Devilish Chicken

Looking for a way to cook your Browder's chicken this weekend?  Chef Mary Ann Esposito, host of the PBS tv show "Ciao Italia" offers this easy recipe for a whole chicken cooked on the grill. 

Serves 4

1 - 3 1/2 to 4 pound free-range, organic chicken, butterflied
1/4 cup of olive oil
Fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Cayenne pepper or dried hot pepper flakes
1 cup of dry white wine
Lemon wedges

To butterfly chicken,  place it on a plastic cutting board, breast side down.  With kitchen shears or a boning knife, cut along both sides of the backbone and remove the bone (save it for stock).  Turn chicken over, skin side up, and flatten it by pressing down with hands or a meat pounder.

Coat chicken completely with olive oil, then season with salt, pepper and cayenne to taste.  Transfer chicken to a dish, cover, and marinate for several hours.  This step can also be done the day before. 

Preheat grill.  When coals are white or a gas grill temperature reaches 500 degress, place chicken on grill, breast side down.  Cook, turning frequently, and keeping the fire under control so as to not burn the chicken. 

About 10 minutes into grilling, begin basting the chicken with white wine.  Continue to baste every 10 minutes.  The chicken is cooked when a meat thermometer inserted into the thigh bone registers between 175 and 180 degrees.

Transfer chicken to a cutting board, and cut into serving pieces.  Serve hot, with lemon wedges and a squirt of lemon juice.  Use your fingers, not a fork, to eat.