You can barely see the beer can under this frog-like crouch.
My big event this past weekend was trying a culinary trick that I’ve long wondered about: roasting a chicken as it’s perched on a half-full can of beer.
I was reminded of the trick when I saw the recipe this week on the Yahoo! front page. It also happened that whole chickens were on sale this week at Safeway. My 4.8-pound bird cost $4.90, making this dish a fine candidate for the Jobless Zone Diet!
Bird got balance?
As you can see, my chicken had no trouble getting comfortable on that can. But that pose didn’t last; about three-fourths of the way through, the bird fell forward! (See photo below.) Fortunately there was enough foil around it that not all of the juices leaked to the oven floor.
But still, some did leak; and I was reminded of why I don’t roast whole chickens more often. The splattering (and the leaked fluid, in this case) makes more of a mess on the oven than most other dishes I cook.
Focus on the positive
Nonetheless, the chicken was delicious!
The twists I added to the recipe: 2 cloves of garlic, minced, then mixed in with about 2 tsp of herbes de Provence (instead of the fresh thyme sprigs). The hint of lavender in the seasoning was a yummy touch. Bake at 400 degrees for an hour, followed by 15 minutes at 425 to make the skin crispy.
Let sit 10 minutes before carefully removing the beer can, as much of the beer doesn’t evaporate. Then open a bottle of chardonnay, and enjoy.
Use any leftovers in this lemon pasta dish!
Chicken took a header and came out of the oven in a new pose.
Man, that sounds delicious. And it looks even better.
Thanks! I’m definitely going try this one. Ah… i mean my wife is.