Beer Can Chicken

Many of you may be confident in grilling various chicken parts but have you ever tried grilling a whole chicken vertically?  This cooking technique often referred to as "Beer Can Chicken" consistently produces a moist and flavorful bird.  If you haven't yet tried this cooking method give it a whirl the next time you fire up the grill.  You will be pleased with the results.

Ingredients:

One 4-5 pound chicken

Olive or Canola oil

Favorite dry seasoning blend

One 12 oz aluminum can

Five whole cloves of fresh garlic

To begin, rinse the chicken under cold water and then pat dry using paper towels.  Lightly brush the exterior of the bird with olive oil.  The oil is needed to help the seasonings stick to the bird.   In, addition a little oil will help the skin to brown.  Dust the outside of the chicken with your favorite dry seasonings.  In this case I used lemon pepper.  Also add some of the dry seasoning to the inside cavity of the bird too.  Take the chicken and place it on top of a half filled 12 oz aluminum can.  Any liquid is fine just make sure the can is only half filled with liquid.   Place the five cloves of garlic in the neck cavity.   At this point you're ready to cook the bird.  Carefully transfer the chicken to a grill which has been preheated to approx 350 degrees.  It helps to think of the chicken legs and can as a tripod.  Adjust the legs to provide support until the chicken is stable.  An even easier method to make sure the chicken is steady and doesn't tip over is to use a vertical roasting device.  They only cost a few dollars and are designed to hold the 12 oz can and chicken.  The bird picture above was grilled using this type of rack.  The chicken should be cooked over indirect heat (this means the chicken sits over an unlit burner).  Total cooking time is between 1 to 1.5 hours depending on the size of the chicken.  The bird is done when the temperature in the breast is 170 and the temp in the thigh is 180.