Pages

Friday, January 3, 2014

Snowday Brine


Although I've made a variety of brines; particularly for pork - this is my first brine for chicken.  Since I'm home today (school's closed due to snow/ice), I thought I would prep the chicken early with a brine rather than my typical dry rub.

While most brines call for salting, using a sugar combination creates better balance to ensure the end result is not too salty.  Salt alters the texture & tenderness; therefore swelling the muscle or meat so that it can absorb more flavor while maintaining moisture.

To keep it simple, I used basic ingredients that one would typically enjoy with chicken.  Using a large enough stockpot, add ~ 4 cups of water (less than usual - as I added ice in the end) & turn the burner on high.

Add 1/2 cup sugar & 1/2 cup brown sugar to the water.

Next, smash whole garlic cloves and add to water; discarding the peel.

Add (1) cup of kosher salt (it has less sodium than table salt) & a little molasses if you have it.

Using a mortar & pestle, crack/crush ~ 5 juniper berries & 2 Tablespoons of black peppercorns.
Lastly, add a few bay leaves (~ 3-5) and a few springs of fresh rosemary and stir. Bring to a boil  - then turn off.
As mentioned previously, I then added ice & with a little help from Mother Nature, brought the temperature of the brine to room temperature quite quickly so that I could immerse the chicken in its briny bath:-)
Allow chicken to brine for 3-4 1/2 hours. Thoroughly rinse & pat (or air) dry prior to roasting.  Bon Appetit!
Ciao,
Maryanne 
The Gluten-Free Italian

100% Gluten-Free ... 100% Made with Love