The Beer Can Goes Where????

Jamie had this idea a few years back (I'm sure people have been doing it for years, we had just never heard of it) - he likes chicken, beer and grilling - so why not combine them? So I used to simply take a tall can of beer and stick it up the chicken's rear! The chicken was well - pretty tipsy - it's not fun trying to get the chicken upright after falling and then having to use yet another beer for the chicken instead of my personal use! Since then, beer can chicken stands, grilling trays with liquid reservoirs or other devices are pretty popular, so of course I bought one, and use it all the time.

With my grilling stand/tray, it has a tall cup-like center, so I didn't actually have to use the beer can. I tried a few new things, and it was so juicy and flavorful. With my stand, there's also room around it, so I tossed some potatoes and vegetables around the chicken, creating a complete meal.

Sorry for the dark picture, we ate around 8:30 at night....cheers!

In The Rear Chicken With Beer

4.5 lb whole chicken
extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
few sprigs of fresh parsley for potatoes if desired
1 bottle or large can of beer (I used Sam Adams Honey Brown, but I like Heineken too)
1/2 onion, peeled
About 1/2-3/4 cup of BBQ Sauce - I used Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ
3 cloves of garlic, smashed

Rub:
1 tbsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp onion powder
1.5 tsp Montreal seasoning
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper


Preheat the grill on medium-high heat.

Rinse and pat the chicken dry. Rub the extra virgin olive oil and rub mix all over the chicken, don't forget to add some in the cavity and under the breast skin.

If using a beer can, drink about half the beer, add a garlic clove and some rub mix to the beer. Then carefully stand the chicken on top, using the legs to balance. If using a stand, put about half the beer in the middle liquid holder, and add 1/4 cup BBQ sauce, 1 clove of garlic & stir. Place chicken on top. Put the onion and remaining cloves of garlic in the top cavity of the chicken, just so it peeks out, don't shove it all the way.

My BBQ has three burners, I shut off the middle burner and put the chicken over that one, and cooked on indirect heat.

Toss the potatoes in some EVOO, garlic salt and pepper. Add to the grill (I had the tray area around the chicken that I used, but you could also slice them thinner and wrap in a foil packet and grill for 20-25 minutes)

Baste the chicken every 25 minutes or so with reserved BBQ sauce/beer - I mixed the remaining beer with about another 1/4 BBQ sauce. Turn the potatoes when basting the chicken.

Add some veggies (I used some red and green pepper, cherry tomatoes and red onions), I tossed in the same ingredients as the potatoes. You could also skewer them and put them over the direct heat, which should only take a few minutes.

With a few minutes remaining, I added some freshly chopped parsley to the potatoes.

Cook chicken till it reaches 180 degrees, about 1.5- 2 hours or so. Carefully remove the chicken, let sit for a few minutes, carve & enjoy!