Root Beer-Can Chicken

I made this chicken in my oven because we didn't have a grill and it turned out beautifully! I made a 5.5 pound bird and it was done in about a hour on 375° according to my thermometer which I had in the thigh. I pulled it out and let it rest for half an hour. Which was really, really, really hard. Because this thing stank my house up real pretty like if you know what I mean! But that first bite was totally worth the wait!

The best part on the bird was definitely the skin. Getting a bite of skin with the chicken was like a flavor explosion in my mouth. All of the spices mixed with the glaze were to die for. And definitely do not skip the root beer reduction glaze if you make this! It's time consuming and creates another pot to clean, but it's worth it. Plus your already waiting on the bird anyways, so why not? You would expect it to be kinda overly sweet from the root beer, but it surprisingly isn't. The vinegar added to it gives it a almost bbq quality that I didn't expect.

I used the drippings from the chicken mixed with the reduction in the bottom of my baking dish as a sort of awesome gravy for my mashed sweet potatoes and bites of chicken that I didn't have a piece of skin for. I would also say that even the most novice of cooks could do this recipe. The absolute hardest part is waiting. For the reduction to boil down, and the chicken to rest. Do don't be afraid to try it. You and your family will thank you later!

Best chicken ever! We're not a couple terribly skilled at using our grill. Except for steak, we tend to either overcook or undercook things. This chicken was perfect. We used a 4 1/2 pound chicken and added 1/2 hour to the cooking time. Juicy, crispy, and cute as the dickens as it cooked standing up.

I thought this was outstanding! I'm not one to cook bone-in chicken, much less a whole chicken, but this was worth it, and actually pretty easy. Wonderful sweet-sour glaze.

Simply fabulous! I used a 4.5 lb chicken on my gas grill and kept all the burners on low and it was amazing! Took about an hour and 45 minutes and turned such a gorgeous dark color (almost reminded me of Peking Duck!) Will make again, definitely! Had a little trouble keeping it upright at first, but once it cooked for around 20 minutes it was easier to prop up.

Per Ann Taylor Pitman (in Oct 2010 issue) this can be baked in the oven at 375 for 1 hour or until thigh is 165. To replicate the smokey grill flavor, reduce sweet paprika to 3/4 tsp and add 3/4 tsp smoked paprika. You'll have to remove a rack in your oven to accomodate an upright (propped up on the can) chicken.

Yumm! This was a good one and pretty fun to make. Never did the whole chicken thing before, so I accidentally bought the chicken with all the skin and guts still inside it....so that was pretty gross taking out, but the chicken was only $2.50. The chicken was super moist and the glaze was delicious,... in addition the whole patio/house smelled amazing. I think I saw the neighbors salivating over the fence line. It was also perfect amount of food for me and my wife... half breast and thigh for each.

See it here: http://www.amytriedit.com/2010/10/grilled-root-beer-can-chicken.html

My chicken came out so juicy and tender. My husband requested I make it again. The second time I altered it a bit.. I made some extra spice mix and put in my beer for basteing. Very good either way. It's a hit in my house. Both times I cooked it on the grill and used Beer (not root beer). So easy..

I've never had the traditional beer can chicken but I just had to try this. Skinning the chicken took a bit of doing but overall this was easy to prepare. I used a slightly larger chicken (4.5 lbs.) but after an hour on the grill it was almost done, so I turned off the heat and let it coast the remaining 30 minutes. I also made the oven fries and broccoli slaw (also a first for me) as suggested, and they were both delicious. The chicken was juicy and flavorful, and not as spicy as I had expected. It's a bit wierd for frequent preparation but I will probably make this again.

Everyone loved this recipe. I used regular paprika (didn't have the Hungarian) and substituted 1/4 tsp of black pepper instead of red. I'll try adding some red pepper slowly next time to get the desired degree of heat. Also, I roasted it in the oven (375*) using the beer can stand sprayed with cooking spray. Turned out great with excellent flavor.

Delicious!