Roasting Chickens (Recipe for Rob's Beer Can Chicken)

Almost everyone can roast a chicken these days.  And for us, it's the most comforting and easy way to serve up the plucky poultry.  When we roast our birds, we almost never cook just one, but rather two, and often even three.

I like the idea of cooking once and eating several times, and this allows us to do just that.  When we roast multiple chickens, we often eat one as is, and then we pull the meat off the other chickens and store it in the fridge for later in the week.

Some of the ways we use the leftover chicken is:

• tossed with pasta, lemon zest, ground pepper, sauteed peas and leeks
• as a pizza topping
• tucked into paninis and sandwiches
• chopped and added to fried rice and veggies
• chicken tacos
• soups - added to a broth with sliced veggies and/or noodles
• chicken pot pie

Rob's beer can chicken is one of my favourite ways to prepare these birds.  With very few ingredients required, it's dead easy to make and so flavourful you can fool anyone into thinking you spent hours in the kitchen. Oh, and for those who think beer can chickens need to be reserved for summer months and barbecues, think again.  This can be done in a regular old oven any time of year.

Rob's Beer Can Chicken

• 3 whole chickens, washed and dried
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup  roast chicken spice blend (recipe below)
• 3 cans of beer

Preheat oven to 425

When chickens are washed and well dried, drizzle one tablespoon of olive oil over each one and rub all over the bird and under the skin.  Cover each chicken with 2 tablespoons of the spice blend, sprinkling some inside the cavity and under the skin.

Drain 1/4 of the beer from each can (preferably by drinking it), add a few teaspoons of spice rub to the can and set the three cans on a baking sheet.

Place the birds over the beer cans allowing the legs to form a tripod shape.  Transfer to the oven and cook for 30 minutes.  Reduce the heat to 350 and continue cooking until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees (about 1 - 1/2 hours).  Remove from the oven, cover each chicken with foil and allow to rest 20-30 minutes.

Roast Chicken Spice Blend

• 1 tablespoon cracked black peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon white pepper
• 1 tablespoon coarse salt
•  1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons mustard seeds (cracked in mortar)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dry oregano
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.  Store in a covered container and use as desired.

Comments

[Lori @ RecipeGirl]

Love this idea. They look so cute :) Wonder how they'd turn out w/ root beer??

[Jan Scott]

Now, that would be interesting for sure.  I bet it would be good.

[Brenda]

I love this!! I've heard of beer can chicken before but never even thought about making it in my oven. Thanks for posting this, I can't wait to try it!

[Mom]

I have had this chicken, courtesy of my son-in-law Rob who is mentioned in the post... and it is fantastic!!