This Is the Time-Saving Technique Chefs Swear By for Golden-Brown Turkey

For Tyler Fenton, the ultimate Thanksgiving centerpiece is a spatchcocked turkey. “You get a nicely golden-brown bird that is still actually juicy, and the white and dark meat are both cooked properly,” says the chef and owner of BATA restaurant in Tucson, Arizona. “I will never do it any other way.”

He’s not alone. According to Google data, over the last five years, searches for “spatchcock turkey” have gone up each November.

If you’re wondering why spatchcocking a turkey is popular, and whether the technique makes sense for you, chefs like Fenton are glad to walk you through it. Here’s everything you need to know. 

What is spatchcocking, and how do you do it?

Spatchcocking is a butchery technique where you remove the backbone of a bird like a turkey or chicken, and then push down on the breastplate until the bird lies flat. You can simply ask your butcher to do it for you, or follow these steps:

1. Place the turkey, breast-side down, on a work surface. Using poultry shears and beginning at the tail end, cut along each side of the backbone, separating the backbone from the turkey. Remove the backbone and save for stock.

2. Turn the turkey breast-side up on the work surface. Using the heels of your hands, press firmly against the breastbone until it cracks and the turkey breast flattens.

Why spatchcock a turkey?

Spatchcocking a turkey helps it cook more evenly and quickly, says Matthew Cutolo, chef of Gargiulo’s Restaurant in Coney Island, New York. “You can shave off about 30 to 50 percent of the cooking time, compared to roasting a whole turkey,” he says. 

The proof is in the poultry: the Salt and Pepper Spatchcocked Turkey and Sesame-Ginger Spatchcock Turkey are fully cooked after about one hour and 10 minutes in the oven compared to two-plus hours for most turkey recipes.

The method also aligns the cooking time for the white and dark meat, so you aren’t desperately trying to keep the breast from drying out while the legs are still undercooked. “It ensures that the turkey cooks evenly,” notes Ken Lin, chef of Hutong in New York City. 

Lin has experimented with spatchcocking everything from Thanksgiving turkeys to Peking ducks, and finds that the technique also helps crisp up the skin as the bird roasts. By laying the turkey flat, you expose more of its surface area to the hot air circulating in the oven. That helps spatchcocked turkeys get crispy skin all over, not just on the top of the upright bird.

Are there any downsides to spatchcocking a turkey?

Even the staunchest spatchcocking advocate will admit that wrestling with a 16-pound turkey can be intimidating. It takes verve to push the breastbone so the bird lies flat. 

Space is another consideration. “Since the bird is spread out, you need a large enough roasting pan or baking sheet and space in the oven to accommodate the flattened shape,” Cutolo says. 

That being said, a flattened bird occupies less vertical space in the oven cavity than an upright one, notes Mary Attea, a 2024 F&W Best New Chef and the executive chef of Raf’s and Musket Room in New York City. This can be an asset if you need to put other pans in your oven while the turkey cooks. 

You can’t stuff a spatchcocked turkey or carve it tableside, but those two practices have potential downsides of their own. The United States Department of Agriculture warns that stuffing needs to reach a minimum internal temperature of 165°F to avoid foodborne illnesses. Many people prefer to prepare their stuffing recipe in a separate baking dish, which in addition to being safer also allows for crispy bits to develop on top.

And while a spatchcocked turkey may lack visual drama, it’s easy to separate into picture-perfect portions because it lies flat against the cutting board. 

“Some people may find the optics of a spatchcocked turkey less classic than presenting a whole, roasted bird,” Fenton says. “I would rather have delicious turkey.”