We’ve recently been playing around with Mallets Cider one of the new ciders on the block. They’re also the official cider of Glastonbury 2019! Available in Original and Dark Fruit these refreshing ciders have a great apple flavour, unlike some canned ciders you get in the supermarkets. We love cider here at Smokey HQ, so it only seemed right to collaborate with Mallets Cider and come up with a tasty recipe incorporating our BBQ rubs.

The first thing that came to mind and something i’v wanted to try for a while was ‘Beer Can Chicken’. I decided I would give it a go and bought a ‘Beer Can Chicken Roaster’ online. I thought the Mallets Dark Fruit Cider would work well and threw some heat into the mix by rubbing up the chicken with our Smokey Chipotle BBQ Rub. Cooking the chicken with this method keeps the chicken moist and infuses the chicken with dark fruit cider from the inside. The skin on the outside is also nice and crispy.

Read on for the full recipe…

Ingredients

1 Whole Chicken

1 Can of Mallets Dark Fruit Cider

2 tbsp Smokey Chipotle BBQ Rub

1 tbsp Olive Oil

Sides

We served ours with corn on the cob and salad. The options are endless, mac ‘n’ cheese, in tacos, part of a Sunday roast.

Method

• Rub the olive oil all over the chicken. This will help the rub to stick to the chicken. Sprinkle the Smokey Chipotle BBQ Rub all around the chicken ensuring it is nicely coated.
• Open the can of Mallets Dark Fruit Cider and pour approximately two thirds over some ice in a glass. Drink and enjoy at your leisure!
• For this recipe we used a ‘Beer Can Chicken Roaster’, which are cheap to buy and readily available online. Place the can of Mallets Dark Fruit (containing the remaining third) in the centre of the beer can chicken roaster and fit the chicken over the can.
• For this recipe we have used a Weber Master Touch BBQ. Heat the barbecue to around 220c, with the hot coals banked up against one side of the BBQ leaving enough room to sit the chicken and holder.
• Sit the chicken in the BBQ. The ‘Beer Can Roaster’ we used also caught the juices and sat nicely on the BBQ grate.  Place on the BBQ lid and cook for approximately 1 hour or until the internal temperature reads 165c. Turn the chicken at regular intervals to ensure an even cook. As the chicken cooks the cider in the can will slowly steam the chicken from the inside. We also used a little cherry wood for added smoke flavour.
• Once cooked allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes. Pull the chicken off the can and onto a carving board. We served ours with corn on the cob which was cooked next to the chicken, in some tin foil. The flavour of the dark fruit cider worked wonderfully with the chicken. You can also make a gravy with the juices that collected in the drip tray during the cooking and by adding some of the remaining cider in the can.