Spatchcocked Alabama Chicken With Green Bean Salad

This dish features spatchcocked chicken, grilled and basted with a tangy Alabama white sauce. Alabama white sauce is essentially white BBQ sauce in a creamy, peppery, zingy sweet form. The recipe was created in Northern Alabama in the mid-1920s!

The chicken is served with a green bean salad that includes roasted red peppers and a mustard dressing. The crispy, juicy chicken pairs well with the refreshing salad, balancing the rich flavours of the marinade and dipping sauce. You can watch this being made below!

INGREDIENTS

For the chicken

• 1 tbsp salt

• 1 tbsp pepper

• 1 tbsp garlic granules

• 200g of mayonnaise

• 80ml of cider vinegar

• 50ml of apple juice

• 1 garlic clove, grated

• 1 tsp horseradish sauce

• 1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce

• Juice 1/2 lemon

• 1 tsp black pepper

For the Green bean salad

• 200g green beans, washed and trimmed

• 1 red pepper

• 50ml olive oil

• 50ml white wine vinegar

• 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard

• Salt and pepper to taste

• 2 tablespoons fresh minced parsley

METHOD

•   Preheat the grill to 130°c.

•   Place the chicken breast-side down, with the legs towards you.  Using sturdy scissors or poultry shears, cut up along each side of the parson's nose and backbone, removing the rib bones until the back bone can be removed and discarded.

•   Open the chicken out and turn over. Flatten the breastbone with the heel of your hand so that the meat is all one thickness.

•    In a bowl combine the salt, pepper and garlic to form a seasoning. Use some oil or spray as a binder over the chicken, then evenly distribute your homemade SPG over the chicken.

•   Make the Alabama white sauce by combining all the remaining ingredients together in a bowl. Taste and adjust salted the lemon juice by adding it in in segments until achieving the desired flavour.

•   Split the sauce into two bowls – one for basting raw chicken with and one which will be held back as a delicious dipping sauce to serve.

•   Baste the chicken with some white sauce, then place skin-side down on the grill. After approximately 45 minutes, baste the underside of the chicken and then flip to colour the reverse side.

•   Continue to baste and flip the chicken approximately every 10 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 75°c then remove from the grill.

•   Remove the chicken and leave to rest whilst preparing the green bean salad.

•   Roast the red peppers on direct heat or directly in the coals of the grill, turning until charred on all sides then remove and allow to cool.

•   Peel back the charred skin and chop the pepper into small pieces.

•   Boil a saucepan of water and reduce heat to medium. Cover the pot and steam the green beans for 12-15 minutes until tender-crisp.  Once the beans are cooked but still have a crunchy texture rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.

•   Drain the green beans then add to a bowl with the red pepper. Add the oil, vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper and parsley and mix well.

•   Carve the chicken and serve with the green bean salad and reserved dipping sauce.