Beer Can Chicken Recipe

Have you ever make your own beer can chicken?

The first time I heard about Beer Can Chicken was on a travel channel show on grilling and barbeque. Intrigue? Definitely. If you don't already know, yours truly is really into gadget. No, not the i-Matter gadget but kitchen gadget. Why? Cos I need more equipments to run my test kitchen and come up with reliable, fail-proof recipes for my precious readers.......YOU.

Cooking a chicken on a beer can sounds fun and challenging. Make no mistake into thinking that it will be easy. Fine, it is easy to make beer can chicken provided that you have a stand for the beer can. The first time I tried standing a chicken on a beer can on the grill was disasterous. The chicken was flip flopping all over the place. Try getting the chicken off the beer can when it is cooked. If the scorching hot grill doesn't burn your hand, the hot liquids in the can will.

Thankfully, the beer can chicken craze caught on a few years ago. A trip to the local grocery store got me a beer can chicken stand at a steal for $2 each.

Instead of using a can of beer, we improvised by recycling a small tomato soup can. To impart flavor into the chicken, we add some water in the can and a mix of herbs. That way, the generated steam will further flavor the chicken. When using herbs in this matter, dried is better than fresh as it is more pungent. The result is a juicy roast chicken with crispy crackling skin that makes your family think you bought a French rotiserrie to make the chicken.

Beer Can Chicken
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
1- 6lb roasting chicken, removed giblets and pat dry
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 cup water
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried parsley

Directions (For oven roasting)
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350F or 176C
Step 2: Fill a small empty tomato soup can with half cup of water and the dried herbs. Fit can into beer can chicken stand. Place stand in a roasting pan to collect grease during baking process.
Step 3: Sprinkle salt and pepper all over chicken. Salt is important in this case as it helps to dry out the skin giving you the golden crispy skin which we all love.

Step 4: Stand the chicken onto the beer can chicken stand.

Step 5: Roast for 20 mins per lb, about 2 hours. Check chicken for doneness. Use a meat thermometer. If you don't have one, pierce a knife into the thickest part of chicken thighs. Juice should run clear when chicken is done.

Note: If you would like to do this on the grill, just maintain heat at 350F or 178C. I have a 3 gas burner grill, so I turn off the center burner and leave the front and back burner on medium low. Place the chicken on the center burner. Roast 20-25 mins per lb or till cooked. Serve with a side of pasta salad, roasted potatoes and gravy. This is the best roast chicken I have ever made.