Beer-can Chicken
Make Beer-can Chicken once and it will go straight into your regular rotation. Prep takes about under an hour, cooking around 2 hours, and it serves 4. Most of the time is hands-off while the oven does its thing, which makes it an easy one to fit around other dishes. Read through the tips before you start — a couple of small details go a long way with this one.
- Cook 2h
- Total 2h
- Serves 4
- Level Easy
Ingredients
- 1 Recipe spice rub, or use your own recipe
- 2 Bay Leaves, crumbled
- 1 can (12 ounces / ~355 ml) of beer
- 3 –4 pound, 1.5–2 kg) chicken (dressed
Method
- Poke holes all over chicken to let fat run out during cooking.
- Rub chicken thoroughly with spice rub: inside and out, and then under skin as far as you can reach
- Set aside chicken.
- Remove upper racks from oven.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
- When oven preheated, take a healthy drink of the beer, leaving about 9–10 ounces.
- Crumble bay leaves into beer, in beer can.
- Insert beer can firmly into chicken cavity.
- Place chicken upright in shallow heatproof pan.
- Bake chicken upright for 1–1.5 hours until thickest part is 165°F (73°C).
- When removing chicken from oven, keep upright.
- Rest chicken upright 15 minutes before removing beer can.
Tips for the best Beer-can Chicken
- Read the whole method before you start and measure out the 4 ingredients first — it keeps the pace relaxed once the heat is on.
- Keep the simmer gentle. A hard boil toughens recipe spice rub and drives off the liquid too fast.
- Do not crowd the pan. Cook in batches if needed so everything browns instead of steaming.
- Taste as you go. Seasoning at the end is fine, but adjusting halfway through gives a more balanced result.
Variations
- Vegetable boost: stir in a handful of spinach, peas or diced peppers in the last few minutes of cooking.
- Individual portions: divide into ramekins or a muffin tin and reduce the baking time by about a third.
- Slow cooker: brown everything first, then cook on low for 6–8 hours instead of simmering.
Serving ideas
Pairs well with a simple salad and a glass of something cold.
Storage
Best eaten fresh. Leftovers keep covered in the fridge for 2 days; reheat in a hot pan or oven rather than the microwave to bring the crispness back.
Frequently asked questions
How many people does this Beer-can Chicken recipe serve?
As written it serves 4. The quantities scale up or down in a straight line, so double everything for 4×2.
How long does Beer-can Chicken take to make?
About 2 hours in total — roughly under an hour of preparation and 2 hours of cooking.
Can I make Beer-can Chicken ahead of time?
Yes. It actually improves after a few hours, so make it earlier in the day and reheat gently before serving.
Is this Beer-can Chicken recipe hard to make?
It is rated hard: 4 ingredients and 12 steps. Follow the order and the tips above and it is very forgiving.
What can I substitute for recipe spice rub?
Any ingredient with a similar texture and cooking time works; see the variations below for ideas. Keep quantities the same and adjust seasoning at the end.
Adapted from Wikibooks Cookbook, CC BY-SA 4.0 — source
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