Thanks so very much for the information on brining chicken.
I will try it the next time i make chicken...by the way, is the procedure the same for whole/cut up chickens as it is for frozen chicken breasts?
M.
Yes. The only thing that changes is the amount of brine or the size of the container. When I do a turkey, I use a 5 gallon bucket that I reserve for that purpose. For pieces or a small bird or a pork loin, I generally just use a gallon bag. If you use a bag, make sure you put it in another container to prevent a disaster in the refrigerator should it leak!
You can season the brine if you want. Some people put the salt, sugar and seasonings into a pan with part of the water. You heat the water to dissolve the crystals and relapse the flavor and then combine that with the remainder of the cold water. You can use onion, garlic, peppercorns, fresh herbs, etc. You can also replace the water with other liquids. Apple cider is a good choice for pork loin.
For smaller pieces, I would recommend limiting the brining to a few hours, while a large turkey can be left for 24 hours. There will be plenty of salt in the meat, so rinse well and don't add any more salt when cooking.
maureeng7eh wrote on 02 Jun 2005 in rec.food.baking
Well first off the chicken must be Un-frozen usually.
Next the amount of salt used in the brine determines the length of time the poultry needs to sit in the brine. More salty less time in brine.
The procedure works well with any type poultry or pork.
Being a whole bird or parts of a bird make no difference, same with pork.
What I do is: Take the chicken parts I intend to eat for dinner tomorrow night outa the freezer and defrost them over night sitting in a brine. Take them outa the brine pat them dry and let them sit about a hour (back in the fridge) to allow equalization of brine thru the bird or parts. Do the seasoning and then cook them. I like to bake my chicken in a hot oven around 400F, seems to be quicker and the chicken stays more moist, but that could be just me. Same routine if I use the rotisserie, except I put thin slices of lime under the skin.
Mostly when baking/rosting chicken, I use whole brined smallish chickens and I butterfly it. And cook it skin side up in a convection oven at 400 to 425F.
I up the salt to 1/2 cup in the following recipe because I don't brine as long as suggested. (more like 18 hours for me...a guess).
All notes are the oridginator's and not mine.
The Fat Man's Chicken Kickin' Brine(TM)
Recipe By :The Fat Man® Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00 Categories : brines/rubs/marinades
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ -------------------------------- 2 quarts water 1/3 cup pickling salt (I use Kosher) 3 tablespoons brown sugar 2 1/4 teaspoons garlic powder 3/4 teaspoon chili powder 3/4 teaspoon ground sage 1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 bay leaf 3/4 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning (I omit this) 3/4 teaspoon Dave's Insanity Sauce -- optional 1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
Some folks want to heat the brine to dissolve the salt and sugar faster. I use a wand or stick blender and mix it cold. In either case, make sure the brine is COLD before dunking the birds. Keep it well under 40º for the duration of the soaking.
33º works just fine for me if the birds are completely thawed.This brine was originally developed for turkeys. It's outstanding in that application by itself. I like to inject them with a 50/50 mix of honey + butter just before putting them in the smoke. The injection makes for a "no-leftovers" bird.
The brine is equally suited for use on chickens with only one modification; lessen the sage content.
I soak turkeys a minimum of three days prior to smoking and chickens a minimum of 2 with a maximum of three days.
Source: "alt.food.barbecue" Yield: "1/2 gallon"
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-NOTES : This is something I came up with after a little fiddling around with standard brines. Everyone seems to love it, but feel free to modify it to suit your own particular tastes.
I would omit this too. I detest the taste of Old Bay. But then, I'm Canadian eh?
I find the seasonings like Old Bay and similar flavours taste musty to me and that's why I don't purchase anything pre-cooked in the south. I bought some crawfish once and they were a waste of money because I couldn't "taste" any crawfish, just the seasoning.
Helen
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