"Beer-in-the-butt" chicken??? What the ....

Ever heard of beer-in-the-butt Chicken or beer-can chicken??? I have, just 3 hours ago. It is some process of cooking your chicken on the grill. A better alternative to rotisserie, they claim. Basically it has some form of contraption that holds a beer can which would then impale the chicken.

So why go so much trouble impaling a chicken. I beg Nick to differ. Apparently it is said to be a source of moisture to the chicken that keeps it from drying out. Aside from the fact that you're also adding beer flavor, the yeast and malt found in beer reacts with the chicken, particularly the skin, making it thin and crispy while the meat remains juicy. Beer-can chicken stands are sold at your local hardware stores. He got his own at Lowe's for $3.25.

What he did was brine the chicken first for 3-4 hours with 1:1 part of salt and sugar. This process would make the meat more juicier. Normal grilling dries the meat about 30% however when brined properly, you only loose 15% making the fibers tender and juicy.He then grilled it away from direct heat at 350F for 90 minutes in a deep pan with a little bit of water. When the temperature at the thigh registers 170-175F this means your chicken is done.

Skeptical? Not anymore! What can I say ... whoever decided to stick a beer can in a chicken's butt somehow knew he was about to change history. The meat was juicy, cooked evenly, tender and flavorful. We will definitely have this again.