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BBQ Beer-Can Chicken on a Gas Grill

From

August/September 2005

BBQ Beer-Can Chicken on a Gas Grill

A classic of the barbecue circuit, BBQ Beer-Can Chicken involves resting a whole chicken upright on a can of beer and grill-roasting it. We lanced the chicken’s skin with a skewer to make holes from which rendering fat could escape, then rubbed the chicken liberally with a spice rub on top of and underneath the skin. We opened the top of the beer can wide open with a church key to allow the greatest amount of steam to escape—the normal hole is far too small. The heat from the primary burner cooked the chicken evenly, and a disposable aluminum pan caught dripping fat from the chicken. Finally, we coated the chicken with a sweet-tart glaze toward the end of cooking to improve the chicken’s flavor and color.

Makes 2 chickens serving 4 to 6

Look for chickens that weigh between 3 and 3 1/2 pounds; if they are significantly larger, you may have trouble fitting the lid on the grill. To hold the wood chips, you will need a small disposable aluminum tray.

Ingredients

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