Perfect Chicken Brine

I bought a deep fryer for the Christmas turkey but wanted to test it out on a chicken. I used this brine and it was awesome. I did let it sit in the brine overnight and I thought it was a little salty but the other three eaters said nay, nay. Perfect. I will use this brine on the turkey and it will sit over night. I have used other brine and this was way better. Update. I have now used this on turkey then deep fried it. Oh words can not express how good it was. 16 people all raved over the bird. Very good

Turned out PERFECT! Had 2 8-9 lb Oven Stuffer Roasters! I made the Brine Solution in a saucepan using 4 cups of water and let cool 2 hours to room temperature. Using 2 -2 gallon Ziploc storage bags I added 6 Cups Refrigerated Water to each then spit the brine solution between them. I added 1 chicken to each bag and put in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning I turned the bags over and let them set until I was ready to put in oven. Only variations I made to the Recipe were.... Instead of 2 heads of fresh garlic I used 7 Tablespoons of Minced Garlic. AND I could not find Dried Sage at the store I was shopping at so I had to get Ground Sage. After looking up measurement conversions I ended up using 1 Tablespoon and it was Spot On for taste! I have family members who as a rule do not eat breast meat because it is too dry. They not only ate this but came back for 2nds.

Excellent!! Had folks coming over for a cookout - used the brine to make chicken kabobs. REALLY added a nice moisture to the chicken breast pieces. After cooling the brine I soaked the whole breasts for 2 hours, rinsed, then patted dry. I used a bit of spicy Italian dressing to coat before grilling. VERY good!

After I brined chicken pieces for 4 hours I put in buttermilk for 2 more. It was the most moist, flavorful super crispy fried chicken I ever tasted. There were no left overs!

We have tried many brines over the years. We have even invented a few of our own. I know some people say you don't need to bother with a brine, you do! And you need to try this one. This is, hands down, the best brine. The meat comes our super moist and full of flavor. This doesn't saw how long to brine your meat.... we were in a time crunch and didn't plan well the first time we tried this, but three hours was fine. We have done more, but never less.

The amount of kosher salt to water is spot on. That is the most critical aspect of a brine. The seasonings can all be changed up to whatever suits you.

This was my family's absolute favorite brine! We taste tested a few and this one out-weighed them all! Yummy! Moist! Flavorful!

I reduced the quantity - only made 1/4 of the recipe for pork chops. Excellent. People - if you have time, brine your chicken and pork all the time. Really makes it moister!

Awesome recipe! Never tried brining before and lucked out on this great recipe. Chicken turned out very juicy and flavorful. Got rave reviews!

Soy free and delicious! The only downside to this is the cooling time so I just make it the day before I'm going to use it and store it in fridge.

It was the best chicken we have ever had. We hate breast meat and we LOVED IT!! What we didn't eat I made the leftover chicken in to chicken salad and the flavoring of the chicken was excellent.

I had never brined a bird before and selected this recipe for a chicken that I rotisserized. Rotissary chicken is extremely tender so I wasn't able to notice a huge difference right away but when I ate the chicken as leftovers...Holy Moly....it was so very tender....not dry after having been refrigerated overnight. Additionally, I thought the brine was too salty but that was because I salted the bird additionally as part of my seasonings. I'm about do make another bird, but this time I will not add additional salt when I season my bird. I don't have another point of reference since, like I said before, I've never brined a bird before but why mess with perfection? Many thanks for sharing this recipe!

Followed the recipe exactly - with the exception - I substituted ROSEMARY for the BASIL (I was out of basil). Turned out so good. Exceptional, even. A new evolution in chicken at my house. The kids asked for THIRD helpings (which is rare to never). The baby screamed for it. Cooked this as a whole chicken - Rotisserie (Brined for 10 hours, rested in fridge [out of brine] for 6 hours - didn't rinse). Look forward to trying it as FRIED CHICKEN. Well worth the effort.

it was fantastic! I will always use this to impress guests and to make something special for my family when time permits.

followed Melissa Twisdales instructions. this turned out great!! the breast meat was moist and tender . this was the first time I have brined and I figured there would be some improvement but folks, this was a drastic improvement the best chicken I have ever roasted!! this was a practice run before the holiday dinners I will be brining the turkey for thanksgiving for sure. I am shocked at the real difference brining makes and this recipe seasons the meat just right

Chicken was delicious

Great brine. Just don't forget to rinse the chicken off before cooking so it won't be salty.

Turned out well. A little bit salty, but not overly so.

Prefect ! Chicken meat is moist . Can use for whole or any part of chicken.

I have made a number of brines and this is the best one I have come across so far. Remarkable given the simple list of ingredients. Make sure you simmer the brine per the instructions prior to use. That is really important. Also, while it seems like the recipe calls for an awful lot of dried herbs, do not skimp on them. The quantities are necessary (it seems) to get the flavor you will want from the brine.

Made my chicken very moist and tasted - will definitely use again!

Used ground sage in a pinch ;) but still tasted great

Chickens (organic & pastured) were juicy and delicious using this brine. I chose this recipe because my granddaughter has Celiac Disease, and this was the only recipe I found WITHOUT SOY SAUCE.

Used my new Nu Wave oven. Followed recipe to the letter. Chicken is moist, tender and just awesome. Thanks for posting.

Very good brine. Will definitely make again. Next time we will plan ahead and brine for longer although even this short time made for very moist meat!

Test run with a chicken before Thanksgiving and this was fantastic! Added a few drops of sesame oil just because. Definitely keeping this recipe on hand. Much appreciated

I added a tablespoon of McCormick's California Lemon Peel to the brine and loved the result. This brine is just amazing...... the chicken always turns out so juicy and is full of just the right amount of flavor no matter how you decide to cook your chicken.

My husband hasn't wanted boneless, skinless chicken breasts at home for a while. Chicken is not the way it used to be, tender! I made this brine, and I let the boneless chicken breasts in the brine for about 2 hours. The chicken was SO tender you could cut it with a fork. I'll be doing this to all my chicken from now on. Thank you for the recipe!

Amazing and easy recipe. Stick to the prescribed brining period. Otherwise might be a little salty for some tastes.

Perfect! I added a 1/4 cup of dried onion because I had so much on hand. Best baked chicken I’ve ever had.

Awesome. Very easy to follow. Chicken came out very tender. My family loved it. Will definitely be using this recipe again

this is a fantastic brine for grilling chicken breast on the BBQ! so juicy and moist!