Beer Can Chicken On Traeger Food

TRAEGER BEER CAN CHICKEN

Steps:

• Combine the beer, salt, sugar, soy sauce, and black peppercorns in a large Dutch oven or deep tub* and whisk them together.
• Place the chicken in the brine and add a few cups of ice. Fill the vessel with cold water until the chicken is completely covered, cover, and let the chicken sit in the fridge in the brine overnight.
• When you're ready to cook, preheat the Traeger to 375F.
• While the wood pellet grill preheats, remove the chicken from the brine and pat it dry with paper towels.
• Let it come to room temperature while you whisk together the salt, paprika, garlic powder, pepper, and cayenne. Rub the chicken all over with the softened butter and the spice rub, making sure to get under the skin.
• Open the beer you're using and drink or set aside half of the beer.
• Take the beer and the chicken to the grill and push the beer into the cavity of the chicken.
• Sit the chicken upright on the grill, making a tripod with the legs and the beer. If you have a secondary rack on the grill, it's helpful to lean the chicken against that. This may take some gentle finagling.
• Close the door to the grill and let this smoke for about 1.5 hours, or until the breast meat comes to 160F.
• Remove the chicken from the grill (it's OK if the beer spills out a bit), and cover with foil.
• Let it rest for at least 10 minutes before carving and serving.

TRAEGER BEER CAN CHICKEN

Steps:

• When ready to cook, set Traeger to smoke. Once grill starts to smoke, then smoke dissipates and starts to fire - change setting to 225 degrees.
• Close lid and preheat to 225.
• Rinse chicken and pat dry
• Mix together all dry seasonings and rub all over chicken
• Open can of beer and drink about 1/3 can - just to make sure it's still good
• Take your beer, chicken and a pan out to the grill (It can be a rimmed baking sheet - or any grill safe pan larger than the bird that you can pick up - I used one of those grill skillets for vegetables)
• Place pan on grill. Tilt the chicken in your left hand and shove that open beer can up the wazoo of the chicken. Stand the bird/beer up on the pan in the grill. It may tip so be sure to shut the lid and reopen - make sure your bird is still standing.
• Smoke at 225 for 3.5 hours
• Turn temp up to 350 and continue for 30 minutes until thermometer reads 160
• Let rest for 15 minutes before carving

JUICIEST BEER CAN CHICKEN

Steps:

• Set up your grill for indirect cooking.
• On a charcoal grill, this means spreading the coals around the outer edges, but not directly below the food.
• On a gas grill the outer burners are lit, but not the middle one.
• Once the grill is covered (which it should always be for indirect grilling) the circulating heat works like a convection oven, so there is no need to turn the food.
• Remove neck and giblets.
• Discard.
• Rinse chicken inside and out; pat dry with paper towels.
• Rub chicken lightly with oil, then rub inside and out with salt, pepper and dry rub.
• Set aside.
• Open beer can and take several gulps (make them big gulps so that the can is half full).
• Place beer can on a solid surface.
• Grabbing a chicken leg in each hand, plunk the bird cavity over the beer can.
• Transfer the bird-on-a-can to your grill and place in the center of the grate, balancing the bird on its two legs and the can like a tripod.
• Cook chicken over high indirect heat, with the grill cover on for approximately 1 1/4 hours or until the internal temperature registers 165°F in the breast area and 180°F in the thigh, or until the thigh juice runs clear when stabbed with a sharp knife.
• Remove from grill and let rest for 10 minutes before carving.