This week, Chris tells us the secret to cooking a Whole Chicken on the grill.

Cooking a whole chicken on the BBQ does take patience and a diligent eye. Rotisseries are wonderful because they can manage flare ups due to the constant movement of the chicken. The hazard with cooking any poultry on the BBQ be it Chicken Turkey, Grouse, Goose or Duck is over cooking it will leave the meat dry and stringy and under cooking it will potentially send your guests to the ER. I am a HUGE fan of brining my chicken and turkey. (This recipe can be used for pork as well.)

Brine Recipe
4 Litres of warm water
7 crushed whole garlic cloves
5 sprigs of fresh Thyme
3 sprigs of fresh Rosemary
1 medium onion (quartered)
3/4 Cup Kosher Salt
2/3 Cup Sugar
3/4 Cup Soy Sauce
1/4 Cup EVO (extra virgin olive oil)

Fill a container that is twice the volume of the water (like a large roasting pan or beer cooler). Place all ingredients inside. Stir until the sugar and salt have dissolved, then allow the brine to cool to room temperature BEFORE placing anything in it (do not want to make people sick now do you?).

Place chicken in the brine, cover, and refrigerate two hours for skinless breasts, 4 hours for bone-in pieces, and 4 hours to overnight for whole chickens. Drain and pat the chicken dry before cooking. You can add water for larger birds like Turkey or Goose (trust me this is an AWESOME way to prepare a holiday feast).

A great way to impress a guest with a Family Style BBQ is with a whole chicken. Beer can chicken rack, but here are a couple easy to manage BBQ recipes for a whole chicken. You can place a cut chicken between 2 foil lined bricks, you can smoke it or use the beer can chicken technique. Yes you can spend money on items like the I tend to avoid stuffing the chicken as it becomes more difficult to achieve the safe internal cooking Temp (165F). However here are a couple easy BBQ Chicken recipes.

BBQ Chicken

BBQ Rub for Chicken:
¼ tsp cayenne pepper or chipotle
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp ground cumin
2 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp dry oregano
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp fresh black pepper
3 tsp unsalted butter

Pre-Heat grill to 375F

Cut a whole chicken down the back bone but not through the breast. Open it up like a book.

Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl. Rub the entire chicken with the mixture (think of it like a chicken massage) without damaging the skin. Go under the skin and cover as much as you can.

Place the chicken on the BBQ off direct heat to avoid flare ups or use a rotisserie. You can place a pan under the chicken to catch the drippings to avoid flare ups and use as a basting sauce. Shut the BBQ lid and treat it like an oven (and watch for flare ups.) You can use a smoker or smoke box for this recipe as well, just ensure you get that proper internal cooking temperature of 165F.

Let chicken rest about 10 minutes tented under foil before slicing and serving.

Beer can chicken has become a BBQ staple. You can use more than just beer, in fact just about anything in a can really will work with the right recipe (try root beer or orange pop). You need to figure out the way to balance your chicken on the grill. They do sell BBQ gadgets that will accomplish that if you want to make it easy on yourself.

Cider Can Chicken

Citrus Rub for Chicken

1 Lemon Zested
1 Lime Zested
9 sprigs of fresh Thyme (cleaned off stem)
3 tsp unsalted butter
Fresh cracked black pepper and kosher salt to taste
1 tall boy of apple cider

Pre-heat BBQ to 375F

Zest lemon and lime, add thyme, salt, pepper and butter to a bowl and mix well. Massage the mixture under the chicken skin (careful not to teat and holes into it.)

Open can and Insert it into chicken cavity. Balance it so it can stand on your grill. Shut the lid and let the BBQ work its magic. Watch for flare ups and BBQ until you hit that internal cooking temperature of 165F. You can manage flare ups so much better if you place the chicken in a disposable foil pan over indirect heat (turn off the burner it is over).

Let chicken rest about 10 minutes tented under foil before slicing and serving.