]

I remove the clavicle, that's it. My hands thank me for it every time.

[fzxdoc]

Pulling the breast bone out like Meat Church's method leaves strips of cartilage behind; so I always look for those and remove them first when slicing the cooked bird so my family and guests don't have to deal with them.

Removing the wishbone is also essential for making slicing easier for me.

I carefully remove the breast bone for split birds; remove it too roughly and you can have the breast tenderloin dangling. Been there...

I can't do the rib, etc remove below the breast like ATBBQ does (at mile marker 3:40) because I hang spatchcocked or split birds, and the parts he trims away there function to hold the legs and thighs in place when hanging. To get to the leg and thigh muscles for seasoning, I easily access that area from the front, going into it by loosening the skin at the lower side of the breast and popping that thigh/leg meat right out of its skin. Then I can season it and pop it right back in, smoothing the skin in place.

Kathryn

[realdocBBQ]

Good point, won't work when hanging. But I sure do love how easy it is to trim off. I did a chikkin with this method last night and the whole bird was amazingly easy to slice up for service.

[Santamarina]

Oooo…I like those extra steps. I’ve been spatchcocking my birds for 7-8 years - I’ll never cook a whole bird again! - but these extra steps look like it’ll make things even better.

Not cooking this Thursday - going to the in-laws for Thanksgiving this year - but planning to cook a small bird the week after for “leftovers” at home…and I’m def gonna do the extra steps!

[hoovarmin]

They are definitely worth it unless you are hanging your bird in a barrel smoker. Those extra steps are for cooking the bird on a pan or grates only.

[radiodome21]

I removed the breastbone last year for the first time. It was kind of a PITA and I was anything but smooth. Not sure if I’m going to do it this year. I’m using my kettle as well for the first time on thanksgiving. I’ve always used my WSM in previous years.

[realdocBBQ]

I removed a breastbone on a chikkin last night and was absolutely amazed at how easy it was. I'm sure on a bigger bird like a turkey (I have a 14lb to do this week), it will be harder, but I'm still gonna do it. I loved how easy this bird last night was to carve up!

[tamidw]

Will have to check this out. I normally spatchcock the turkey in the traditional method, as you say. I have a hard time cutting through the bones anymore, so will have hubby watch the video to help.

[hoovarmin]

I use this method and love the results. Note to barrel smokers - if you do this and try to hang your bird the legs will fall into the fire. They are only held on by skin.

[jfmorris]

I think I have backed off my rotisserie plan for tomorrow's bird, and will spatchcock with this method. I've never removed those hip bones when spatchcocking, but will this time. Bird already has over 300mg sodium, so not gonna brine - just gonna use a dry rub that is a little salty overnight in the fridge uncovered so the skin can dry out a bit, and hit it with some olive oil.

Was gonna inject with butter but one or both of my daughters are off dairy, so I can't use butter this time.

[Bad Hat BBQ]

Removing the breast bone will be a new step for me....injecting w/ Creole butter jfmorris share the same concern with a salt brine -so I will stick with a dry rub

[realdocBBQ]

As for the brine - I've heard that concern for years, but the times I've brined chikkins, they've never come out too salty. I've never seen any meat in the store that isn't in a brine, turkey, chikkin, pork or beef. Prolly from the butcher, yeah, but not at any supermarket. Of course, they want to pump up the weight by 8% of saltwater or whatever - but I've never had one anyone complained about being too salty.

So I'm gonna brine the turkey this year, the chikkins have been fine. I'm more concerned with trying to dry out the skin - I don't think truly 'crispy' skin is going to be possible, but at least not soggy, mushy skin. We'll see how it goes.

[bmillin]

I did a fairly aggressive Spatchcock job on a chicken yesterday along the same lines, removed the breastbone and wishbone as well as most of the ribs. At that point I figured why not and took the remainder of the ribs off, ending up with boneless skin-on breasts. Sliced the skin to separate the rest. Easy to cook, easy to take off as each piece was ready. No way I could have hung much of it.

[radshop]

I go even further and part out the whole bird to drumsticks, thighs, wings, and boneless breasts. It makes the cooking so much easier. The presentation value is less, but for me that's okay. I started doing this in 2021 when my younger son moved in with me full time; he's got some social anxiety, so if I have a big group he would just take his plate to his room. I'd rather have him at the table, so now it's just me and my 2 boys and 1 or 2 of my older son's friends - they don't care what it looks like as long as it's good and lots of it. Sometimes I miss cooking for a crowd, but then I get through this and realize how simple and relaxing it is by comparison - something to be said for that.

[realdocBBQ]

I just did the full spatch on my 14½lb bird on my lunch hour - took about 20 minutes to debone and salt everything well, then threw it in the fridge to dry brine, gonna be almost 48 drying out, hopefully will end up with some good skin!

Then I took The Wife's Rav4 over to the shop to pick up some wood (my Tahoe has been at the mechanic for a month now, <sigh>) and picked up a bunch of wood. Mostly cherry, some walnut and some pecan. I think I'm gonna do the 2 turkeys and the ham I'm planning for Thursday on cherry exclusively. Just for the fun of it - see if I can notice a difference in taste at all.

I doubt it.

But it sounds good to say, "It was smoked on cherry wood."

[TimmyR]

I just spatchcocked and salted a 15.3# bird for tomorrow (2nd Thanksgiving at our house since I did not cook the bird for the main event). I considered trying to pull the breastbone, but it seemed pretty well stuck in there, so I wacked the center of it with a blade and cracked it to flatten the bird. Any tips on removing it?

[realdocBBQ]

I bent the body to break it free from the top corners, then just worked my fingers under and around down the sides. When the sides were pretty well free, I went back to the top and pulled it out. Took a bit of force, but it worked.