For The Best Beer Can Chicken, Prep Is Everything

If you love chicken and you love beer, then you've probably already heard of beer can chicken. But, for anyone unfamiliar, a beer can chicken refers to a whole chicken that has been cooked with an open beer can inside of the bird, usually on the grill. The reasoning behind this is that the opened beer steams from the inside of the chicken, adding moisture, tenderness, and extra flavor to the meat. Of course, there are plenty of ways to ensure that your chicken is juicy and tender — but none of those ways are as fun as this one.

In order to make an amazing beer can chicken, you need to make sure that you prep correctly. There's one key thing that you need to do before placing the beer can in the chicken's cavity: Pour out half of the beer. There needs to be room inside of the can for the steam — if there isn't enough space in the can for steaming, then there won't be any steam to produce the desired effects. Additionally, be careful not to pour out too much beer, as there needs to be enough liquid to impart flavor to the chicken.

Feel free to experiment with your favorite type of beer when making beer can chicken, or whatever type of beer you already have. But if you're looking for some serious guidance, you should know that light beers, such as lagers and pale ales, are popular choices for beer can chicken; in our own recipe, we specify a lager or a light ale. These beers are refreshing and tasty without having an overpowering flavor. As for which beers you should stay away from in this context? Well, IPAs or stouts are not the best option. IPAs can be quite bitter, while stouts are either malty or sweet (or both). None of these characteristics are what we're looking for with beer can chicken.

When it comes to the specific lager or pale ale you opt for, it's important that you like the beer that you're using, since some of the flavor will, in fact, transfer to the chicken. For example, if you don't like beers with fruity notes, avoid those for this dish. This is also important seeing as you may as well drink the half of the beer that needs to be poured out during the prep.

While drinking the half of the beer you must discard is tempting, you can also use it to marinate the chicken. This is an especially good idea if you want to find a way to infuse even more of the beer's flavor into your bird. As for how long you should marinate the chicken? Just about 30 minutes is all you need.

Not sure where to start with a beer-infused marinade? Taking pointers from our recipe for grilled beer and buttermilk chicken is a solid way to go — just swap out the IPA for a light ale or lager, as we've already established that IPAs are not the best fit for a beer can chicken. It calls for a full can of beer, but you can easily adjust the amount to a half can. After letting the chicken marinate for about 30 minutes, simply follow through with the beer can chicken instructions as normal. All that's left to do is figure out what type of beer to pair with the cooked dish when it's time to serve it up.