Classic Chicken brine recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the simple brine formula for chicken? ›

My standard brine recipe is essentially: 4 cups of cold water and 6 tablespoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt OR 4 1/2 tablespoons Morton's kosher salt OR 3 tablespoons fine or table salt. Note that it really matters what kind of salt you have and how much you use.

Basic Brine

Place that volume of water in a container large enough to hold the brine and the meat. Add 1 tablespoon of salt for every cup of water you used and mix until the salt is completely dissolved. For example, if you are using 1 gallon (16 cups) of water, add 16 tablespoons (1 cup) of salt.

The rule of thumb is to let a chicken brine for approximately one hour per pound of meat, though you may want to lengthen or shorten that time depending on the strength of your salt solution or the level of salt you want to achieve.

As a general starting point, take one gallon of water and add 3/4 cup (preferable - but you can use up to a cup) of salt (Kosher is best), 1/2 cup of sugar and then the rest is up to you.

Dry-brining is our preferred method for seasoning both large and small pieces of meat, poultry, and sometimes even seafood. Along with producing juicy, flavorful results, dry-brining also helps us get better Maillard browning and crispy skin.

Some recipes call for rinsing meat after brining, while others skip this step. Do whatever the recipe calls for. Rinsing is common in recipes with a very high salt concentration or that contain sugar, since sugar can burn on the surface of meat during cooking.

Sugar: This is an optional ingredient and is typically used to balance the saltiness of a brine. Use about 2 tablespoons per quart of liquid.

A good rule of thumb to follow for a dry brine is at least one hour for a beef steak, chicken or pork and up to 24 hours. Here's why dry brining these smaller cuts of meat makes a difference. If you salted immediately before cooking, the salt will stay on the surface and be part of the crust.

Sometimes you'll get the best results if you boil your brine solution before submerging your meat in it. But remember, if you do this you only want to boil half of your solution with your aromatics and spices and not with your salt and sugar.

Chicken can safely rest in its brining solution for anywhere from a few hours to two days, but generally, for a liquid based brine, you'll want to stick to about one hour of resting in the fridge per pound of meat you're preparing.

Can you use regular table salt to brine chicken? ›

The basic ratio of salt to water for a brine is 4 tablespoons of kosher salt per 1 quart (4 cups) of water. If you are using fine table salt, reduce the amount to 3 tablespoons. Keep in mind, also, that different kosher salt brands vary in how salty they actually are.

Salt breaks down proteins in the meat, which means it will not contract while cooking. In other words, pieces of brined meat will lose less water in the cooking process, which leads to a juicier meal. It also seasons the chicken — which means even more flavor.

In place of regular sugar I used light brown sugar (what can I say, I like molasses). The family loved this. I think this is going to be my new go-to. This is enough brine for 8 pounds of whole chicken or bone-in chicken pieces and up to 10 pounds of skinless, boneless chicken breasts.

Overall process: 2 NaCl + 2 H ₂O → Cl ₂ + H ₂ + 2 NaOH.

Some dry-brine recipes call for adding white or brown sugar to the salt. It's not totally necessary, but it will infuse the meat with a little sweetness and help the skin turn golden in the oven. Your sugar measurement should equal about ¼ of your salt measurement; for a 14-lb turkey, that's about 2 Tbsp.

Overall process: 2 NaCl + 2 H ₂O → Cl ₂ + H ₂ + 2 NaOH.

The easiest way to calculate the exact amount of salt needed is this simple metric calculation: To create 3% brine in 1000 millilitres (1 litre) of water: 1000 x . 03 = 30. So, it takes 30 grams (equal to 2.5 tablespoons of salt).

The amount of brine needed can be estimated at 50 % of the weight of the product, 4 lb./2 k meat per gallon/4 L of brine.