Chicken Brine? Season? Cook.

[Chef Maloney]

I have never brined a chicken. I usually just roast, rotisserie or BBQ with a seasoned salt.
I have a 5 Lb. chicken I would like to brine.
I would also like to know how you season the chicken for cooking after you brine.

Please share your brine recipes with me.

Please share your seasonings and what method of cooking you use after the chicken is brined.
Thank You.

[salt and pepper]

Brine: 1 gallon water
1 cup salt
1 cup honey or maple syrup or brown sugar
1 tblsp pepper corns
2 bay leaves
1 tblsp mustard seed
1 tblsp fennel seeds
mix well and keep refrigerate for 24 hours before brining. Pour over chicken and brine 12 to 24 hours.

Here is a personal rub I use as an all pourpose, goes good on beef chicken fish and eggs.

[salt and pepper]

[Addie]

Just make sure you rinse the chicken after brining.

[Chef Maloney]

Originally Posted by salt and pepper

Brine: 1 gallon water
1 cup salt
1 cup honey or maple syrup or brown sugar
1 tblsp pepper corns
2 bay leaves
1 tblsp mustard seed
1 tblsp fennel seeds
mix well and keep refrigerate for 24 hours before brining. Pour over chicken and brine 12 to 24 hours.

Here is a personal rub I use as an all pourpose, goes good on beef chicken fish and eggs.

Thank you very much Salt and Pepper, I appreciate it. I will do this

[jennyema]

The only real rule about brining is in the salt:water ratio.

Everything else you add is about your taste. I always use sugar but not too much. You don't want the brine to taste overtly sweet. I also use done soy sauce for the umami factor.

No need for other seasoning with brined poultry.

Here's a good recipe: Chicken Brine Recipe | Michael Ruhlman

Here'

[Chef Maloney]

Thank you all so much!

[no mayonnaise]

Try the dry brine method. It has many pros vs. wet brining, not the least of which is ease of use.
Simply salt the surface all over and lightly sprinkle a small amount of sugar, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and let sit for 2-3 days in the 'frige. Rinse/pat dry before cooking. You can find specific recipes online but that's the gist of it.
You'll notice a substantially better texture and more concentrated flavor; wet brining tends to introduce too much water weight which dilutes the flavor of the meat (water has no flavor) as well as making the texture generally not as favorable compared to the dry brine method.

Not to mention there's no big mess with a bunch of water and what not with the dry brine method.

Lastly, volatile flavor molecules are generally too large to filter through muscle fibers and cell membranes in brining, so adding things like peppercorns, herbs, other spices, etc. to the brine (wet or dry) is literally a waste. And that's assuming they're water-soluble which many aren't, especially without heat. Save the extra flavors for seasoning before cooking.

[Chef Maloney]

Thank you no mayonaise for that info. I appreciate it much

[no mayonnaise]

Oh yeah and if you're brining with any method hold back on the salt when seasoning before you cook it. Same if you use the drippings for gravy; the chicken is absorbing salt molecules into the meat so the drippings and meat with both be seasoned with salt already. You can always add more salt later if needed since it's not a heat-dependent flavorant.

If you're brining whole chicken I'd recommend the spatchcock method and either grilling, smoking, or roasting it. Spatchcocking will reduce cook time and result in a more moist chicken.