Black beer, such as Guinness Black Lager and Smithwicks, can be more than your go-to tap beer. Adding black beer to a meat marinade targets the cancer-causing compounds that accumulate when fat and juices come in contact with the grill top, a July Good Housekeeping article said. The same article suggested stirring Guinness with a garlic-y mixture to soak the chicken. A few minor tweaks—Guinness intact, though—makes for a great summer dinner option. Beer with no imminent bulge? Sign us up.

Medium

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: at least 4 hours marinading; 10 minutes grill time
Total Time: about 5 hours

Servings: 10

Optimized-Ingredients

Ingredients:
4 sliced green onions
4 garlic cloves, peeled
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons oil
3 teaspoons cumin
11 ounces of Guinness (one bottle)
3 pounds of chicken

Directions:
1. Using a blender or food processor, blend the green onions, garlic cloves, soy sauce, brown sugar, oil and cumin until it reaches a smooth consistency.

marinade

Photo by Katherine Richter

2. Pour one bottle of Guinness into the mixture and stir.

marinade

Photo by Katherine Richter

3. Put the chicken into a gallon-sized Ziploc bag and soak in the refrigerator at least three hours.

marinade

Photo by Katherine Richter

4. Cook on the grill until desired charring and enjoy.

Winner, winner, chicken dinner–more recipes for the grill to try: