Somewhere in “The Zuni Cafe Cookbook” is a recipe for a standing rib roast of pork with variations. I’m sure of that. I’m less sure, because I can’t find it online, that the book gives a variation that calls for rubbing the meat with fennel and coriander seeds, among other spices. I wanted to try some version of that on a chicken and came up with the idea of grafting those seasonings, as I remembered them, onto a classic Marcella Hazan recipe for chicken alla diavola. Hazan has you butterfly the chicken and rub it with cracked black pepper before grilling or broiling it. Just by faking and misremembering, I stumbled on a weeknight dinner that’s faster than roast chicken and fragrant with mysteriously harmonious spices. It may not be the devil’s chicken, but it could be the work of one of his minor demons.
Coarsely grind the fennel, coriander, peppercorns and cumin with a mortar and pestle or with 8 or 9 pulses in a spice grinder. Mix in the salt and paprika or pimentón and sprinkle this rub on both sides of the bird, with the emphasis on the skin.
04Set the chicken skin side down on a grill or skin side up on a broiler rack positioned so the highest point of the bird is about 10 inches from the flame. When the skin begins to brown after 6 or 7 minutes, flip the chicken over. (The easiest way is to grab the knobby ends of both drumsticks with several layers of paper towels if you are in the kitchen, or with clean oven mitts if you are grilling.)
05After about 10 minutes, when the bony side is browned, lower the heat to medium-high (400 if you're using an oven), flip the chicken again and cook another 10 minutes, or until the skin is very crisp and brown and the thickest part of the thigh reaches 165 degrees when checked with a meat thermometer. Let it rest about 5 minutes before carving. (If you are grilling, set it on a platter.)
06Spoon any juices that have collected in the broiler pan or the platter over the chicken. Serve with lemon. In springtime, try to serve this with tender young bitter greens — like arugula, watercress or baby dandelions — tossed in a sharp vinaigrette.