Is the Beer Can Chicken half full or half empty?
It's been a while since I have posted a recipe. But I want you to know that I still cook a lot. Three or four nights a week. I made the best fajitas I've ever made the other night. But I am not here to talk to you about my fajitas. This post is all about Beer Can Chicken. And I am saying Beer Can Chicken repeatedly in this post so it will get picked up by Google. I'm saying Google a lot, too, just in case it helps.
So I had heard about this new phenomenon (doo doo, dee doo da doo) Beer Can Chicken, and it sounded intriquing. And on my way out of Wal-Mart the other day (Yes, I had to go there again- garbage bags and batteries) they had the little stand for sale cheap (of course) as an impulse buy item by the register. So I grabbed a couple.
I went to the internet and Googled "Beer Can Chicken Recipe" and saw a whole bunch. I then Googled "The Best Beer Can Chicken Recipe" to narrow it down. I didn't do much to it, and you don't have to. Aside from the yuck yuck, it's one of the easiest things I've ever cooked. And I'll cook it again soon.
I've never cooked a whole chicken before because the extra bits gross me out. It felt more honest this way, like I was closer to the food source. Buying boneless, skinless breast filets is a bit dishonest. Like it is some magical food that comes all neat and pretty. It's easy to forget the violence behind cooking, but I think it is important to remember, at least once in a while.
When we cook Thanksgiving dinner, Rachel has to prep the turkey because I gag and throw up a little. But she was at work and I dealt with it this time- yanked the neck and giblets and I think the liver and such.
What, exactly is a giblet?
Anyway, I gagged a lot, but I got 'er done. I rubbed the outside with a bit of olive oil. Then I rubbed it inside and out liberally with salt, Lawry's Seasoned Salt, and a bunch of ground mixed pepper corns. I opened a can of Tecate and chugged half. Hey, I know it was the middle of the afternoon, but I was following the recipe! Anyway, I put the half full (not half empty because I'm an optimist) can in the Wal-Mart holder and plopped the bird on top...
...I took that picture and it reminded me of something...
...And with some help from Photoshop...
...My beer can chicken had a bit of the Captain in him.
An hour and a half to two hours of indirect heat is all it took. I put it in the middle of my grill and put the outer burners of my three burner grill on high. Use a thermometer and get the breast to 160. That's it. You're done. I mean, your chicken is done.
It was really tasty. The flavor permeated all of the meat, and the meat just fell off the bone. I grilled up some corn as well and made some rice. And I grilled some veg for Rachel.
I recommend this because it was REALLY yummy and very cheap to make. $4.78 for the bird, two dollars in vegetables (I did asparagus and carrots), and 50 cents worth of rice to feed a family of three with leftovers.
Oh, while I'm at it, I don't think I've ever talked about how I grill vegetables. I take a sheet of foil make a little box. I then place the vegetables (in this case, asparagus and carrots sliced thinly about the same length as the asparagus) in the foil box. I add seasonings to compliment whatever meat I am grilling. So this time it was just salt, pepper, and Lawry's. Sometimes I add crushed garlic and maybe onions. Anyway, I plop a tablespoon of butter on top (sometimes I use the squirtable butter substitue) and I sprinkle cold water on top. Just a couple of handfuls from the tap. I then cover the foil box with another sheet of foil. I put it on the grill right over the burner on high. Then I listen. Once you hear the water sizzling, give it about ten minutes and your vegetables come out just about perfect. Cooking times vary depending on what you are cooking, but ten minutes is a good estimate. Experiment a bit and see what you like. I like mine al dente.
I don't know why, maybe Alton Brown can explain it to me, but when I cook vegetables this way, it really brings out the color and the flavor. I'll snap some pictures the next time I grill.
That's it. Happy grilling!
So I had heard about this new phenomenon (doo doo, dee doo da doo) Beer Can Chicken, and it sounded intriquing. And on my way out of Wal-Mart the other day (Yes, I had to go there again- garbage bags and batteries) they had the little stand for sale cheap (of course) as an impulse buy item by the register. So I grabbed a couple.
I went to the internet and Googled "Beer Can Chicken Recipe" and saw a whole bunch. I then Googled "The Best Beer Can Chicken Recipe" to narrow it down. I didn't do much to it, and you don't have to. Aside from the yuck yuck, it's one of the easiest things I've ever cooked. And I'll cook it again soon.
I've never cooked a whole chicken before because the extra bits gross me out. It felt more honest this way, like I was closer to the food source. Buying boneless, skinless breast filets is a bit dishonest. Like it is some magical food that comes all neat and pretty. It's easy to forget the violence behind cooking, but I think it is important to remember, at least once in a while.
When we cook Thanksgiving dinner, Rachel has to prep the turkey because I gag and throw up a little. But she was at work and I dealt with it this time- yanked the neck and giblets and I think the liver and such.
What, exactly is a giblet?
Anyway, I gagged a lot, but I got 'er done. I rubbed the outside with a bit of olive oil. Then I rubbed it inside and out liberally with salt, Lawry's Seasoned Salt, and a bunch of ground mixed pepper corns. I opened a can of Tecate and chugged half. Hey, I know it was the middle of the afternoon, but I was following the recipe! Anyway, I put the half full (not half empty because I'm an optimist) can in the Wal-Mart holder and plopped the bird on top...
...I took that picture and it reminded me of something...
...And with some help from Photoshop...
...My beer can chicken had a bit of the Captain in him.
An hour and a half to two hours of indirect heat is all it took. I put it in the middle of my grill and put the outer burners of my three burner grill on high. Use a thermometer and get the breast to 160. That's it. You're done. I mean, your chicken is done.
It was really tasty. The flavor permeated all of the meat, and the meat just fell off the bone. I grilled up some corn as well and made some rice. And I grilled some veg for Rachel.
I recommend this because it was REALLY yummy and very cheap to make. $4.78 for the bird, two dollars in vegetables (I did asparagus and carrots), and 50 cents worth of rice to feed a family of three with leftovers.
Oh, while I'm at it, I don't think I've ever talked about how I grill vegetables. I take a sheet of foil make a little box. I then place the vegetables (in this case, asparagus and carrots sliced thinly about the same length as the asparagus) in the foil box. I add seasonings to compliment whatever meat I am grilling. So this time it was just salt, pepper, and Lawry's. Sometimes I add crushed garlic and maybe onions. Anyway, I plop a tablespoon of butter on top (sometimes I use the squirtable butter substitue) and I sprinkle cold water on top. Just a couple of handfuls from the tap. I then cover the foil box with another sheet of foil. I put it on the grill right over the burner on high. Then I listen. Once you hear the water sizzling, give it about ten minutes and your vegetables come out just about perfect. Cooking times vary depending on what you are cooking, but ten minutes is a good estimate. Experiment a bit and see what you like. I like mine al dente.
I don't know why, maybe Alton Brown can explain it to me, but when I cook vegetables this way, it really brings out the color and the flavor. I'll snap some pictures the next time I grill.
That's it. Happy grilling!
posted by Eric Soderstrom at 10:55 PM
2 Comments:
Do we worry about getting Alzheimers from ingesting aluminum, or as the Brits call it Aluminium. Can you see Blair and Bush having a conversation-?- "Tony, I think the future rests on Nuculer Power." "That'd be chippy, chappy for we at present we are in need of more power to run our aluminium plants."
You cracked me up with the pirate chicken transformation thing. Laughed out loud.
you shoulda let me animate him dancing to
"SledgeHammer" while he was cookin'!
great pics! looks goooood!
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