How to Make a Beer-Can Chicken

Summer is upon us and it's time to break out the grill. Here's my personal recipe on how to roast the perfect chicken.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• A barbeque Grill
• A whole chicken without giblets
• A Beer-can Chicken rack
• A can of beer
• An old round cake pan
• A chefs knife
• 4 cloves of garlic
• Salt and pepper
• Bakers twine
• 1 tablespoon each of oregano and basil
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• A meat thermometer
• A small glass

1. This one is just like mine. Preheat your grill to 375 degrees farenheit. Propane grills are easy, just adjust the flow until you reach the right temp. For charcoal grills with built in gauges simply adjust your airflow vents until you get to the right spot. If you don't have a thermometer on your charcoal grill, then you have to ball-park it.
2. Clean your chicken. Rinse it thoroughly under cold running water. Make sure you rinse really well inside the body cavity to get any loose bits out of the inside. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels.
3. Open the beer and pour half of it into the small glass. This is the part of the beer you keep for yourself.
4. Use the chefs knife to peel the garlic cloves. Gently chop off the ends of the clove and then crush the garlic under side of the blade. This will break the paper on the clove away and crush the garlic at the same time. Discard the paper and drop the garlic into the beer can.
5. Don't be fooled. You can get these online or in the store for less than $6. Add the oregano, basil, and chili powder to the beer and gently shake it to mix the ingredients. Then slide the can into the rack. Set the rack into the cake pan, as close to the center as you can.
6. Sprinkle salt and pepper into the cavity of the chicken. Gently place the chicken onto the rack by opening the cavity as far as you can and inserting the can.
7. Tuck the wing tips up under the wings of the chicken. Tie bakers twine around the elbows of the wings to bring them close to the body of the chicken. Also tie the end joints of the drumsticks together as well. Completing this step is important as it will keep the smaller parts of the chicken from being over-done.
8. Use your favorite season or sauce blend to cover the outside of the chicken. Place it in the center of you grill and close the lid. Let it cook for 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the grill and elevation. Use the meat thermometer to make sure your chicken reaches 170 degrees at the thickest part of the bird (like the center of the breast).
9. When you remove the chicken from the grill, do not slice into it immediately. Allow the chicken to 'rest' for 5 minutes to complete the cooking cycle. The internal temperature will actually continue to rise for a few minutes after being removed from heat. This also keeps the juices of the chicken from running out and drying the meat.

Tips & Warnings

• You can remove the chicken from the can prior to serving if you choose to.
• Sulphur is what makes garlic taste like garlic.
• Change the spices as you see fit.
• Add tobasco to the beer for a little more kick
• Always make sure chicken is properly done before serving.
• Take care with sharp knives.
• If using a propane grill, always ensure that the gas is turned off at the bottle and not just at the knobs.