Grilled Butterflied Whole Chicken with Barbecue Sauce

Step 1

Heat grill to medium.

Step 2

Remove and discard the liver, gizzard, neck, etc from the inside cavity of the chicken. Rinse inside and outside of chicken with cold water.

Step 3

Place chicken on a cutting board, breast side down. Using kitchen shears, cut along each side of the backbone of the chicken. Discard backbone. Open and press chicken flat. If necessary, cut with a sharp knife a bit at the very top of the middle of the breastbone to help the chicken lay more flat. Rinse chicken again. Rub inside with some olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Turn the chicken over, and also rub the top of the skin with some olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.

Step 4

Place chicken, skin side down, on the grill. Grill until the skin has grill marks, is a golden brown and nicely charred. When it’s reached this, turn the chicken over carefully (I use a large BBQ spatula with the help of BBQ tongs). Continue to cook until internal temperature is 155 degrees F.

Step 5

Brush with barbecue sauce. If you wish, you can also flip the chicken again and apply the barbecue sauce to the underside, and flip back again. Remove from grill to a plate. Allow to rest for 10 minutes and then cut into serving pieces.