Beer Can Chicken today, plenty of Q/View

smokefever · Mar 9, 2014

I've got some BB ribs rubbed and resting in the fridge to do later on today, and I also took out a 5# bird to do a beer can chicken.

photo (1).JPG

smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

I've got it sitting in a brine right now of water, vinegar, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and sugar. I plan on leaving it in the brine for a few hours and then I'll make a rub for it, maybe inject it and then sit it atop of a beer can.

photo (2).JPG

smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

Stay tuned, more to come later on!

smoking b · Mar 9, 2014

Sounds good - I'm in

smokefever · Mar 9, 2014

Smoking B said:
Sounds good - I'm in

Hey Smoking, couldn't help but notice you are from SC PA. . . wherebouts are you?? I just moved to Chambersburg not too long ago, originally from VA.

chickenherbs.jpg

smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

I've got some fresh sage, thyme and rosemary along with lemongrass. I'm going to probably chop half of the herbs up and use them in a rub, and the rest I'll throw in with the beer to flavor it from the inside out. I'm gonna do the chicken probably around 4, so we'll see what happens.

zedron · Mar 9, 2014

Those herbs are gonna make it darn good. I like to stuff my turkeys with a mix of sage and rosemary to give it that "gourmet" taste instead of plain old BBQ turk.

smokefever · Mar 9, 2014

zedron said:
Those herbs are gonna make it darn good. I like to stuff my turkeys with a mix of sage and rosemary to give it that "gourmet" taste instead of plain old BBQ turk.

Yeah I'm pretty excited for the outcome. I normally just do a beer can chicken with salt, pepper, granulated garlic, some mrs dash and Cajun season. While still very tasty, I'm hoping the herbs give it that extra "umph"

smoking b · Mar 9, 2014

SmokeFever said:
Hey Smoking, couldn't help but notice you are from SC PA. . . wherebouts are you?? I just moved to Chambersburg not too long ago, originally from VA.

chickenherbs.jpg

smokefever

Mar 9, 2014

I've got some fresh sage, thyme and rosemary along with lemongrass. I'm going to probably chop half of the herbs up and use them in a rub, and the rest I'll throw in with the beer to flavor it from the inside out. I'm gonna do the chicken probably around 4, so we'll see what happens.

I'm about 45 - 50 minutes from you in the middle of nowhere. The closest thing to me is a tiny little village called Waterfall. I am 19 miles from the Sheetz parking lot in McConnellsburg. Those are the easiest ways I can describe where I am

Those herbs should do a nice job for you

smokefever · Mar 9, 2014

I got the chicken onto the smoker immediately after I pulled the ribs. Took a while at 250, so I cranked the heat up to finish the bird off. . . .

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smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

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smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

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smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

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smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

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smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

Got a pretty decent amount of smoke in the meat. The Thighs just shredded right apart. All of the herbs along with the lemongrass, orange and beer really made this bird extremely flavorful

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smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

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smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

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smokefever
Mar 9, 2014

Plated up with some scalloped potatoes and corn, yum!!

smoking b · Mar 9, 2014

That's some nice looking chicken man

Good job!

You were eating well today

smokefever · Mar 10, 2014

Smoking B said:
That's some nice looking chicken man

Good job!

You were eating well today

Thank you very much. It was definitely a day of feasting. Anytime you can smoke all day on your day off is a good one

smoking b · Mar 10, 2014

SmokeFever said:
Thank you very much. It was definitely a day of feasting. Anytime you can smoke all day on your day off is a good one

& a fine feast it was

Your last sentence is 100% right!

bkbuilds · Mar 21, 2014

Chambersburg is not far from me in Mechanicsburg PA. Good looking chicken. I'll be trying one tomorrow for my 2nd ever smoke.

smokefever · Mar 21, 2014

BKBuilds said:
Chambersburg is not far from me in Mechanicsburg PA. Good looking chicken. I'll be trying one tomorrow for my 2nd ever smoke.

You're right, not far at all! Good luck with the smoke, if you have any questions just ask :)

eddisabledvet · Mar 21, 2014

Oh, man, that is some awesome Q-Views. I just bought my chicken yesterday to do today. Can you tell me about how long it took you to smoke it? This will be my first chicken and I originally planned to do the beer can only. But after reading your post, I think I will get some of the herbs and stuff it also. Is there anything special I need to do with the can of beer other than just open it using the original opening? Like do I need to punch holes in the can top as well or take a can opener and remove the entire top?

Anyway, thanks so much for the post, It is amazing and I hope that mine turns out 1/2 as well.

Ed

eddisabledvet · Mar 21, 2014

Also, do I need to do anything with the skin on the chicken itself? Do I remove the skin from the legs before smoking?

What if I shoved some fresh herbs and butter squares into the skin of the chicken as well? Too much?

smokefever · Mar 21, 2014

Ed

EdDisabledVet said:
Also, do I need to do anything with the skin on the chicken itself? Do I remove the skin from the legs before smoking?

What if I shoved some fresh herbs and butter squares into the skin of the chicken as well? Too much?

,

Ed, thank you for the kind words. Definitely go with the fresh herbs. I took the can of beer and cut the top off. Be sure and drink half of it before putting it in the bird. Also I took the lemongrass and herbs and placed them in with the beer. If you notice, I made small slits in the skin where the breasts are and put butter in there. As far as time goes, I suggest definitely having a thermo to keep an eye in IT. Temps and cooking times very for different size birds. Just make sure the IT reaches at the very least 165. Chicken is pretty forgiving. You can go with an aggressive rub or just use simple salt and pepper. You will have excellent t results no matter what. If you need anything just ask.

eddisabledvet · Mar 21, 2014

Hey SmokeFever, thanks for the prompt reply. I actually have the chicken soaking in your brine recipe and the only addition I made was adding some mirin rice wine since I seem to have a ton of the stuff. Thank you also for the explanation on how to set up the beer can otherwise I would've put the full can of beer in their and stuff the herbs all around it. I'll start a new post here shortly with some pictures of the bird as I place it in the smoker and then throughout the smoking process. The reason I was wondering about the timeframe is because currently I do not have a thermometer to measure internal temperatures without opening the smoker. I have to wait until next month and then I can buy the maverick from Amazon. Since I'm putting in individual chicken legs as well I will probably let everything smoke at 250°F for about two hours and then I will check the IT. At that point I should have enough of an idea as to when the chicken will be done.

Wish me luck I hope to be posting some new stuff soon.

Ed

bkbuilds · Mar 21, 2014

Good Luck Ed. I'll be looking for your thread as well.

smokefever · Mar 21, 2014

EdDisabledVet said:
Hey SmokeFever, thanks for the prompt reply. I actually have the chicken soaking in your brine recipe and the only addition I made was adding some mirin rice wine since I seem to have a ton of the stuff. Thank you also for the explanation on how to set up the beer can otherwise I would've put the full can of beer in their and stuff the herbs all around it. I'll start a new post here shortly with some pictures of the bird as I place it in the smoker and then throughout the smoking process. The reason I was wondering about the timeframe is because currently I do not have a thermometer to measure internal temperatures without opening the smoker. I have to wait until next month and then I can buy the maverick from Amazon. Since I'm putting in individual chicken legs as well I will probably let everything smoke at 250°F for about two hours and then I will check the IT. At that point I should have enough of an idea as to when the chicken will be done.

Wish me luck I hope to be posting some new stuff soon.

Ed

No worries bud. If you don't have a way to check IT, let it go long enough for the wings and legs to wanna pull off when you tug on them a little. That's a very good indicator. I wouldn't go by the color of the outside because if you have a temp spike, the skin will get darker. I think you are in good shape, I'll be looking for your post and wish you the best of luck. You should be very pleased with the results

disco · Mar 21, 2014

I love this post. Great food, great technique, great qview! Terrific looking bird.

Disco

smokefever · Mar 21, 2014

Disco said:
I love this post. Great food, great technique, great qview! Terrific looking bird.

Disco

Thanks a million Disco!!

Beer Can Chicken today, plenty of Q/View

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