Original Beer-Butt Chicken

by Elizabeth S. Bennett
August 14, 2009

A savory chicken, tender and gloriously beer-steamed

From Fire It Up: There is nothing like this recipe for cooking up a bronze-colored, moist, and incredibly flavorful chicken. Not to mention the awe-inspiring way it’s cooked and presented. You can do it in your barbecue, or, surprise, in your oven! The invention of the ingenious ChickCAN by Louisiana chef Kevin Hester has made this process even easier. Adapted from The Barbecue America Cookbook by Rick Browne (Lyons Press, 1999).

 

Dry Rub:
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon summer savory
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon dry yellow mustard
1 tablespoon sea salt (ground fine)

Basting Spray:
1 cup apple cider
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Louisiana Hot Sauce
1 cup warm beer

1 12-ounce can of your favorite beer
1 large chicken

1. Mix the rub in a small bowl until it’s well incorporated. Wash, dry and season the chicken generously inside and out with the rub. Work the mixture well into the skin and under the skin wherever possible. Place in medium bowl, cover, and set aside at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes.

2. Pour half the can of beer into a spray bottle, add the cider, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar and set aside.

3. Take the beer can in one hand and insert it into the slot in the ChickCAN, then slide the chicken tail-side down over the can. This positioning does two things: first, it helps drain off the fat as the chicken cooks; second, the beer steams the inside of the chicken, while the outside is cooked by the BBQ heat, making it the moistest bird you’ve ever laid yer eyes, or gums, on. Some people put a small potato or carrot in the neck opening of the chicken to keep the steam inside; I prefer to let it pass through.

4. Cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours over indirect heat, about 300 to 350 degrees F. During the cooking time, spray the chicken all around with the basting spray several times. The chicken is done when the internal temperature reaches 180 degrees. Carefully remove the ChickCAN and place it on heatproof counter top. After your guests have reacted appropriately, remove the chicken from the rack and beer can with tongs while holding the rack with an oven mitt (careful! that stainless steel is very hot).

5. Give the chicken one more spritz of the basting spray and then carve and serve.

Source: Grandparents

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