Crispy chicken under a brick

The tastiest part of a chicken is absolutely the skin, as far as I’m concerned. I will never understand that there are people who don’t eat it. How do you get that skin as crispy as possible? Cook your chicken under a brick.

Under a brick? Yes, under a brick. The weight of the brick presses the chicken even closer to the heat source, making the skin extra crispy. It’s basically as if you were pressing the chicken down firmly with a spatula the whole time, without having to do anything. You also heat the brick beforehand, so the chicken is warmed from above as well.

The Italians have been making pollo al mattone for years, literally translated: chicken under a brick. The chicken is first marinated in olive oil, lemon juice and zest, garlic, chili flakes and rosemary, but in principle you can use the technique with any chicken you make. You’ll also get a fantastic result with just olive oil, pepper and salt. You do need to butterfly the chicken first; that sounds complicated, but it’s done in no time (we explain how to do that here).

No brick at home?

I understand that you don’t have loose bricks lying around in the kitchen. What you can do instead is heat a (cast-iron) frying pan until very hot, place it on the chicken and put something heavy in it. A mortar, for example, or cans of beans or tomatoes you still have in the cupboard. Just make sure you grease the underside of your pan. Still want to use bricks? Wrap them in aluminum foil before placing them on the chicken, otherwise dirt will get on your bird.

Quickie

Another major advantage of this technique? Your chicken is ready much faster. Because the heat comes from both sides and you press the chicken even closer to the heat source, the cooking time is much shorter. A whole chicken is ready in under half an hour, instead of an hour. The Marlow & Sons restaurant in New York is known for its ultra-crispy brick chicken; read here how to make it at home. The technique also works with individual chicken thighs or legs, in which case you can shorten the cooking time even further.