Beer can turkey ?


 
Frank H

Frank H

TVWBB Gold Member
Does anyone have one of these or know offhand if it will fit on the rack of the weber WSM 18.5 ?
Thinking of smoking a turkey soon , and this seems like a handy rig....

41d1ab02674f738589a01cd2f91a1791_zps5cff8ec7.jpg
[/IMG]
 
Frank I have done a couple of BC Turkeys, up to 17 lbs. I use a BGE rack, not quite the same as the one in your post but it should work and I lower my top rack 4" so that I have the clearance I need for the dome. Here's a photo FYI.
IMG_0524.jpg
[/IMG]
 
Hey, I'm doing my first beer can chicken on the 18.5 wsm right now...I did some cool things to catch the dripping etc. I put my rib rack on the lower rack and then put a pie pan on top of it with a foil skirt/bed to catch the drippings..then i put the giblets and innards in the pan to cook in the juices.. I was wondering if after 2 hrs of smoking at ~250F you should foil the bird for the last 2 hrs as it is a 7.5lb bird that is only at about 145F right now....Do you foil it or let it continue to 'bark up'...It has no "charring" yet.

beercanchicken.png
 
Last edited:
Howdy neighbor!
If it was me I'd foil it. I feel like chicken takes on smoke like nothing else , so after 2 hours or so , you got all the smoke you need. It also might keep the skin from gettin rubbery. Nice lookin bird. Is that a regular old beer can chicken rack under there? Maybe that's all I need if I do a small turkey....
 
Last edited:
Gary S said:
Frank I have done a couple of BC Turkeys, up to 17 lbs. I use a BGE rack, not quite the same as the one in your post but it should work and I lower my top rack 4" so that I have the clearance I need for the dome. Here's a photo FYI.

That's also a good looking bird.....so you don't just cook the turkey on the bottom rack? Would that be too close to the fire? And how do you lower the rack ? set it on soup cans or something like that? I'm thinking I can prob'ly get by with just my old beer can chicken rack.....why buy something new if I don't need it?
Click to expand...
 
Frank,I have that BCT rack. Works great! I did mine as a high heat,on the bottom rack. Came out great!
And yes,it fits easily on an 18.5 WSM.
 
I'm of the opinion that beer can anything is a waste of effort. I've done them a beer can and a regular chicken at the same time and no one could tell the difference when eating..........................d
 
David said:
I'm of the opinion that beer can anything is a waste of effort. I've done them a beer can and a regular chicken at the same time and no one could tell the difference when eating..........................d
Click to expand...

The beer can rack works great, whether you use a beer can or an infuser is a matter of opinion. Meathead has discussed that at length and I have done them both ways. I use the rack now but nothing except smoke and heat goes up the middle.

Brian you are doing a great job but I would not foil it. If your temps are under 350 it's likely the skin with be soft. Make sure the thigh is 175 and you are good to go. You don't have to smoke the entire cook
 
It's all done and came out great. I can't believe how much grease you get out of one 7lb chicken. I didn't foil it. The 8" pie tin that I foiled was almost filled to the top with chicken fat...There is some red on the meat by the bones but it's probably the marrow squishing out of the bones. It was 170F all over when I removed it. I checked it in 5 different spots. SOOOO TENDER. As far as the beer can novelty...I can definitely taste the beer infused flavor in the breast meat...the mrs. cannot. I know you might think it psychological but I have way better taste than her...As proven by me marrying her and her marrying me :) Whether you can taste it or not it works or not it is a perfect way to keep the chicken cooking neat and clean. Getting all the juices to drip into that pie tin made for very easy cleanup.
The rack I used is Mr. Bar-b-q Beer Can Chicken Roaster.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0026TB5XY/?tag=TVWB-20

I think it would be better with white wine in the can...
 
To ensure you have no red near the leg/thigh bones you need to get the thigh up to 185. I spent years trying to convince my wife it was cooked even if it looked like that and finally gave up, now my chicken is well done in the thighs.
 
http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B000I1X4RC/

This is one of the racks I have. There is a larger one of this style for turkey and a smaller one for chicken. The only reason I do not go to the bottom grill on my smoker is I want some distance from my clay saucer so that the drumsticks do not over cook. 4" alows that distance and still give some clearance in the dome.
When I do use an infuser I use this one with my turkey rack.
IMG_0519.jpg
[/IMG]
My own opinion is this is the best way to cook chickens so that the fat and the water can drain. With smaller turkeys say around 10lbs there is not the fat or the water. I also buy Butterballs from time to time when they come on sale. This rack is a great way to let them drain while cooking because they are loaded with fat.
 
Last edited:
Bob Sample said:
To ensure you have no red near the leg/thigh bones you need to get the thigh up to 185. I spent years trying to convince my wife it was cooked even if it looked like that and finally gave up, now my chicken is well done in the thighs.
Click to expand...

Bob, just because it's red, doesn't mean it's not cooked. These birds are somewhat immature to get them to market sooner so the bones never quite 'mature'. Once, cooked, it's not a sign that the meat is under-cooked, it's just a young bird.

So, cook it to your usual temps.

Here is one explanation (there are many others that are the same)
http://www.hi-tm.com/Documents/Bloody-chik.html
 
I like 175 in the thigh, never had an issue at that temp, even 170 as long as the bird is tented in foil and has a chance to rest for 20 minutes.
Good post Len, great info.
 
Last edited:
One of the reasons I like the vertical roaster is you don't have that reddish colored liquid that sits in the cavity on a horizontal bird which freaks some guests out. I know that we all on this forum can relate to that. Also some just have that phobia that pink equals undercooked/unsafe poultry or pork.

Tim
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

 

Back
Top