Community Pick
All-Purpose Mild Brine for Poultry and Pork
"This is a simple all-purpose mild brine for chicken, turkey and pork. It is fabulous used when grilling chicken pieces. The meat will never be dry."
- Ready In:
- 5mins
- Ingredients:
- 3
- Yields:
-
1 quart
ingredients
- 1⁄4 cup kosher salt, like diamond crystal (or 3 tbsp Morton's kosher salt or 2 tbsp table salt)
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 quart water
directions
- Mix cold water, salt and sugar and stir to dissolve.
- In a non-reactive container, immerse food in brine, seal and refrigerate.
- Use 1 quart of brine per pound of meat, not to exceed 2 gallons.
- Brine for 1 hour per pound (when brining multiple items, time is based on weight of a single item), but not less than 30 minutes or more than 8 hours.
- WILL NOT WORK IF MEAT IS FROZEN.
Questions & Replies
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Does the brine need to be rinsed off before cooking? -
Several reviews mention rinsing the chicken or pork before cooking but that step is not listed in the instructions. Is that recommended? Also, with the new low sugar/low carb craze, is the sugar really necessary? I'm assuming not that much is actually absorbed by the meat to make a difference but was just wondering if anyone has tried it without the sugar.
Reviews
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I love the simplicity of this brine. The ease of preparation makes this one I will use again and again. It worked great and helped me to save an otherwise excellent recipe from death due to salt.<br/><br/>The recipe in question is #33671. If you want to brine a turkey, you will need to double or triple this recipe, but it is so easy to make you will have no trouble doing so. It was just right for my rather large chicken. Just be sure to rinse well before cooking. -
Awesome! I like that it's very basic and other flavors can be added in easily, such as liquid smoke, garlic etc. I let my porkchops brine for about 8 hours then pan grilled them. Juicy and moist. Very good recipe without a lot of ingredients. -
never brined before WOW thanks for the recipe -
I love this brine. I always have the ingredients on hand. I love that you don't have to wait for it to cool down because it starts cool. And, best of all, it has helped me make the best, juicy chicken that I have ever made. Thanks, Kirstin for such and simple and good brine. -
I made one batch of this recipe to brine 2 thick, center cut pork chops. I only brined for 1 hour, removed the chops from the brine, brushed with Greek salad dressing, and sprinkled with Pork Chop seasoning from Penzey's spices, then grilled them:)) They were so moist and delicious! I will use this brine from now on! Thank you for sharing :) Next time I will take a picture to post :)))
see 38 more reviews
Tweaks
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Excellent brine. It's nice and simple to make as written and always produces a tender, juicy piece of chicken. I've also added lemon/garlic/peppercorns. Today I substituted brown sugar for part of the white and added cinnamon/cardamom/star anise and oranges. We grilled the chicken and that was delicious too. This brine is fun because it's wonderful as is, or as a vehicle for many other flavors.
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
Kirstin in the Couv
Portland, OR
I am living with the most wonderful boyfriend in the world in his 150 year old farmhouse. I also have a most fabulous 16-year old son! I love to cook - it's a major stress reliever for me and I thoroughly enjoy the reaction of others when they like my dishes! My other passion is sailing - BF and I plan to take off from Oregon toward the South Pacific in a couple years to live on his boat.
