Best Beer Can Chicken

Beer can chicken with a sweet and spicy brown sugar-paprika rub is grilled over cherry wood chips for the best smoky flavor ever!

• Preparation Time: 25 mins
• Cooking Time: 1 hr 30 mins
• Total Time: 1 hr 55 mins
• Calories: 627 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 cups cherry wood chips
• 2 (12 fluid ounce) cans beer, half full
• 2 (3 pound) whole chickens
• 0.25 cup vegetable oil
• 0.5 cup dark brown sugar
• 0.5 cup kosher salt
• 0.5 cup paprika
• 0.25 cup ground black pepper

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Soak wood chips in water for at least 1 hour.

Step 2

Preheat an outdoor grill for indirect medium heat, about 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Step 3

Mix dark brown sugar, kosher salt, paprika, ground black pepper, and cayenne pepper together in a small bowl. Place two half full cans of beer on a baking sheet. Spoon 1 teaspoon seasoning mix into each can. Be careful, this will make the beer foam up and out of the can.

Step 4

Rub each chicken with 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Rub remaining seasoning mix over entire chicken, inside and out. Fit each chicken over a can of beer with the legs on the bottom; keep upright.

Step 5

Drain the wood chips and place them with the coals or in an aluminum pan on or under the grill grate as directed by the grill's manual. Place two chickens, standing on their cans directly on the grill. Close the lid and grill chicken until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 1 hour 30 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees F (82 degrees C). Remove the chickens from the grill and discard the beer cans. Cover chicken with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 minutes before slicing.