This easy Beer Can Chicken recipe guarantees moist, tender meat that falls off the bone and crispy, ultra flavorful skin. It’s our go-to recipe for a grilled whole chicken!
I’ve lost count how many times we’ve made this grilled Beer Can Chicken recipe over the years. Which can only mean one thing. It makes my family happy! It took me quite a few rounds of recipe testing to achieve that perfectly crispy skin (much like it did when I was creating my crispy Hot Honey Chicken Wings recipe) – and all that time and energy was 1000% worth it. Because now we have this trusted recipe on regular repeat: perfect beer can chicken, with moist, fall-off-the-bone meat and crispy skin that’s super charged with flavor!
Why This Beer Can Chicken Recipe Is Our Go-To
When I was developing this recipe many years ago, our oldest had just gotten her drivers license. Which was really handy for me, as I was asking her to run up to the store for a chicken every other day. Ha! This beer can chicken recipe is the ONE – I’m confident that you’re going to love it just as much as we do!
- The most incredible moist meat. A half-full can of beer not only helps prop up the chicken on the grill, but it also steams the meat, ensuring that it’s incredibly moist and tender.
- Crispy-crackly skin. While the inside of the chicken is being steamed to succulent perfection, the outside skin is crisping up beautifully thanks to the dry heat. The combination of moist meat on the inside and crispy skin on the outside is irresistible!
- Great for leftovers. This beer can chicken recipe is perfect for meal prep and leftovers. You can easily slice or shred the chicken to use in sandwiches, salads, and casseroles throughout the week. (I share some of my favorite ideas later in this post!)
“Made this today! The best chicken I’ve ever had, it was soooo good. Nice and juicy and moist and flavourful. Skin was so crispy and delicious. Too bad I didn’t have company over to share it with. More for me I guess! Thank you!!”
Khrista
What You’ll Need
This ingredients list relies on pantry staple spices for amazing flavor. Scroll down to the printable recipe card to find the exact ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.
- Can of beer – You’ll need a can of room-temperature beer, with half the beer removed. I like to use tall, skinny cans like Coors Light.
- Chicken – A whole chicken with the neck and giblets removed. For our family of four, we’ve found that a five-pound chicken is ideal. It gives us a nice amount of meat for a meal, plus a bit of leftovers for an easy lunch the following day.
- Oil – Use canola oil or another neutral, high smoke point oil you like to use for cooking.
- Seasoning blend – I use cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, paprika, chili powder, oregano, and a combination of ground black pepper and cracked black pepper to add ALL the flavor to this chicken.
What Kind of Beer Is Best for Beer Can Chicken?
There’s no need to be all fancy and money-wasting here, using your favorite craft beer. Although your beer butt chicken (I don’t prefer this name, but I know many people who call it this!) will most certainly still turn out wonderful if you do.
We’ve been using Blake’s “lawn mowing beer”. We keep it cold in our second fridge every summer, solely for the purpose of having a light beer to quench Blake’s thirst after mowing the yard.
A bonus with this particular beer is that it has a tall, skinny can, which helps to prop the chicken up just a bit higher.
How to Make Beer Can Chicken
Are you ready for the best whole chicken you’ve ever had the pleasure of eating? Let’s get started!
- Light the grill. Preheat your grill to medium-high heat, with all burners lit.
- Season the chicken. First, dry the chicken skin really well with paper towel. Then combine the oil and seasonings, and rub every last bit of this mixture over the skin and inside the chicken’s cavity.
- Set up your chicken. Lower the chicken onto the open, half-full can of beer, so the chicken is sitting upright with the can inside its cavity. Sprinkle all over with a bit more salt & pepper.
- Grill the chicken. Turn off one grill burner and place the chicken over it for indirect cooking. Reduce heat to between 325° to 350°F. Shut the lid and walk away. Let your chicken cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
- Test for doneness. Insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of a thigh. Without touching bone, the thermometer should read 165° F.
- Let your chicken rest. Transfer the chicken to a rimmed pan and let it rest for 10 minutes.
- Serve. Carefully lift the chicken off the beer can, gently wiggling it back and forth if it sticks. Cut into pieces with a meat knife and serve hot.
My Tips for Perfect Chicken
I promise that your chicken will be juicy and tender, with the most awesome crispy skin when you follow these tips:
- Dry the skin of your chicken really well. It’s crucial to get the chicken skin as dry as you can. Wetness is the enemy of crispy grilled chicken skin. We use paper towels to pat and gently squeeze every single inch of the chicken.
- Season generously and evenly. Ensure the seasoning is spread uniformly across the entire chicken, including inside the cavity. And if you’re using a 5-pound chicken, like we do, be sure to use every last bit of seasoning. This helps every bite to be flavorful and perfectly seasoned.
- Use a meat thermometer. To ensure your chicken is cooked to perfection, use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature. It’s the only way to know for certain when your chicken is done and keep it from over-cooking.
- Yes, you can make beer can chicken without beer. You can fill a pop can with chicken broth or plain water and get the same effect. It’s really all about steaming the meat with liquid, from the inside of the cavity.
Serving Suggestions
What to eat with beer can chicken? A few suggestions would be MY FAVORITE Coleslaw. Or Grilled Vegetables and Grilled Romaine Salad (both family favorites!). Honey Cornbread Muffins would also be great, as would this Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad.
How to Store Leftovers
- Refrigerator: Let any leftover chicken cool completely. Then store it in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: Wrap leftover beer can chicken tightly in plastic wrap and then place it in a freezer-safe bag or container. Place in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- To reheat: I like to reheat this chicken in the microwave or I just eat it cold. I love a simple cold chicken sandwich with mayo!
My Favorite Ways to Use Leftovers
You know me. I live for leftovers. I think they’re the biggest gift to our busy schedules. You might even want to consider grilling TWO chickens at the same time, for even more leftover love!
The chicken breasts are the easiest pieces to slice and save for later.
Here are some suggestions for using the leftover chicken:
- Soup: Oh how I love a good bowl of soup. Try my Thai Chicken Soup, Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup, or this super fun End of Summer Chicken Chili that’s loaded with garden harvest goodness. If your family likes pasta and cheese, try my Lemon Chicken Tortellini Soup.
- Salad: My family goes crazZzZzy for Chinese Chicken Salad and Curry Chicken Salad. Or top some fresh greens with slices of leftover grilled chicken and drizzle over the top this beautiful Herby Lemon Vinaigrette or my grandma’s Fresh Ginger Dressing.
- Mexican: This recipe for Autumn-Spiced Cheddar Chicken Tacos with Apples always gets great reviews. And my sister’s Taco Salad with Creamy Taco Dressing and Doritos is on our menu A LOT – just swap out the ground beef or turkey for leftover chicken. Or do like our girls do, and make cheesy chicken quesadillas.
- Total comfort: Have you tried this cheesy Chicken Cheesesteak Baked Ziti yet? It’s loaded with flavor, so darn good!
More Ways to Do Chicken on the Grill
Beer Can Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 can room-temperature beer, with half the beer removed (I like to use tall, skinny cans, such as Coors Light)
- 1 whole (5-pound) chicken, neck and giblets removed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus a bit more sprinkling over entire chicken
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- freshly-cracked course black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat gas grill to medium-high heat, with all burners lit.
- With paper towels, pat chicken as dry as possibe, lightly squeezing around the legs and wings to get every bit of skin surface dry.
- In a small bowl, combine oil, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, kosher salt, paprika, chili powder, oregano, and black pepper. Rub it all over the chicken and inside the chicken cavity. Use every last bit.
- Carefully lower the seasoned chicken onto the half-full beer can, so the chicken is sitting upright. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine and tuck the wings in as best you can. Sprinkle chicken all over with a bit more kosher salt and a generous sprinkling of freshly cracked black pepper. It works best to have someone tilting the chicken a bit, and rotating, as you add this final sprinkle of flavor and texture.
- Turn off one grill burner and place chicken over this area, for indirect cooking. Reduce heat to medium and maintain a temperature of 325°F to 350°F. Shut the lid and walk away. Let cook, without opening the grill lid, for at least 40 minutes. Let cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes total before inserting an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of a thigh. Without touching bone, the thermometer should read 160°F-165°F. For every 5-pound chicken we have ever grilled, this takes 1 hour and 15 minutes – but grills and temperatures vary, so do keep an eye on it all and adjust as needed.
- Now turn the heat up to high and let cook for 10 minutes longer, to amp up the crispiness of the skin. Every chicken we have grilled this way has turned out ultra juicy and moist, so we no longer worry about having dry chicken – we are more interested in producing a crackly, crisp skin at this point.
- Carefully remove chicken from grill (grilling gloves or heavy-duty oven mitts are helpful!) and let rest 10 minutes.
- Remove beer can from the cavity and carve the chicken.
Nutrition Information:
This post was originally published in 2018, then updated in 2025.
Brenda, Thanks for sharing your recipe. I used a 7.5 pound oven roaster and a 16 oz beer (can was probably 3/4 full). Your seasoning blend was very good and the skin super crispy. Super delicious!
So awesome to hear, glad you liked the chicken! Thanks for coming back to let me know. :)
Can I use chicken broth instead of beer? My husband cannot have beer
Hi Brenda, yes you can use broth. I’ve made this several times and have used various liquid like chicken broth, beer or even apple juice and they all turned out great.
My response was meant for Cathy and not Brenda. I was so excited to share my experience, lol.
I didn’t want to search for a stand and just shoved the can into the chicken and balanced it like that (I’m in Canada, I used a Pilsner tall boy). It didn’t tip, but maybe the chicken would have been protected from flaring with the stand. As the fat and juices dripped down there was a fair amount of charring in the tail/back of the chicken. The crispness and flavor is amazing though.
I leave out the oregano and use cayenne instead of chili powder, Soooo good!!!!
Grilled chicken beer can recipe
We made this tonight, it could have not been more delicious! What a great seasoning mix…I can’t wait to make more of your recipes!!!
Great recipe and instructions! Turned out perfect for our 4th of July party.
I’m so glad you liked the chicken!!
Brenda, I just made this. So moist, and we really like the rub. Your detailed instructions made it easy. The timing does take some planning if you want to serve it at a certain time, but it all worked as you said. Yummy!
So glad you liked this!! xo
I have always found this recipe to be super intimidating, but after reading through this you made it so easy. Thanks for sharing such a great recipe. Cheers!
Not intimidating at all. It’s so easy!!
nice reminder of a long forgotten recipe! Now I won’t have to try to look in the garage for that tool, just use a beer can, never knew before that it had to be half full, so thank you for the recipe and for that tip (or fact)! This recipe is DELICIOUS!
For me, it was all about getting the seasoning right and a crispy skin. I just hadn’t played around with making these chickens enough. But now that we have a recipe that our whole family likes, we’ll be making this ALOT! Enjoy the chicken!