I use beer when I make red beans and rice. I also have another recipe that I call slow cooked barbecue pork chops.
8 thick cut boneless pork chops
1 jar spicy barbecue sauce
1 bottle of beer (preferably a good beer like Guinness)
1 large onion, sliced
2 bay leaves
Mix together barbecue sauce and beer in a large non stick pot. Add boneless pork chops. Add bay leaves and sliced onions. Cook slowly for 2-3 hours. Add water as necessary to prevent sauce from getting to thick. Serve over cooked basmati rice.

I've never personally used beer as an ingredient. But I have had food with beer in it. I usually don't like beer, but it's pretty good when it's cooked in food.

For fry dishes, at least, the bitter taste goes away. I had a fried twinkies phase once and putting beer in the batter helped give it a bit of crunch and body.