Time to get a little rustic! This dish re-creates some of the magic of cooking in a country brick oven, with the help of a couple of bricks and a handy charcoal grill. I’d suggest, for presentation purposes, if nothing else, that you buy a couple bricks and dedicate them to cooking and cooking only (you’d be surprised how useful they can be). Otherwise, you can grab a couple of bricks from the garden, thoroughly clean them off and wrap them well in aluminum foil. Grilling with bricks is a great way to make sure the heat is evenly distributed, but it’s also a lot of fun to watch the kids’ faces when you plunk the bricks down on top of their dinner. The first time Liam saw me do it, he blurted out, “A brick?” in utter shock. “Did that come off the house?” The dish itself is hearty fare, just right for sit-down Sunday dinners with the entire family. Or if you have a smaller crowd, look forward to using the leftovers for wraps, sandwiches, soups or pastas.

Dean’s brick house lemon-rosemary chicken

Serves 6

Ingredients:

Chicken:

• Two whole chickens (3 to 3½ pounds)

Marinade:

• Juice and zest of 4 lemons
• ½ cup fresh minced rosemary
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 2 tablespoons fresh oregano
• 1 shallot, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• Salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Grilled lemons:

• 5 lemons, ends slightly trimmed and halved
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• ½ teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Leaves from 3 sprigs fresh rosemary

Method:

Wrap 4 bricks in aluminum foil.

Rinse the chickens, remove everything from the cavities and discard. Pat the chickens dry inside and out.

Butterfly the chickens. First, cut along both sides of the spine of one of the chickens with a pair of kitchen shears. Remove the spine and discard (or save for stock). Locate the small V-shaped bone between the breasts and make a small slit with a paring knife, just cutting the top of the bone. Lift the chicken up, holding both breasts and crack outward to almost snap the breastbone.

Place the chicken, rib side down, on a cutting board and press into the breasts with the heels of your hands just enough to flatten the chicken. Repeat the butterflying process with the second chicken. Place each butterflied chicken in its own roasting pan. (You can also use two resealable bags.)

In a blender, purée all the marinade ingredients except the salt and pepper until smooth. Pour the marinade over the chickens and rub on all sides. Refrigerate the chickens, covered, for at least 1 hour and up to 12 hours.

Once the chickens have marinated, oil the grill grate. Prepare a charcoal grill, letting the fire burn until the coals are medium hot. (You can use a gas grill if you don’t have a charcoal unit, but the flavor will be better with charcoal.) While the grill is heating up, remove the chickens from the refrigerator. Let the excess marinade drain off and let it come to room temperature. Season with salt and pepper. Discard the marinade.

Place the chickens, skin side down, on the grate and then place two bricks atop each chicken, one per breast. Close the grill lid and cook for about 15 minutes.

Carefully remove the bricks, flip the chickens and replace the bricks. Continue grilling the chickens for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the juices from the thighs run clear and the internal temperate reaches 165°F. Remove the chickens from the grill to clean platters and let them rest, loosely covered with foil, for 15 minutes. Leave the bricks on the grill.

Meanwhile, season the cut side of each lemon half with the salt, pepper and sugar. Drizzle olive oil over the lemon halves and place them cut side down on the grill.

Grill the lemon halves for 5 minutes, rotating them a couple of times to achieve an even colour. Sprinkle the rosemary over the lemons and continue grilling until charred and softened, 5 to 10 minutes.

When serving the chickens, place two of the heated bricks on a heatproof serving platter (or use two platters, with a single brick on each), drape the chickens over top, and serve with the lemons alongside.

Courtesy Dean McDermott
The Gourmet Dad
@imdeanmcdermott