The BEST Chicken Brine

The best chicken brine is here to make juicy tender chicken no matter how you cook it – roast it in oven, grill it or fry it. This is complete guide on how to brine chicken, with all the tips and tricks for best moist chicken you’ll ever cook.

Your Sunday roast chicken got better! You’ll never want to roast chicken without brining. Because what brining does to chicken (or any meat) is simply incredible! It tenderizes chicken, makes it more flavorful from all the herbs in the brine and you’ll be blown away with the juiciness of the chicken.

Use whole chicken or parts like breasts and drumsticks to brine. Brine does have magical powers. It not just tenderizes the meat submerged in it by making the meat absorb moisture thus making it tender and juicy when cooked. It also flavors the chicken (or any meat) from the aromatics of fresh herbs, lemons which get infused into the meat.

Roast in oven, grill, smoke or fry in oil – cook brined chicken anyway you want, you are guaranteed to have tender, juicy chicken. That’s the magic power of brining.

What Is Brining?

Brining was originally used to preserve food by pickling it in salty liquid.

It’s a process in which meat is soaked in salt water solution (“brine”) before cooking it. Meat is marinated in the salty liquid anywhere from 30 minutes for 12 hours (or more).  Brining tenderizes the meat by making it absorb moisture and flavors. When you cook chicken soaked in salty liquid for few hours, you’ll get most juiciest and tender chicken.

We all have experienced dry, tasteless chicken breasts in our lives! No more unpleasant  dry, chewy, tasteless chicken breasts. Because now you can brine your way to the most amazing, moist, succulent and flavorful chicken breasts. The best chicken breast of your life! How? It’s the power of science!

Remember the word “osmosis” from your school books? Yes that’s how brining works! Brine chicken breast or whole chicken or any meat placed in a bath of salty flavorful liquid, the solution will travel through the meat in order to equalize the salt levels – through osmosis process!

This means the meat has more liquid before it starts to cook compared to meat that wasn’t brined. So when you cook, heat will draw the same amount of moisture from the meat, but will still be juicier at the end of cooking.

While this recipe is for whole chicken brine, you can easily substitute whole chicken with chicken breasts, or wings and drumsticks. 

Benefits Of Brining

Brining has many benefits. Some meats, especially lean meat like chicken and turkey benefit from brining more than the others. As lean meat don’t have fat to make meat moist and flavorful, brining it will help them retain moisture even after cooking. Brining ingredients like fresh aromatic herbs, lemon, bay leaves and pepper makes meat more flavorful.

If you do not want dry, flavorless chicken breasts or whole chicken after roasting, BRINE CHICKEN!

How Long To Brine Chicken?

An hour per pound is what you need to follow. For whole chicken brine you’ll need to brine anywhere from 8 to 12 hours. 12 hours is enough! You can brine it for 24 hours if you want, but do not go beyond that. Your chicken will start getting overly salty.

Chicken without bones like chicken breasts will need less time in the brine. Chicken breasts will need atleast 2 hours in the brine. Chicken with bones – wings and drumsticks will need a little longer time. Chicken wing brine or to brine chicken thighs go for 4 hours.

Can You use This Brine For Other Meats?

Yes, absolutely. You can use the recipe to brine smaller turkey, pork or turkey breasts.

How To Make Wet Brine Chicken?

A sure-fire way to make super juicy chicken (or turkey) meat is wet brine. Wet brining lets lean meat soak up moisture from salt water solution. Using the right amount of salt to liquid ratio is crucial to make the BEST chicken brine or turkey brine.

The basic ratio of salt to liquid is – 1 cup of salt for 1 gallon water.  This is the best brine for chicken.

Salt here refers to kosher salt. Remember not all salt are created same. Each salt has different size and structure, flavor profile and different ability to dissolve.

Important MUST USE KOSHER SALT which are larger grains. It’s 1 tablespoon kosher salt for every cup of water.

If you plan to use table salt or fine salt, reduce the amount of salt added in the recipe. One tablespoon of kosher salt isn’t same as one tablespoon of table salt. Table salt measures differently than kosher salt.

This isn’t ordinary brine recipe. We want to pack in more flavors in the brine. By adding fresh herbs – parsley, rosemary and thyme, crushed garlic,  fresh lemon slices, pepper corns, bay leaves and honey is added to make more flavorful brine.

How To Make Dry Brine?

The technique for dry brining is different. Pound kosher salt, a pinch of sugar(to help caramelize meat), dried herbs and spices in mortar and pestle. Rub this over meat, place it in zip lock bags and brine in refrigerator for 12 hours.

There is no use of any liquid in dry brine.

Ingredients For Chicken Brine Recipe

A basic brine recipe only needs water and salt. Other fancy ingredients that goes into this brine recipe is for adding flavors.

To make the best brine recipe, you’ll need:

Water & Kosher Salt – the main ingredients, must use.

Garlic – I like to crush garlic and add it to brine, will release all it’s flavors and oil into brine.

Pepper Corns – For seasoning the brine

Bay Leaves – added for flavor.

Honey – can use sugar instead of honey. This aids in beautiful browning of the chicken skin.

Fresh Herbs – Rosemary, Thyme, Parsley –  again added for flavor.

Fresh Lemon Slices & Lemon Juice – aids in tenderizing the chicken along with adding flavor to it.

How To Make Brine Chicken?

Use a pot big enough to hold you meat. Dissolve kosher salt in water in the pot on slow simmer for about 2 minutes. The basic ratio is one tablespoon of salt for every one cup water.

Now throw in all the fancy flavor enhancing ingredients into water.  Add crushed garlic, pepper corns, bay leaves, lemon slices, honey and fresh herbs – rosemary, thyme and parsley.

Bring water to boil for about a minute, stir to dissolve salt.

Remove pan from stove. Allow water to cool completely.

IMPORTANT NOTE: DO NOT put chicken in the brine before it’s completely cool. Warm temperature of the brine will make scary harmful bacteria’s in the chicken. It can lead to serious health hazards!

Cook’s Tip: To help brine cool down faster, allow the pot to cool down a bit and then place the pot in fridge to cool brine faster and cool it completely.

Place whole chicken in cooled brine.

NOTE: chicken should be fully immersed in brine.

Cover pot with lid and brine chicken inside refrigerator for 8 to 24 hours.  Do not go past that. Chicken will begin to absorb salt and will turn overly salty.

Note: if chicken isn’t fully immersed in water, go ahead and add 1 to 2 cups of extra water (room temperature water).

After brining, remove chicken from brine. Rinse under tap water.

IMPORTANT: Don’t skip rinsing brined chicken under tap water. This will wash off some of the salt over the chicken. I found when not rinsed, brine chicken after roasting turned a bit salty.

DISCARD THE BRINE.  Raw meat in the brine marinade can cause contamination if used. Discard brine after removing chicken from it.

How To Roast Brine Chicken?

Remove chicken from the brine. Rinse it under tap water.

Pat dry chicken with paper towel to remove excess moisture.

Rub softened butter (unsalted) all over the chicken.

Sprinkle pepper powder on top.

Note: I did not add salt.

Tie the legs of the chicken with a string.

Place the chicken over a rack lined over baking tray or any other heavy based baking pan like cast iron pan. Set aside in fridge uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes.

Roast chicken in pre-heated oven at 400 degree F for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven. Using tongs inserted into the chicken, flip chicken to breast side up. Continue roasting for about 30 to 40 minutes.

Rotate the pan half way through if not browning evenly. And keep brushing the top with butter atleast 3 to 5 times in between roasting time.

Stick a thermometer around the thighs and if it read 165 degree F chicken is cooked.

Note: Brined chicken cooks faster.

Remove chicken from oven. Cover it with aluminum foil and rest it for 15 minutes. It’s important to let the chicken rest before carving.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Do not use the liquid from the pan to drizzle over chicken. It’ll turn chicken salty.

Serve this crazy-juicy roast chicken as a meal with sautéed beans and mashed potatoes on sides.

How To Brine Chicken FAQ’s

Can I Use This Recipe To Brine Chicken Breasts?

Yes, you can. Scale down recipe to half as chicken breasts are smaller in size.

What Other Cuts Of Chicken Can I Brine?

If you do not want to use whole chicken, use the same recipe (cut down to half) to brine other cuts of chicken. Chicken breasts, chicken thighs, chicken drumsticks and chicken wings can be used. Brine chicken breast is very popular among many, as chicken breasts usually cooks dry and flavorless.

What Else Can I Brine?

Lean meat usually is brined. You’ll find some brining vegetables too.

The meats that can be brined are –

Chicken

Turkey

Pork

Ribs

Shrimp

Can I Reuse The Brine Liquid?

No. As raw meat is marinated in the liquid, the brine can cause contamination to food if use. Discard brine once you remove chicken from the brine.

Can I Brine Frozen Chicken?

I wouldn’t recommend using frozen chicken to be used to brine. Brine won’t be able to penetrate through the meat that is frozen.

Can I Brine Chicken Longer Than 24 Hours?

Do NOT go past 24 hours for brining chicken. Your chicken may turn overly salty. It may also turn the bird tougher.

Can I Use Table Salt Instead Of Kosher Salt In Brining?

Though I highly recommend you to use kosher salt only to make brine, table salt can be used. But remember table salt, kosher salt are all different grains, sizes and component structure. If using table salt use 2 tablespoons less than kosher salt measurements.

What Size Of Chicken Is Ideal For Brining?

3 to 4 lb whole chicken seems to work fine. As you’ll have a pot big enough to hold that size of chicken. If using bigger chicken, recommend you to use brining bags.

How To Cook Brined Chicken

Brined chicken can be cooked almost any way you want.

Roast it oven

Smoke it

Fry in oil

Grill it

Are There Other Ways To Brine?

You must have heard of buttermilk brined chicken. Buttermilk is used to help tenderize meat. Try this super moist and tender southern fried chicken recipe that has buttermilk brine

Can I Brine Chicken And Pork Together?

Chicken can contaminate pork when brined together. Chicken can have microbes on the surface that can cause bio hazardous contamination.

It’s better to be safe than sorry. Use two different brining bags to brine pork and poultry separately. DO NOT mix poultry with pork.

TRY SERVING THIS ROAST CHICKEN WITH THESE SIDES-

Sauteed Green Beans

Roasted Butternut Squash

Greek Lemon Potatoes

Grilled Potatoes in Foil Packs

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