Although perhaps not the most popular way to cook barbecue chicken, the venerable and widely tried beer can chicken recipe still has plenty of fans who swear by it.
When it comes to cooking a great whole barbecue chicken, often the best results are obtained by using a rub and marinade and then smoking the bird or by using a charcoal rotisserie.
Either way, this beer can chicken recipe has a great deal of flavour and produces good consistent results and if you should happen to have a whole chicken on your hands and a large can of beer, why not give it a try!
For the Beer Can Chicken Rub
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. granulated onion
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. granulated garlic
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 whole chicken, 4 to 5 pounds
2 tsp. vegetable oil
1 16oz can of beer
To make the Beer Can Chicken
In a small bowl combine the rub ingredients.
Remove and discard the neck, giblets, and any excess fat from the chicken. Rinse the chicken, inside and out, under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Lightly brush or spray all over with the vegetable oil and season, inside and out, with the rub.
Open the beer can and pour off half of the beer. Set the half-full can on a flat surface and slide the chicken over the top so the can fits inside the cavity.
Transfer the bird to the grill, keeping the can upright. Carefully balance the bird on its two legs and the can. Grill over indirect medium heat (350°F to 450°F) until the juices run clear and the internal temperature reaches 170°F in the breast and 180°F in the thickest part of the thigh, 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hours. Keep the lid closed as often as possible during grilling.
Wearing barbecue mitts, carefully remove the chicken and the can from the grill, being careful not to spill the beer—it will be hot.
Allow the chicken to rest for about quarter of an hour before raising it from the can.
Discard the beer. Cut the chicken into serving pieces, and serve warm.
The ultimate BBQ Beer Can chicken accessory from the grill guru himself, Steven Raichlen
Amazon.com Price: $24.99 (as of 2010-09-10 17:35:40 GMT) Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon.com at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Steven Raichlen wrote the book on beer can chicken - literally. This ingenious device makes the process easier and virtually fail proof. Square construction gives you greater stability. The bird won't tip and beer won't spill. All stainless steel, so it will not react with food. Metal holder adapts to both beer cans and the included unique stainless steel canister, which you can fill with wine, fruit juice, or other flavorful liquid. Metal drip pan collects meat juices for sauces and prevents dripping fat from erupting into flare-ups.
Product Details
Stainless-steel beer-can chicken rack with drip pan
Rack holds either a beer can or the included stainless-steel canister
Stable square design; pan collects juices and prevents flare-ups
2 loop side handles; dishwasher-safe for quick cleanup
Measures 9-3/5 by 7-2/7 by 5-1/2 inches; model number: SR8016
Video Reviews
John Kass makes Beer Can Chicken
Customer Reviews
Fabulous Product and Design
Review Date: August 21, 2008
Reviewer: Leo, ny
"Beer can chicken" has become quite popular in recent years because (1) the steam and vapors flavor the chicken from the inside cavity out and help keep it moist, (2) upright roasting has been popular with chefs because it's the optimal position to roast a chicken (fat drips away, heat surrounds the chicken 360 degrees, skin crisps up better).
This pan is a truly well made and well thought out solution to a problem. Using a beer can to roast chicken has several drawbacks and complications. The chicken is unstable and can easily tip over. A pan is still required to catch drippings and fat (even in an outdoor grill). You also might not like the idea of an aluminum beer can being inserted into your food and exposed to high heat. Recent studies have linked aluminum consumption to Alzheimer's Disease, for example, and who knows what chemicals or fumes are entering your chicken from the dyes and the can itself as your meal cooks?
With this pan, all those issues are no longer issues. A sturdy stainless steel construction ensures that your bird is held upright and sturdy with less risk of ruining your meal. The rack holds the can and bird in place very nicely. I was surprised just how heftily this pan was built. You can tell where your money went, as the pan is not at all cheap or flimsy as you might fear.
The pan comes with a stainless steel (non-reactive) canister to replace that questionable beer can you were thinking of shoving up your chicken's rear. Another bonus of using the canister is that you don't need to have a beer can handy just to make dinner (although I'm sure that isn't a problem for many people, but for those that don't drink or don't drink on a regular basis, it's a nice plus). Not to mention you can use any liquid you like: including wine, which is very nice indeed. Acids like wine or citrus actually react with aluminum to produce funky flavors (and also help leach out aluminum from the metal), but stainless steel is non-reactive and gives you peace of mind that your food will taste great and that you wont develop some strange disease.
There's also a heavy gauge drip pan to catch all that rendered fat and drippings. This is nice if you plan to make gravy, but equally nice to avoid needing a cookie sheet and preventing flare ups. The pan is very small, which is great for small grills and less clean up, but it's just the right size for most chickens. If you're cooking in an oven, you might wish you might still wish to place a small sheet of foil or a cookie sheet underneath the chicken, just in case your bird is a little on the large side and any drippings miss the pan. I've had no problems so far, though. The pan has two nice sturdy handles for easy insertion and retrieval. It even has a little pour spout designed to make emptying the drippings easier.
Clean up is also very easy. In fact, it is much, much easier than traditional chicken roasting pans (the kind with the slits that let the dripping run off into the bottom and the grease bakes right on). The small size limits evaporation of the juices (they pool up more, so less surface area) so they don't burn onto the pan and make clean up a real pain (not to mention ruin your gravy-making fodder). It's also much easier to fit in my sink to soak. As long as you soak it right after you cook, it's easy to clean and is dishwasher safe anyway.
The only complaint I have is that there were no recipes included in the box. Normally I would just ignore these anyway, but since the manufacturer is a BBQ guru, you'd think he'd at least throw in a couple of recipes for rubs and some suggestions. Eh, no big loss, though. Recipes are freely available online. I just used my pan for tonight's dinner and it came out fantastic. I prepared "Saint Nino's Chicken" (a Georgian recipe in honor of the current crisis) that I printed off Food Network's website. It was one of the moistest chickens I've ever had and the flavors were incredible and proliferated throughout the meat. It reminded me of the results of using a flavor injector (another new toy I recently acquired).
I highly recommend this pan, as I checked out all the other offerings and they all either seemed flimsy, unstable, cheap, or (in the case of the Weber) used a nonstick coating. I'm quite happy with my decision to buy this pan, and I'm sure you'll be satisfied too.
GREAT
Review Date: May 31, 2006
Reviewer: MKMedved, Ohio
This product is great for the following reasons:
1 - Stability (your chicken won't fall over during the cooking process as with just a standard can)
2 - Quality is wonderful (not flimsy and cheap)
3 - Dishwasher safe (easy to clean)
4 - Not too big (so that it takes up the whole grill)
5 - Priced well compared to other similiar products
6 - No worries where the can has been and what inks might come off
Great way to roast chicken
Review Date: June 26, 2006
Reviewer: C. Atkins, Missouri
This thing works great. I prefer to keep bottled beer on hand so I never had a chance to make beer can chicken. The chicken I cooked came out perfect. Crispy skin and juicy inside. Excellent! I'm going to dry lemon juice and wine next time. The bottom tray holds all the grease so your grill stays clean. Highly recommended.
Great Design
Review Date: November 27, 2009
Reviewer: Michael Z. Williamson, Greenwood, IN United States
I can't fault the design, but it really should come with a pair of gloves. Chickens can leave nasty scratches while you're trying to insert this, and they can tear flesh with their beaks.
Totally changed my method of BBQ'ing chicken
Review Date: June 22, 2009
Reviewer: JoelNale, North Bergen, NJ
Once you cook beer-can style chicken, you will never go back to your old ways of cooking chicken. This has to be the most MAINTENANCE-FREE method of cooking chicken - ever.
As you may already be aware, cooking chicken on a BBQ grill is a task in that you constantly have to monitor the chicken to make sure it is not flaming up. You also have to consistently flip the chicken so it will cook evenly on each side.
With this beer-can method, you just place the chicken on the can and let the BBQ grill do the rest.
Best results for me are as follows:
1. Season chicken with Lawry's or other favorite seasoning (I also throw some thyme in the inside of the chicken)
2. Let sit for an hour
3. Set up beer-can unit inside grill; fill can to 1/2-way mark w/your favorite beer
3. Place whole chicken inside and fire up the grill to 450F for about 10 minutes. (This is to sear the skin to keep the moisture inside.)
4. Drop grill temperature to about 350F for 1hr and 20 minutes.
5. When finished (1.5hr cooktime total) you will have the most juicy chicken you have ever tasted.
On a side note, this device will easily pay for itself in both time and money. You save precious time that you can now spend w/family and friends (still monitor the chicken but not as much in frequency). You save money because now I will buy a whole chicken which costs $0.88/lb rather than individual portions, breast or other that is in excess of $1.5/lb.
If you don't have one, buy one. They also make a great gift as well.
Economical, healthy and delicious -- 3 reasons to enjoy!
Review Date: July 14, 2008
Reviewer: Jared Castle, Roseburg, Oregon United States
I picked this up as part of Amazon's 4-for-3 promotion (see my review of the Outset QN77 Copper Nonstick Grill Skillet with Removable Soft-Grip Handle). After giving this a try on our gas grill, I will NEVER buy roasted chicken again.
The results were fantastic. Cleanup was a cinch. And we paid less than $1 per pound for whole chicken!
My family all liked how moist the chicken turned out. I was thrilled not to have a huge mess to clean in the grill.
Why buy this device?
1. The drip pan is deep enough to keep grease off your grill.
2. The pan is sturdy and well made.
3. The four parts are easy to assemble and clean.
If beer isn't your flavor, try orange juice, wine or a mojito (Bacardi sells a bottled version if you don't have rum, lime and mint handy).
Here's a warning though: don't obliterate the chicken with a bottle of BBQ sauce. Use dry rubs and fresh herbs - rosemary and thyme or sage and garlic. Not only is this healthier than dumping what amounts to sweet tomato sauce and high-fructose corn syrup all over your meat, it tastes a whole lot better, especially, if you serve it with fresh, grilled vegetables (check out that copper nonstick grill skillet I mentioned earlier).
YUM!
Review Date: September 1, 2008
Reviewer: Diane B. McVey, Beatrice, NE
I bought this cooker, after looking at all the options. I could not have made a better choice! I used warm water, garlic, and lemon pepper in the liquid container. The chicken was wonderful, and the outside was golden brown and crispy~~ beautiful! I would recommend this rack to anyone, and plan to give them to my family for gifts!
US $106.66
Fabulous Product and Design
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I just love seeing pictures of BBQ beer can chicken. I made a similar version early in summer, and will give yours a try soon – thanks for sharing!
I’ve always wanted to try this and really like the simplicity of your recipe.