Beer butt chicken? Yes, it could be the next big thing

Canton Repository (Ohio) ^ | July 3, 2002 | Jim Hillibish

[ResistorSister]

Beer Butt Chicken is probably a tasty treat.

If this recipe is a hit with family and friends, on Labor Day, we are going to try Beer Keg Cow.

[Bikers4Bush]

Bump for later.

[glock rocks]

i'd never heard of this until last week... tried it last weekend on the grille using mesquite.

absolutely excellent.

[cajun-jack]

this is so old...folks here have been doing this for yrs and yrs

[Notforprophet]

Beer Keg Cow

LOL

[Hilltop]

I heard you couldn't hit a bull in the butt with a Budweiser. :)

[mountaineer]

If you can get hold of a July/August 2000 issue of Cook's Illustrated, p. 12, you will find a helpful discussion of this cooking technique. The writer notes:

Beer can chicken has a number of things going for it. The beer in the open can creates steam as the chicken roasts. This steam keeps the meat incredibly juicy. The moist heat also gives the meat an unctuous, rich quality. ...

The beer can chicken was also better seasoned with spices - almost right down the bone - than any chicken I had ever eaten. For the best flavor, I found it imperative to rub the spices inside the cavity (where the steam is generated) and under the breast skin....

Chickens that weigh about 3 1/2 pounds are ideal for this recipe. The cavity in smaller birds is too narrow to hold a beer can, and larger birds won't fit upright in most grills.

[ResistorSister]

Do the folks in your area use a different recipe than the one in the story?

[basil]

Good one! 'Tis my chuckle for the day!

[TwoBear]

Hmmmm, those beer cans looks conspicously like Diet Coke and Caffiene Free Diet Coke cans to me. Maybe they were trying to make Slim Butt Chicken.

[joesnuffy]

How about sheep... This butts for ewe

[glock rocks]

[Gaston]

Hmmmm, those beer cans looks conspicously like Diet Coke and Caffiene Free Diet Coke cans to me. Maybe they were trying to make Slim Butt Chicken.

You can substitute any canned beverage for the beer but I would suggest ginger ale if you do. It just seems to make the chicken taste better than soda.

[ResistorSister]

...tried it last weekend on the grille using mesquite...

Did you use the 2-cups of mesquite that this recipe calls for?

[cajun-jack]

just different spices is all

[BallandPowder]

Powder..Patch..Ball FIRE!

If this recipe is a hit with family and friends, on Labor Day, we are going to try Beer Keg Cow.

ROTFLMAO!!!
MOOOOHHHHHHHHH!!

[ResistorSister]

I just hope I can find enough grease to lubricate the keg!

[glock rocks]

actually, a bit more than two cups... i used big chunks instead of chips...
soaked em overnight, wrapped them in foil and poked a few holes,
then put them on the fire under the chickens. cooked on real low heat.

[T. P. Pole]

Stick a meat thermometer into the breast, not touching a bone.

...and preferably with the end of the thermometer inside the chicken and not sticking out the bottom.

[tillacum]

Did you use charcoal with mesquite chips, or did you use straight mesquite chunks or wood?