Griddled Chicken with White Wine Jus

Place a 2 ½- to 3-pound chicken, breast side up, on a clean cutting surface. Remove and discard giblets from the chicken cavity, if any. Use a boning knife to cut on either side of the breastbone, cutting along the ribs to remove the bones from the breast halves without detaching them from the chicken.

Use kitchen scissors to remove the backbone and separate the chicken into 2 halves. Discard ribs and breastbone, reserving the backbone.

Use a knife to cut off the last 2 joints from each wing, leaving the drumette attached to the breast. Reserve the wing pieces.

Sprinkle the chicken halves all over with 1 teaspoon salt and set aside.

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and add the chicken wing pieces and backbone. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 8-10 minutes.

Add 1 carrot cut crosswise into quarters, 1 celery stalk cut crosswise into quarters, and 1 shallot halved lengthwise. Cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 3-4 minutes.

Add ¼ cup wine and cook, scraping the bottom of the pan to release any browned bits until the liquid has almost reduced, about 1-2 minutes.

Add 1 ½ cups chicken stock and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Then reduce heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, until the mixture reduces to about ¾ cup, about 25-30 minutes.

Once reduced, pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a heatproof bowl. Discard the solids. Skim and discard fat from the strained stock.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Place the chicken halves, skin side down, in the skillet. Sprinkle the flesh side of each chicken half evenly with ½ teaspoon black pepper. Place a second heavy skillet on top of the chicken and cook, undisturbed, until the chicken is mostly opaque in color and skin edges are lightly browned, about 20 minutes.

Remove the top skillet from the chicken and continue cooking until the skin is golden and releases from the skillet for about 5-8 minutes. Flip the chicken halves and cook until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of chicken reads 155 °F, about 1-4 minutes. Remove from the skillet and leave to rest for 10 minutes.

Return the stock mixture to the saucepan over medium-low heat and add 1 tablespoon cold butter. Cook, whisking constantly, until melted for about 2 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley and ½ teaspoon lemon juice and season with salt to taste. Keep the sauce warm over low heat until ready to serve.

Place the chicken halves over the cooked polenta and serve with warm sauce.