Dude Food: It's Grilling Season, Sausage Stuffed Chicken

Before you go out there and toss some dull chicken on the grill and slap it with BBQ sauce from a jar, consider this dish because DUDE, my version is not boring.

First you need your chicken spatchcocked. It means removing the backbone, not what you were thinking. A good butcher can do it for you, but if you buy your meat at a chain grocery you have to do it yourself.

Just cut along both sides of the spine with a pair os scissors. Remove the bone and put it in the freezer because eventually you are going to make chicken stock...seriously.

Now flatten that chicken out with your hands. Lightly salt both sides of the chicken with kosher salt and put it in the refrigerator unwrapped, skin side up on a large plate or pan.

Why?

You are doing two things. The power of osmosis is going to salt your chicken all the way through and the power of the refrigerator will dry the skin. Dry skin will give you a crisp crackling result.

Since you have two days go out and buy an electric thermometer for food.  I like this one.

It will allow you to cook your chicken perfectly.

Two days have passed and you need to impress your friends.

Here is your shopping list.

4 ripe tomatoes
1 lb. Lamb or Pork Sausage (FAT is key, no lean chicken sausage)
1/2 lb of Feta Cheese
2 lemons
Flatbread (the thinner the better but Pita will do in a pinch)
Mesclun mix (a bag is fine)
Check your spice cabinet and make sure you have
Cumin
Coriander
Cinnamon
Oregano
Brown Sugar
White pepper
Good Olive Oil

Get some cheese and crackers and wine for your guests will you prepare the meal.

First chop your tomatoes,  toss with some olive oil and Feta and let rest. Easy.

Now mix one tablespoon of each of the spices together with 1 of the brown sugar. Rub into the chicken. You want it coated with massive spice.

Now take your spicy fingers and slide under the skin. It is dry and will be loose but you want it separate from the meat.

If the sausage has a casing, remove the casing. Now stuff the sausage under the skin, get it everywhere, even into that drumstick. Pat the skin down, it will look like a fat, fat chicken. This is a good thing.

Get your grill nice and hot and put the chicken skin side down over the flame just until it begins to get sear marks and crackle, don't burn it.

Turn skin side up and move to indirect heat insert the thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh, cover and and walk away. Resist the urge to check it and play with it. It's not your dick it's a chicken and can survive some time without attention.

At 165 your chicken is done. When you opent  the grill it will be crisp, crackling and brown with flavor and juice. Remove to a platter and cover with foil and leave it alone again.

Now prepare pretty plates. Let's assume 4 people.

Mound some greens on each plate and top with the tomato and feta adding a good bit of flat bread to the side. Slice the lemons and put two nice wedges on each plate.

Once the chicken has rested for 5 minutes you can cut it with the scissors (you did wash them after you took the back out right?)

Let your guests dictate white and dark and you get what is left, be a good host

Now squeeze the lemon onto the chicken and tear at it with the bread.

Dude, truly this is one of the finest grilling recipes ever. You will not miss that nasty jarred HFCS filled sauce one bit.