Gin & Tonic can chicken recipe

The perfect Roast Chicken is a tough thing to master. My old man always cooks a chicken upside down, which kept the breasts and rest of the meat nice and moist compared to a bird traditionally roasted on its back with legs akinder, but this was at the expense of crispy chicken skin. Mmmmmmmm…. Crispy Chicken Skin. Bear with me, this piece is going to be full of innuendo…

I love Beer Can Chicken; a fun-yet-unorthodox way of roasting a bird stood up with a can of beer shoved up its bum. It’s great to watch in the oven too, and I can’t help but giggle uncontrolably. I always imagine it doing an imaginary chicken dance.

Today I’m going to try something different. I went to a BBQ at the weekend, and someone had bought those ‘Gin & Tonic’-in-a-can things. Basically lazy G&Ts for those who don’t know their ratios of gin to tonic. It was surprisingly good, and all I needed to add was loads of ice and a slice of lime. Perfect.

This got me thinking, with the sweet bitterness of the tonic, and the citrus from the lime, what would happen if we shoved a can of gin and tonic up a bird's bum. Would I enjoy it…?

The result was spectacular; crispy, perfectly salty skin all the way around, evenly cooked, and damn clucking tasty. The sweetness from the tonic and the elderflower came through, and my bird was moist throughout. Excellent!

So, here’s my recipe for a G&T Can Chicken:

Ingredients:

2 x cans of G&T. I used the one Gordon’s do with a hint of elderflower.

1 x medium chicken. Always choose free range.

Sea salt

Cracked black pepper

1 x teaspoon smoked paprika

Untie your bird so it’s free of restraints and unfold its legs. Rub your bird with a tablespoon of olive oil, then with some cracked black pepper, sea salt and smoked paprika.

Spread the legs and insert the can into the cavity. It should slip in fairly easily. Stand the bird up on the can and position the two legs to stabilise it.

Pop it in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius for 80minutes, or until juices run clear and the skin is crispy.

I served mine with some lightly-dressed watercress, homemade wedges, and a bucket of G&T cans.

This recipe would work equally well with some of the other ready-made spirit mixers in a can. Why not try:

Jack Daniels & Coke can chicken: Give it a Southern spin and rub it with a simple BBQ rub – Soft brown sugar, paprika, cayenne pepper and salt.

Malibu & Coke can chicken – A taste of the Caribbean. Make a jerk marinade for your bird and serve with rice n peas.

You can pick up the cans from any supermarket and most off-licences!