Ingredients
- 12-ounce can of beer
- 3-1/2-to-4 pound chicken
- All-Purpose Barbecue Rub
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 1-1/2 cups wood chips or chunks (preferably hickory or cherry), soaked for 30 minutes in water or beer to cover, then drained
All-Purpose Rub
- 1/4 cup coarse kosher or sea salt
- 1/4 cup dark brown sugar, light-brown sugar, or raw cane sugar
- 1/4 cup hot or sweet paprika
- 2 to 4 tablespoons ground black pepper
Directions
- Make the rub: In a small bowl, combine all ingredients and stir to mix. (Your fingers will actually work best for mixing the rub.) Set it aside.
- Pop the tab off the beer can. Pour half of the beer (3/4 cup) over wood chips or chunks, or reserve for another use. If cooking the chicken on the can, using a key-style can opener, make 2 additional holes in the can’s top. Set the can of beer aside.
- Remove and discard the fat just inside the chicken’s body and neck cavities. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon rub inside the body cavity and 1/2 teaspoon inside the neck cavity. Drizzle the oil over the outside of the bird and rub or brush it all over the skin. Sprinkle the outside of the bird with 1 tablespoon rub and rub it all over the skin. Spoon the remaining 1-1/2 teaspoons rub into the beer through the top of the can.
- Don’t worry if the beer foams up; this is normal.
- If cooking on a can: Hold the bird upright, with the body cavity at the bottom, and lower onto the beer can so the can fits into the cavity. Pull the legs forward to form a tripod, so the bird stands upright. The rear leg of the tripod is the beer can. If cooking on a roaster: Fill roaster with beer and rub mixture and position the chicken on top, and then follow the manufacturer’s instructions for roasting.
- Tuck the tips of the wings behind the chicken’s back.
- Set up the grill for indirect grilling (with the coals or other heat source to one side) and heat to medium. If using a charcoal grill, place a large drip pan in the center. If using a gas grill, place all the wood chips or chunks in the smoker box or pouch and heat until you see smoke, then reduce heat to medium.
- When ready to cook, if using a charcoal grill, toss the soaked wood on the coals. Stand the chicken up in the center of the hot grate, over the drip pan and away from the heat.
- Cover the grill and cook the chicken until the skin is a dark golden-brown and crisp and the meat is cooked through (about 175 F on an instant-read meat thermometer), 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hours. If using a charcoal grill, you may need to add fresh coals after 1 hour. If the chicken skin starts to brown too much, loosely tent the bird with aluminum foil.
- If cooking on a can: Using tongs, hold the bird by the can and carefully transfer it in an upright position to a platter. If cooking on a roaster: Use grill gloves to remove the bird from the grill while it’s still on the vertical roaster.
- Present the bird to your guests. Let the chicken rest for 3 to 5 minutes, then carefully lift it off its support. Take care not to spill the hot beer or otherwise burn yourself. Halve, quarter, or carve the chicken and serve.
Pop open a cold one and get ready to have a grillin’ adventure. Learn how to make our beer can chicken recipe for a tangy and juicy chicken dish.
Beer-can chicken is a classic on the American competition barbecue circuit. The idea is startlingly simple: You grill or smoke (or bake in an oven) a chicken upright over an open can of beer. What results is some of the moistest, most succulent, and most flavorful chicken you’ve ever tasted.
The best chicken I ever tasted came off a barbecue pit in Memphis, Tennessee, where it had been smoked upright in a singularly undignified position: straddling an open can of beer. Since then, I’ve made this dish to the great delight of television audiences, cooking classes, family, and guests in my home. I’ve varied the recipe, using different beers or steaming liquids and a wide range of seasonings. I’ve used the beer-can method for cooking a wide range of poultry, from quail to turkey.
A Technique Like No Other
Beer-can chicken is a cultural chameleon found everywhere from suburban backyard decks to the recipe section of The New York Times. What is it that makes beer-can chicken so irresistible?
First, there’s the benefit of grilling the chicken upright. A vertical position allows the fat to drain off and the skin to cook evenly, on the front and the back. The result is a bird that’s crisp on the outside, bursting with righteous barbecue flavors.
Then, there’s the texture and succulence. The rising vapors keep the bird juicy and tender. And because the steaming takes place inside the chicken, the meat stays moist, but the skin doesn’t become soggy.
Next, there’s the irresistible tang of wood smoke, for beer-can chicken is almost always cooked in the presence of smoldering wood or wood chips.
Safety First
Grilling a chicken with a beer inside can be dangerous, but the recipes here reflect my professional testing of the process. Keep these important safety matters in mind:
- The beer can may explode during or after cooking if not sufficiently ventilated. Thus, every beer-can recipe calls for opening the can and pouring out half of its contents before placing it and the bird on the grill. This should avoid the risk of the can exploding. As a further safeguard, the recipes call for making additional holes in the lid of the can with a key-style bottle opener.
- The liquid in the can and the can itself will become very hot in the cooking process. To avoid spilling hot liquid, always use long-handled tongs or heatproof gloves to transfer the chicken from the grill or oven to a platter. If using tongs, grasp the chicken by the can and use another pair of tongs to steady the top of the chicken so it remains upright.
- What about the can itself? It turns out the drink cans in these recipes are printed with edible ink and packaged in food-grade metal, which avoids any meaningful chemical transfer from can to poultry. I had this tested in a laboratory. Please do your own research if you’re considering using any other products. When the correct grilling methods are followed, beer-can chicken is perfectly safe. If you have questions about your particular situation, please consult an expert with relevant knowledge.
Basic Beer-Can Chicken
If you’ve never made beer-can chicken before, start here, and once you’ve nailed the basic procedure, there’s no limit to its variations. You’ll end up with about 1 cup of the rub, which you can store in an airtight container away from heat and light; it’ll keep for at least 3 months. There isn’t a fish, bird, or beast that wouldn’t benefit from a generous sprinkling of this multipurpose rub during cooking.
For an alcohol-free version, try this Cola-Can Chicken.
