Beer Butt Chicken

Suzan McAllister
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 1 hour 15 mins

Ingredients

4-5 lb whole roasting chicken
1 can of beer
1 clove garlic
Seasoning Salt

Tools
Roasting pan
Knife
Paper towel
Glass
Long rod
Tongs

Notes about ingredients:
Any chicken will do, but there are special chickens that the butchers say are good for roasting, and you can buy one of these if you like.
Recently I have replaced Seasoning Salt with Emeril’s Essence, but I made it with seasoning salt for years, so I listed that, lest my children become wary that I have once again duped them.

Prep:
Preheat oven to 350.
Cut off the top of the beer can with a can opener.
If you’re somewhere where you don’t have one, you can just open the beer, but it’s better if you cut the top off.
Pour half the beer into a glass.
Drink it.
Dump about 2-3 tbsp of seasoning salt into the beer can.
Smash up your garlic clove, remove the skin and throw the clove in the beer can.

Position the beer can in the middle of the roaster.

Remove any material from the chicken’s cavity (kidneys, giblets, excess fat)
Stick your hand up in there to spread him out.
Once you’ve got the meat evenly distributed so he’ll balance, grab him so that you’ve got a grip on the drumsticks with your thumbs, and with your fingers spread open the cavity.
Gently shove the chicken down over the top of the can.
You may have to pick up chicken and can simultaneously to properly position the can in the chicken so he’ll balance.
Don’t be afraid.  The worst that will happen is you’ll have chicken on the floor and have to open another beer…and drink half of it again.
You can rinse off the chicken.  Just make sure no one’s watching.
Pin back the wings.  To do this, fold the tip of the wing back behind the shoulder.  This lets Mr. Chicken have a good repose position to get ready for his tanning session.
Dry off the entire outside of the chicken with 3-4 paper towels.
Pat down the entire outside of him with seasoning salt.
Pretend it’s sunscreen – cover him up good.

Make sure your oven racks are positioned so you can get him in.
Open the oven, then carefully place the roaster in the oven.

Bake at 350 for 1 hour 15 mins
Take him out of the oven and let him rest for 10 minutes.  Roasting is hard work.

Getting him off the can is sometimes quite entertaining.
Remember, he’s just a drunk sitting on the can.
You can just carve him while he’s still on there, but I’ve found that the beer and can can get quite hot, and any mishap can result in burning my skin, so I get rid of the can before I cut him up.
I take the honing blade for my knives and stick it through the hole at the top of the chicken, until it hits the bottom of the can.
Next I use tongs to extract the chicken upward and break him free from the can.

Cut into 8’s (2 wings, 2 thighs, 2 breasts, 2 drumsticks) and serve.

Enjoy!