P
Italian · Florence, Tuscany
Pollo alla Diavola Toscana sulla Brace
The 'devil's chicken' of Tuscany: a whole chicken spatchcocked (backbone removed, flattened), pressed under a heavy weight (a brick wrapped in foil — the 'mattone'), grilled over charcoal at very high heat until the skin is charred and crackling-crisp and the interior is just cooked through. Seasoned with salt, black pepper, and chilli (the 'devil' character), and dressed with lemon and fresh rosemary. The weight ensures full contact between skin and grill, achieving an even char. A Florence trattoria standard.
I
The Market List
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1 (approx. 1.6 kg)
whole chicken
backbone removed, spatchcocked
Your own market
2 tsp
fine sea salt
for seasoning; increase if brining
Your own market
1 tsp
black pepper
coarsely ground
Your own market
1 tsp
dried chilli
crushed
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
lemon
halved, for dressing
Your own market
4 sprigs
fresh rosemary
for dressing
Your own market
For the optional brine
2 litres
cold water
Your own market
80 g
fine sea salt
to make a 4% brine
Your own market
For the salsa verde (Florentine trattoria tradition)
1 bunch
flat-leaf parsley
leaves only, finely chopped
Your own market
30 ml
extra-virgin olive oil
Your own market
1 tbsp
capers
rinsed
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 tbsp
red wine vinegar
Your own market
II
The Method
1
If brining: dissolve 80 g salt in 2 litres cold water. Submerge the chicken, refrigerate for 6 hours, then remove and pat completely dry. Whether brined or not, use kitchen scissors to cut along both sides of the backbone and remove it entirely. Open the chicken flat on a board, skin-side up, and press firmly down on the breastbone with the heel of both hands until it cracks flat. The bird should lie completely level with no arch.
2
Season the chicken generously on both sides with salt, coarsely ground black pepper, and crushed chilli. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour. The surface should feel dry and the seasoning visibly adhered to the skin.
3
Prepare a charcoal grill to very high heat. The coals should be glowing white with no black patches. Place the chicken skin-side down directly over the coals. Set the mattone — a brick wrapped tightly in foil — squarely on top of the chicken, pressing every part of the skin into full contact with the grill. This is where the dish lives or dies: without the weight and without charcoal at high heat, the skin buckles away from the grill, gaps form, and the defining char-and-crackle of pollo alla diavola cannot develop. Grill skin-side down for 15–18 minutes until the skin is deeply charred, dark, and crackling-crisp — not burnt and flaking, but firm, caramelised, and fragrant with wood smoke.
4
Remove the mattone. Flip the chicken bone-side down. Grill for a further 12 minutes. The juices running from the thigh joint should run clear, not pink, when pierced at the thickest point.
5
Transfer the chicken to a board and rest for 10 minutes without cutting. The flesh should feel taut and springy rather than soft when pressed at the breast — the sign that the juices have redistributed and the breast will not dry on cutting.
6
Dress with a squeeze of lemon and lay fresh rosemary sprigs over the bird. Cut into four pieces and serve immediately with salsa verde alongside. The herb sauce should smell sharply of parsley and vinegar against the smoky char of the skin.
III
Quality Hierarchy
01
Reserve — A free-range Tuscan heritage breed, brined for 6 hours in a 4% salt solution before grilling — maximum moisture in the breast, maximum flavour in the skin.
02
Estate — A good free-range chicken, air-dried in the refrigerator overnight after spatchcocking, grilled over oak or beech charcoal for a pronounced wood-smoke character.
03
Market — A standard free-range chicken, seasoned 1 hour ahead and grilled over quality lump charcoal — the technique carries the dish.
04
House — A standard supermarket chicken, spatchcocked and grilled over charcoal with salt, pepper, and chilli; the mattone is essential regardless of bird quality.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Sight. Skin is deeply charred, dark, and unbroken — caramelised and firm, not pale or blistered in patches.
◇Sight. Juices at the thigh joint run clear when the thickest point is pierced.
◇Touch. After resting, the breast feels taut and springy under finger pressure, not soft or collapsing.
◇Sound. The skin crackles audibly when pressed — the sign of the dry, rendered surface the mattone has produced.
◇Where it lives or dies. The dish is made or lost at the moment the weighted mattone presses skin to charcoal: without both the brick and the live fire, no even char forms and the signature texture contrast of pollo alla diavola cannot be achieved.
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VI
What to Pour
The pairing
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