Beer Can Chicken

September 26, 2017

Servings: 3-4

Prep: 20 min

Cook: 1 hr 15 min

Total: 1 hr 35 min

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This bud's for you! A fun take on the traditional roast chicken. Who knew beer could keep a chicken so moist?

By: A Wholesome New World

Ingredients

• 1 (2 to 3-pound) whole chicken
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp dried sage
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 2 TBSP melted unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3 TBSP olive oil
• 1 can of light beer (I'm embarrassed to admit it but we used Bud Light!)

Directions

• Step 1 Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Remove the giblets and any other parts of the chicken and discard or set aside for another use. Wash the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Make sure it is as dry as possible.
• Step 2 In a small bowl, stir together the herbs and spices. In another bowl, add the softened butter (melting for 20 seconds in the microwave will do the trick) and add 2 tsp of the spice mix to the butter. Stir together until combined and smooth. Gently rub the butter all over the chicken (try to get as much under the skin as possible).
• Step 3 Open the beer can and pour out (or drink!) about 1/2 cup. Drop the smashed garlic cloves into the beer can. Place the can in the center of a glass baking dish and carefully sit the chicken, cavity down, over the beer can. Visually, it will almost look like it is squatting on the can!
• Step 4 Drizzle the olive oil over the chicken and rub into the skin. You can use a pastry brush to help you coat the chicken, as some of it will drip into the pan below. Sprinkle the remaining rub over the chicken and coat it as well as you can with the mixture.
• Step 5 Carefully place the pan into the oven and roast the chicken for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Baste during the cooking process if possible. When finished, carefully remove the pan from the oven and let the chicken rest for about 20 minutes before carving and serving.

Marc’s parents make this dish on a regular basis so we finally took the plunge and decided to make it ourselves.  It’s a great Sunday night dish to try when you have a little extra time on your hands to tackle the prep and allow for the hour+ roasting. A lot of the recipes I researched called for Bud Light beer (which also happened to be the only beer in our fridge, thanks to my sister!), but I would definitely try to step it up and use something a tad more sophisticated next time. Maybe even a hard cider to give the chicken an extra punch of flavor. The beer’s main purpose is to keep the chicken extra moist, and I can tell you hands down – mission accomplished! It was one of the most succulent and moist chickens we’ve made in a long time.

A few important tips:

• Arrange your oven racks before you preheat. Believe me, you don’t want to be moving around the racks to make room for the chicken once it’s fully heated.
• A great way to soften the butter is to microwave it for about 20 seconds. Then it is uniformly soft enough to incorporate the spice mixture.

• When you’re rubbing the chicken with the butter, I recommend taking off any rings or jewelry you might be wearing. The butter sticks to everything and I had to really scrub my hands to get it off.

• After you situate the chicken on top of the beer can (see positioning below), drizzle the olive oil right over the top. You can then use a pastry brush to spoon up any oil that drips down to the pan and help ensure the chicken is coated.

• Baste the chicken with the juices during cooking (if possible without knocking over the chicken and can) and then immediately after removing from the oven. You can use a baster or a spoon, but this really helps to lubricate the chicken skin and seal in the juices.

Had to include a close up of this deliciously crisped up skin!