How to Flip a Roast Chicken With a Wooden Spoon

This tip might be obvious to some of you, or it might be a light bulb moment for others. As you know, I bake a lot of roast chicken. A lot. Really. Really. Really. A lot. And after making it enough times, I've become pretty good at flipping the bird (heheh) so that the skin stays mostly intact.

The trick is to use a wooden spoon. It's best to use a spoon with a wide mouth, like a wok bamboo wooden spoon, to stabilize the chicken while turning.

I forgot to take a picture of the spoon for this tip, so I'll just borrow a photo from my Com Chien Ca Man (Vietnamese Chinese Salty Fish Fried Rice recipe. This kind of spoon.


The chicken is always roasted breast side-down first. Then when it's time to turn so breast side is up, insert the spoon into the chicken cavity.



Lift up a little and if needed, grab a drumstick to turn the chicken.



The chicken is now breast side up, skin mostly intact, and ready to finish baking.



Because really, the crispy skin is the best part!



Hope that helps!

My other tips and tricks can be found in Peek in My Kitchen.

Other baked and roast chicken recipes you might like:
Baked Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic, Lemon, and Rosemary
Baked Chicken with Citrus Marinade
Baked Chicken with Salt, Pepper, and Lemon
Cuban Lemon Garlic Roast Chicken
Fessenjan (Persian Walnut Pomegranate Cornish Game Hen) with Dill Rice
Ga Ro Ti (Vietnamese Roasted Chicken)
Ga Ro Ti Xa (Vietnamese Roasted Lemongrass Chicken)
Italian Roast Chicken with Basil, Rosemary, and Thyme
Peruvian Roast Chicken
Sriracha Buffalo Roast Chicken
Thai Red Curry Roast Chicken

*****
1 year ago today, Peace Rose.
2 years ago today, Goi Du Du Kho Bo (Vietnamese Green Papaya Salad with Beef Jerky).
3 years ago today, my second-youngest uncle's com ga Hai Nam (Hainanese chicken rice).