We’ve all heard raves about Beer Can Chicken, right? Well, today I’m going to tell you how to make Gluten-Free Beer Can Chicken. Spoiler alert: It’s amazingly delicious! And easy to make!
The Back Story on This Gluten-Free Beer Can Chicken
A few days before my birthday, Son called and said he wanted to come camping with us on our mountain property and bring a couple of friends. We said sure!
We never turn down a chance to be with Son and it’s fun to hang out with the younger crowd for the weekend. We knew we’d be playing camp staff (cook, counselor, canoe/kayak livery, etc.) but we didn’t mind.
The best birthdays are spent with loved ones, right? And, you know we love our mountain property. Just driving there one starts to relax.
So I started planning the menu, other than the appetizer. I knew Son would take care of that. He loves to catch crawdads … and we love to eat them. This trip was no different.
I thought about the cookies I’d need to bake. Last time, Son and four of his friends had gone through 8 dozen cookies, and that was just in the first few hours. This time he was bringing only two friends but still, a mom has to be prepared.
So I made a batch of Brown Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookies and Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies—about 6 dozen cookies in all.
Next up was side dish and entrée planning. Side dishes first, because they are easy. There would be steamed artichokes (one of our favorites—especially for camping) and potatoes baked in the coals.
Now for the entrée or entrees. I had just received some New Planet gluten-free beer to review, so I decided that at least some of that would be used to make beer can chicken. Yes, gluten-free beer can chicken. Or as Mr. GFE says, more correctly, it’s gluten-free beer-in-a-can chicken because the gluten-free beer didn’t actually come in a can.
I don’t know any brand of gluten-free beer that does actually (please correct me if I’m wrong), but that’s not a problem. (Update: There are several brands of gluten-free beer that come in a can now, including New Planet. I no longer use or recommend New Planet beer. They use oats in their beer today. They identify them as gluten-free oats but there’s no indication that they use certified gluten-free purity protocol oats and that’s not even a guarantee of true gluten-free status today.)
One can just recycle any type of standard, 12-ounce beverage can by washing it out and adding gluten-free beer. And, that’s what I did. I snagged Son’s soda can, washed it, filled it halfway with beer, and we were in business.
Son eating a Brown Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookie and opening a gluten-free beer
I proceeded to prepare and roast the chicken using a combination of several ideas I’d read online. I washed it, oiled it, applied a rub (using the blackened seasoning adapted from Ashlie (Edible Existence; sadly, this site is no longer operating) that I first used on my Blackened Black Bean Burgers and later on grilled catfish), inserted the gluten-free beer in a can in its cavity, and roasted the chicken for a little over an hour.
See step-by-step directions below, but this chicken was so easy to roast and the results were surprisingly delicious. Although I’d never had beer can chicken before going gluten free, it really is as super moist and flavorful as is reported.
Note that the final product doesn’t really taste like beer in any way—at least not per our experience. (If you don’t drink beer, you can certainly use another beverage, like ginger ale for the steaming/moisturizing effect.) There’s very little fat left after roasting as the fat drains away as the chicken roasts. (The following photos were taken after dark and required either flashlight assistance from Mr. GFE or the forbidden flash. You can see my plump bird took a tumble towards the end.)
Beer Can Chicken is definitely going on our meal rotation. For camping, we’ll only make it when we have a larger group because one chicken goes a long way and cooler space is always a concern, but at home, I anticipate roasting one, saving some leftovers, and freezing a good portion for a later meal.
We ate some of the leftover chicken once we returned home, I used some to make chicken salad, and a very meaty carcass went into the freezer for a future soup (e.g., Black-Eyed Pea with Ham and Chicken) or Chicken Pot Pie. With our current heat wave (understatement!), any winning grill recipe is extremely welcome right now.
As you can see from the photos, we also enjoyed some Oven-Steamed Shrimp. So we had a great “surf and turf” meal.
It was the first time eating artichokes for one of Son’s friends. It’s always fun to introduce new folks to the joys of artichokes. Both Son and his other friend were very encouraging, but I think the friend who was new to artichokes was still unsure even after a few bites. If you don’t grow up eating them, artichokes can take some time to “grow on” you.
I’d thought about making a batch of Crab Claws (ultimate summer cocktail) for the cooler … it was my birthday after all, and these young men (of drinking age) certainly enjoy libations. Plus, there would be no driving. But, I’d never gotten around to purchasing all the ingredients.
In the end, it turned out to be a good thing that I hadn’t partaken of any spirits. One of Son’s friends had an allergic reaction that had started once he arrived on his motorcycle and I ended up driving us all to the emergency room. Thankfully, Son’s friend was okay after he was treated!
To show you how quiet the area is where our property is located, there was not another soul waiting in the emergency room when we arrived and our entire round trip, including the visit, took all of 40 minutes.
The weekend weather was hot, but it was still sunny and fairly clear (it’s always less humid in the mountains) as you can see from the photos. (Any haze is actually smoke from our campfire.) Of course, the high temps were perfect for swimming and relaxing.
We still had our fire and the temperature dropped enough at night that we slept under blankets.
Son and friends used most of the cookies that remained after dinner to make some gluten-free Cookie S’mores using the ginormous Campfire marshmallows that are now on the market.
Have you seen them? Notice that they say “gluten-free” right on the bag! Hold your fingers apart like Son is doing in the photo below and you’ll see how big these marshmallows really are. Wow, huh?
Of course, homemade marshmallows are healthier. I haven’t made any yet, but Zoe (Z’s Cup of Tea) has. (Check out her homemade version here and here using two different sweeteners. No artificial dyes or corn syrup to worry about with Zoe’s gorgeous marshmallows.)
Other meals included lunch with the easy classic of grilled hot dogs with chips on the side and fend-for-your-own breakfast. Oh, and while none of the guys were willing to go so far as to sing Happy Birthday to me, I did receive lots of birthday wishes and even hugs. So this Mom was very much a happy camper!
Okay, I better let you go so you can see if you have a roasting chicken in the freezer and some gluten-free beer in the refrigerator. Hopefully, this delicious Gluten-Free Beer Can Chicken will be on the menu for you!
Gluten-Free Beer Can Chicken Recipe
Gluten-Free Beer Can Chicken
Ingredients
- one roasting chicken, any size
- couple of tbsp of olive oil
- couple of tbsp of blackened seasoning rub (recipe here)
- one potato or onion (optional; see notes)
- 6 – 8 ounces of gluten-free beer
- 1 empty soda can
Instructions
- Turn grill on high on the opposite side of where you will place your chicken. The chicken requires indirect heat for roasting. With the grill lid closed, this method equates to a 350-degree (F) oven.
- Wash chicken. Pat dry.
- Spread some olive oil over the entire surface of the chicken and rub with blackened seasoning.
- See notes below for using beer can chicken apparatus if desired, but otherwise, pour gluten-free beer into can opening until halfway or 2/3 full. Keeping chicken upright, insert can into chicken’s cavity. Place all upright on grill. Close lid.
- Roast for at least an hour, longer if your chicken is larger. Our chicken weighed 5 ½ lbs and roasted for about an hour and 15 minutes.
- SUPER CAUTION WARNING: Very carefully, remove can from chicken. There will still be beer in the can and it will be boiling (or close to it). Immediately pour beer out of can in a safe disposal area and remove empty can to where nobody can reach it (you don’t want someone to accidentally pick it up). I crunched ours and added it to our recyclable bin of cans, all while wearing heavy oven mitts.
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
If you’re a fussy type, you can buy a beer can chicken apparatus like this one. I didn’t have one, but I did use the base of my chicken roaster pan (basically a large metal saucer) to set the can in and position my chicken over. My top-heavy chicken did turn over half way through cooking, but it didn’t make any difference. It still roasted perfectly and looked great. But, again, if you’re the fussy type, you might want one of the beer can chicken holders. I’ve made a big batch of the blackened seasoning rub and keep it in our camping food box. It’s great for grilled catfish, zippy burgers, and more. Some folks like to insert a whole potato or onion in the neck of the chicken. The latter provides a strong onion flavor, I’m told. Either the potato or the onion can be eaten with the roasted chicken when all is finished cooking. I didn’t do that and I think it would have made my chicken even more top heavy, but it is an option. Last, be sure to follow the caution note above when removing the can from the chicken after roasting. Update: Be sure to read all of Nance’s great variations in comments below!
Originally published July 25, 2010; updated July 2, 2023.
Kim @ Cook It Allergy Free says
Yay! The secret post is finally up! That chicken looks so good! I just showed it to Kurt so that he can make it when we are at the beach next week! That is where he gets most into his bbq groove! Must be that ocean view that stimulates the cooking bug in him! Kind of funny, but he gets really serious about being the “king of the grill” over there!
Thanks so much for talking about my Baking Tips post! So very grateful for your support! ;0) Your link love is wonderful!
And, of course, a great round-up as usual with all the great happenings in our little gluten free part of the world!
Shirley says
Hi Kim–Well, having an in-house king of the grill sounds great to me! 🙂 Read my friend Nance’s comments about all the improvements she has made to the basic beer can chicken recipe. I love her herb idea and the logic behind the potato, onion, or lemon. Now I want to try this recipe again!
It was my pleasure to share your great post, dear. 🙂 Thanks so much for all the kind words!
xo,
Shirley
Erin Elberson says
Chicken sounds awesome! I admittedly do not drink or have GF beer on hand (I’m a wine gal,) but may have to seek some out to give this a shot!
Thanks Shirley–and looks as if you had a lovely weekend 🙂
Shirley says
Hi Erin–I bought gf beer when Redbridge first came out, just to give it a try. But, as I said, I’m not truly a beer drinker. So other than gf beer for Son when visiting, no other beer has been in our house. Therefore, this recipe was an especially good way to test and use some gf beer for me. My recommendation: Find a gluten-free friend and “borrow” 6 ounces of their beer. 😉
It was a very lovely birthday weekend … thank you! 🙂
Shirley
Iris says
Wow, what a fun trip! I can’t believe what a great dinner you had with that chicken…my dinners are usually limited to hot dogs when I go camping.
BTW, I made Zoe’s marshmallows and they were AMAZING!
Shirley says
Hi Iris–We do eat well when camping … the food tastes so much better. 😉
Thanks so much for providing a firsthand review of Zoe’s marshmallows. Wow, I’m usually not one who fools with gelatin, but those look worth the effort! 🙂
Shirley
Heidi @ adventuresofaglutenfreemom.com says
Sounds like a fabulous birthday celebration Shirley! You are such a great mama!! The beer can chicken looks divine. I just bought one of the contraptions to hold the liquid, but have only used chicken stock in it thus far, super simple and of so juicy!
I tried the New Planet a while back, pretty good, it reminds me a bit of Heinekin, one of my old favorites.
Thanks for the link love and for sharing such great info, I really like the roundups you do (hence the reason I started doing them too).
xoxo
Heidi
Shirley says
Hi Heidi–Awww, thanks for the mama praise! The chicken stock version of roasted chicken sounds good, too. I love my friend Nance’s ideas that she left in her comments. 🙂 So many possibilities for the future of beer can chicken! 😉
Interesting that you thought New Planet was similar to Heineken. That’s one beer I had never tried before going gf.
Imitation is the highest form of flattery, my dear—thank you!
Shirley
Kahri says
Beautiful pictures, beautiful looking foods, and Happy Birthday!!
Shirley says
Hi Kahri–Thanks so very much! I’m thinking of you and your family as you make your move. 😉
Hugs,
Shirley
Zoe @ Z's Cup of Tea says
What a great camping trip and birthday, Shirley! 🙂 Those marshmallows are massive – I’ve never seen that brand before, or indeed gluten-free marshmallows. Thanks for mentioning my marshmallows – much appreciated! I hope to make more marshmallows soon and recipes that use marshmallow in the (hopefully near) future.
Shirley says
Hi Zoe–Thanks, dear! Indeed on these marshmallows … they blew me away with their size. It’s surprising that someone didn’t think of the mega marshmallow earlier. 😉 In the U.S., I don’t know of a marshmallow that contains gluten. I learned some things about Campfire and marshmallows in general here. I once found a Campfire tin from the company’s very early days. Sadly, it was just a partial one and not worthy of saving. I used to collect tins, so that was a big disappointment.
You’re welcome on the marshmallow mention. 😉 I do want to make them!
Shirley
Wizzythestick says
The gluten free marshmallows look amazing. I wonder if I can find them here in the Caribbean.
Shirley says
Hi Wizzythestick–Welcome to gfe! 🙂 I have to say I was pretty amazed the first time I saw those marshmallows. 😉 Hope you find them where you are!
Shirley
Kristia@FamilyBalanceSheet says
Thanks for linking up to the Summer Grilling Exchange.
Your camping pictures are beautiful. And the camping menu looks delicious. I want to come camping with you. We still newbie campers, so I’m not brave enough to grill a whole chicken yet.
Shirley says
Hey Kristia–My pleasure on linking to your grilling roundup! And, you’re welcome to join us any time when we’re camping. 😉 Thanks for all the kind words, too. Unless you have a big crowd, a whole chicken would not necessarily be a good idea. You might try one at home first, too, if you find it a litle intimidating.
Shirley
Gluten Free Steve says
I want to go camping with you next time! Sounds like amazing food!
Shirley says
Hey Steve–Thanks! You two are always welcome! 🙂
Shirley
Nance says
We love beercan chicken! AND–we have the special beercan apparatus. Well worth the investment. We got ours at Bed Bath & Beyond for a bit cheaper, and it comes with the cooking directions. A few notes for readers (and a disclaimer: I am not in need of GF recipes.): You can use soda also. I’ve used lemon-lime and ginger ale, and it comes out very tasty. I also toss a few crushed garlic cloves into the can, which imparts great flavor. I am a herb gardener, so I also stuff lots of fresh herbs into the can as well whether using beer or soda. Using an onion doesn’t actually introduce that much of a strong onion flavor, but the cooked onion is delicious for those who like it. I’ve also used a half of a lemon to plug that opening. It mainly helps to keep the meat moist by preventing steam from escaping. That steam helps keep the chicken juicy. I just use toothpicks or skewers to keep the plug in place.
Shirley says
Hi Nance–Wow, what an endorsement of beer can chicken and thanks for all the wonderful tips! I love all those ideas. 🙂 Now, I can’t wait to make beer can chicken again. Wish I had you nearby to get a few herb snippings. 😉
BTW, got your email … such a lovely BD present IMO—thank you! Will write soon!
Shirley
Alta says
That chicken sounds great! And that photo – the one with the sunlight peeking through the leaves – is amazing! Wow!
Shirley says
Hi Alta–Thanks so very much re: the chicken (be sure to read my friend, Nance’s comments … she has some great ideas for beer can chicken) and the photo! I never get tired of seeing that particular scene as the sun starts going down over the river. We have a beautiful spot. 🙂
Shirley
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist says
Yum! Great photo!
Would love it if you would consider sharing this at Monday Mania blog carnival at The Healthy Home Economist. Recipes, green tips, personal stories, book reviews, vlogs etc are all welcome – an eclectic mix of awesome blog posts! Hope to see you there!
Shirley says
Hi Sarah–Welcome to gfe! 🙂 Thanks so much for the kind feedback on my chicken.
I’ll check out your blog and carnival. It all sounds good! Thanks for the invitation!
Shirley
Anali says
Belated Happy Birthday! Looks like a great trip! Wow! I cannot believe that your son and his friends went through 8 dozen cookies. Good thing you were prepared!
Shirley says
Hi Anali–Thanks so much! 🙂 It’s always a great time when we go to our property. Yes, Son and his friends pretty much eat whatever is in sight! LOL I take massive quantities of food and sometimes still go out to the grocery store once we’ve arrived. 😉 I like feeding them though … they’re very appreciative, and that means a lot.
Shirley
Liz@Its A Blog Party says
That sounds delish!
Thanks for linking up!
~Liz
Shirley says
Hi Liz–Always my pleasure to link to Delicious Dishes and your blogs in general! 🙂 Tried to do it yesterday, but kept getting an error message. Need to go back and try again to add a dish for this week.
Shirley