Spatchcocked (Butterflied) Roast Chicken with Potatoes

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This garlic and herb butterflied roast chicken with baby potatoes recipe is the perfect one pan meal to feed the whole family. Tender, juicy whole chicken and schmaltzy, crispy potatoes come together easily for an impressive chicken dinner.

Butterflied roast chicken and baby potatoes with fresh herbs in a cast iron pan.

Is there anything better for a family dinner than a tender, juicy roast chicken? Actually yes. It's a whole roasted chicken and potatoes all cooking together in the same pan! We're talking, juicy chicken with crispy skin from a slathering of garlic herb butter on top of a bed of crispy potatoes flavored with all of the pan drippings. Serve this delicious, flavorful chicken with a simple green salad and a bottle of your favorite wine and you have a great go to dinner party recipe or the perfect meal for a family.

If this is your first time butterflying a whole chicken, don't be intimidated. Once you start spatchcocking your chickens, you'll never cook a whole chicken any other way!

For more of my favorite chicken recipes, be sure to check out this Braised Chicken Thighs and Leeks, BBQ Chicken Legs and Thighs and these Mojo Chicken Leg Quarters.

Jump to:

💚 Why you will love this recipe
📋 Ingredient Notes and Variations
🔪 How to spatchcock or butterfly a whole chicken
🥘 How to roast a whole butterflied chicken with potatoes
🥗 What to serve with roast chicken and potatoes
🍗 How to store leftover chicken
💭 Recipe tips
Recipe FAQs
Spatchcocked (Butterflied) Roast Chicken with Potatoes

💚 Why you will love this recipe

If you're always grabbing a rotisserie chicken at the store to have on hand for the week, this will quickly become your favorite way to make your own. I love to make a whole roast chicken on a Sunday and enjoy any leftovers in salads, bowls and tacos for the next few days. You will love this recipe because:

Spatchcocked chickens get crispy skin all over and juicy, tender meat. They are also easier to carve.
Butterflied whole chicken has a much faster cooking time than traditional roast chicken. Spatchcock chicken cooks in about half the time!
The entire chicken and potatoes cook together in one pan for easy cleanup.
It's both easy and impressive! The perfect roast chicken recipe to have in your repertoire.

📋 Ingredient Notes and Variations

Recipe ingredients including a whole chicken, tiny potatoes, garlic cloves, oil, butter, salt and pepper in small dishes.

This is an easy recipe for garlic herb chicken. Feel free to put your own spin on it and change up the flavors!

Whole 3-4 pound chicken – at the grocery store, this size chicken will be labeled as a broiler or fryer. Roaster chickens are a bit larger, often weighing over five pounds. I find that this recipe works best with a broiler or fryer.
Baby potatoes – The tinier the potatoes the better! If they are larger than an inch in diameter or so, cut them in half. I use tiny yellow creamer potatoes but, red potatoes and fingerling potatoes are also great.
Fresh garlic – whole garlic cloves add great flavor. You can season to taste with garlic powder if you prefer.
we’re using four garlic cloves and I prefer the flavor of fresh. You can absolutely season to taste with garlic powder if that’s easier for you.
Herbs – I use a combination of dried and fresh herbs all the time depending on what I have on hand. You can experiment with whatever flavors you like including dried or fresh rosemary, oregano, thyme or just some good old Italian seasoning.
Butter and olive oil – I prefer to use both in this recipe as I find that imparts the most flavor, keeps the meat moist and helps make the skin super crispy!
Variations to try – If you want to get fancy with it, you can roast a whole garlic bulb in the pan with the chicken and potatoes or add some lemon juice or lemon zest to your garlic butter butter mixture or throw some lemon slices in the pan to roast up. It’s your world!

🔪 How to spatchcock or butterfly a whole chicken

Spatchcocking or butterflying a chicken is not as scary as it looks. Once you learn how to prep a whole bird this way, you'll never go back!

Brown hands using kitchen shears to remove backbone from whole chicken.

Step 1: If necessary, remove the giblets from the inside of the bird. Thoroughly pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Place the whole chicken breast-side down on a sturdy cutting surface. Using sharp kitchen scissors or poultry shears, cut along one side of the backbone from neck to tail.

Brown hand using poultry shears to cut along the backbone of a whole raw chicken.

Step 2: Cut along the other side of the backbone, all the way through until it is entirely removed.

Butterflied raw chicken on a cutting board with the backbone removed.

Step 3: Save the backbone to make homemade chicken stock or discard.

Brown hands cracking the breastbone of a butterflied whole raw chicken on a cutting board.

Step 4: Once the backbone is removed, flip the chicken over breast-side up, firmly grab the wings and breast meat on each side and bend the chicken inwards until the breast bone cracks. Push down on the middle of the chicken with the palm of your hand to flatten out the bird. Congratulations, you did it!

🥘 How to roast a whole butterflied chicken with potatoes

Now that you've butterflied your chicken, the rest is easy!

Garlic and herb butter in the bowl of a mini food processor.

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Use a mini food processor or mash together softened butter, olive oil, minced garlic and herbs in a small mixing bowl.

Whole raw chicken slathered in garlic herb butter in a large cast iron pan with tiny potatoes.

Step 2: Season the bird all over with salt and black pepper. Using your hands, spread the garlic herb butter mixture all over the chicken skin side of the bird. Use your fingers to gently separate (but not remove) the skin of the chicken breasts and thighs and stuff some globs of butter under the skin. Place potatoes in a large roasting pan, drizzle with olive oil and toss. Place chicken, breast side up in the pan. Move the potatoes around to the sides so that the bottom of the chicken makes full contact with the pan.

Whole butterflied roast chicken with tiny potatoes in a large cast iron skillet, garnished with fresh herbs.

Step 4: Roast chicken and potatoes in a preheated oven at 425 degrees f for 40-50 minutes or until the thickest part of the breast and thigh reaches 165 degrees on an instant read thermometer.

Carved roast chicken and tiny potatoes on a white serving platter.

Step 5: Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a cutting board, tent with aluminum foil and let it rest for 15-20 minutes before carving and serving. While the bird is resting, return the potatoes to the oven to continue to cook and crisp.

🥗 What to serve with roast chicken and potatoes

This simple roast chicken dinner pairs perfectly with easy sides. Try it with:

Simple green salad, Caesar salad, Classic Wedge Salad or Spinach Salad with Bacon Dressing
Corn and Zucchini Salad, Roasted Veggie Salad
Sauteed Baby Broccoli , Sweet Corn with Bell Peppers and Onions

🍗 How to store leftover chicken

Leftovers will keep well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Chicken and potatoes can be reheated together in the microwave. For crispier potatoes, reheat them separately in the air fryer or toasted oven.
The chicken carcass and backbone can be stored in a freezer bag and later used to make homemade chicken stock.

💭 Recipe tips

Put the potatoes back in the oven while your chicken is resting. This will get them even crispier!
Let the raw chicken come to room temperature for about 30 minutes to an hour before you roast it. This will help ensure that the whole chicken cooks evenly - both the white meat and dark meat.
Pat the chicken skin thoroughly dry before slathering it in butter. Removing as much moisture as possible from the surface helps make the chicken skin super crispy!
Use an instant read thermometer to check for doneness. The bird is done when the temperature gets to 165 degrees f in the thickest part of the thigh and the breast.
Let the chicken rest! This is super important. Letting the bird rest allows the juices to redistribute throughout the meat. if you cut into it right away, the juice will run out all over the cutting board and your risk having dry chicken breasts.

Carved whole butterflied chicken and tiny potatoes on a white serving platter.

Recipe FAQs

Can I add a different vegetable to this recipe?

Yes. I've done this with brussels sprouts before too! Whatever the roasting time of your veggie is, add that to the pan when the chicken has that remainder of time left. Carrots, parsnips and celery root are all great options.

Can I try different seasonings?

Yes. This recipe will work with whatever seasonings, marinades or flavors you like. The base of the recipe is the cooking technique.

How long does leftover roast chicken last in the fridge?

3-4 days in an airtight container.