SPATCHCOCK

[Dr. Goodword]

• spatchcock •

Pronunciation: spæch-kahk • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Noun, Verb

Meaning: 1. [Noun] A chicken or other fowl split in half for grilling. 2. [Verb] Split a chicken or other fowl in half and grill it. 3. [Verb] To sandwich in, insert in between; to squeeze or shoehorn in.

Notes: As with other lexical oddities, such as billingsgate, comeuppance, and collywobbles, today's Good Word is pretty much immune to derivation. It may be used as a noun or verb but only inflectional endings may be added to them, e.g. spatchcocks, spatchcocked, and spatchcocking. As long as we do not forget the T in spelling this word, we will have no problem putting it to use.

In Play: It is surprising that this word is not more often used since it is a almost a sniglet, a word we need but don't have: "I was running late, so I picked up half a spatchcock at the supermarket on the way home." I really love this word as a verb: "Beryl O'Voyle was not originally invited to the fuel planning meeting but was somehow spatchcocked in at the last minute."

Word History: Today's odd but nonetheless Good Word is not a product of the Wild West in the US as are so many lexical oddities, but from the Emerald Isle, Ireland. According to Francis Grose's Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, first published in 1785, today's Good Word is a reduction of 'dispatch cock'. However, the Oxford English Dictionary offers only one ancient example of spatch meaning "dispatch". Spatchcock was probably influenced by spitchcock "eel chopped and cooked", containing a word suggestive of spit. However, eels and chickens are quite different and spitch is not a normal derivation of spit. (Since we haven't so far spatchcocked a note of gratitude to Diane Chambliss for suggesting today's Good Word, let us take this opportunity to do it.)

[bnjtokyo]

I first came across spatchcock in an cookbook on Italian cooking published in Australia. My research found that in Oz, a spatchcock is a spring chicken. One provider of spatchcocks in Oz
(website: http://www.gamefarm.com.au/index.php?id=54)
defines them this way:"A spatchcock is a spring chicken processed at 3 weeks of age" It is to their way of thinking synonymous with "poussin" They are available "whole bird with gut out feathers, feet and head off" (300 to 400 gr.)
Also available butterflied, backbone and chest bones removed and tunnelboned with all bones removed from chest cavity and boneless. Also cut into finger size pieces.

But I guess in the UK, it tends to refer to a way of dressing a bird prior to cooking it. The key element is removal of the back bone.

Hey, I'm getting hungry!

[Stargzer]

I've seen some underhanded deeds in my day, but let us all give thanks that we've never been served a spatchcocked shuttlecock!

While some may think of Stargzer as a good sport, he was never athletic enough to play goodminton.

[Stargzer]

... Also cut into finger size pieces. ...

My first thought upon seeing "cut into finger size pieces" was "chicken fingers," which here in the US are pieces of chicken, usually either breast or "formed" from white or dark meat, cut into pieces the size of a finger and then breaded and fried. Looking at the picture in the link they are what we call in the US "chicken pieces," i. e., cut into the various parts such as breasts, backs, wings, thighs, and drums (drumsticks). Still, "finger size" also means "a size that can be picked up with the fingers,", although I suppose someone hungry enough or with hands large enough could pickup a whole chicken with his fingers.

I'm getting hungry now too, so maybe I'll pick up the Chicken on a Biscuit Sizzli at Wa-Wa on the way in to work this morning. They're still on special.