1st Try at Brining


 
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Robert Bell

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Hi all,

I would like to try my first brine this weekend and would like a little help. There is so much info on this site about brining I am feeling a little confused.

I would like to try a whole chicken with this recipe(below), which I found on this site some time ago. I can't remember who posted it. So I can't give credit were credit may be due. sorry.

1 - cup kosher salt
1 - cup brown sugar
1/2 - cup maple syrup
2 - quarts apple juice
1 to 2 - quarts water

My questions are.
Will this be a good recipe to use?
How long should I brine for?
Should I still use dry rub, minus the salt? What temp should I cook the chicken to and at what temp should I run the cooker?
How long do you think it would take to cook?
Would peacan wood be ok for this cook?

Sorry for so many q's just want to do it right the first time.
 
That brine recipe sounds quite good, 12 to 24 hours should be plenty of time. A rub without salt or very low in salt would be the ticket.
Cook at temps above 250?, as high as 325?.
It's done when the thighs hit 175 t0 180?,time would be in the 3 to 4 hour range normally, but I would be checking the internal temp in 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
Pecan or fruitwoods are good, poultry doesn't need a lot of smoke.
Jim
 
You'll get OH-SO-MANY answers to these questions! Here's my own opinion, for what it's worth. (Jim's post beat me here, and I'd listen to him before I'd listen to me. I've been told that I like to listen to myself talk before, though, so here goes ANYWAY. /infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif )

Watch your brand of Kosher salt. If it's Diamond brand, use the full 1 cup to a gallon of liquid. If it's Morton Kosher salt, use only 3/4 cup. Sounds like a good recipe, although you can probably cut it in half for just one chicken. I put my bird in a food-grade plastic bag or ziploc, pour the cold brine over it, and place bag and all down into a bucket for an overnight nap in the refrigerator. I've not used the maple syrup, myself, but I do like using apple juice in the brine, especially for turkeys.

I brine whole chickens overnight, or about 12 hours. Be sure to rinse it well inside and out when you take it out of the brine. If you brine, don't use additional salt in the rub because I've made 'em WAY too salty before like that. You can inject, or you can brine, but I don't suggest doing both. Overkill, IMHO.

I, and many others here, would recommend a higher-heat cook for chicken. Empty your waterpan, and cover the pan with HD foil, making it a bit concave in the middle so that juices collect in the middle of the foil and don't run over (they can run over the edge of the foil and down the insides of the cooker, and then drip really disgusting stuff out of your vents onto the patio under the cooker where the cocker spaniel can lick it up, get disgusting gook all over his head and ears, and then get a sick tummy from all the ash-grease roux an hour later. Trust me. I know this to be true. /infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif )

ANYWAY, use a full lit chimney of charcoal, and try to keep your temp at around 325-340 for 2 - 3 hours. This shouldn't be hard to do with a chimney full of coals and the vents wide open. I've had them reach temp in just under two hours, so keep an eye on your temperatures. A nice spray of apple juice part way through the cook is good, too.

A picture of a couple of chickens I did a while back are on this thread. I like using this kind of roasting rack in the WSM. Makes the birds easier to handle, in my opinion. I cooked these particular birds at about 250-260 or so for a little over four hours. Temp in the dark meat was 185, so it was actually a bit overdone but the brining kept the meat moist.

Pecan is good on chicken. In fact, pecan is good on everything. I like cherry better for chicken, myself, because I like the beautiful golden-red color that cherry adds to chicken.

Well, there's my 2-cents' worth. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

Be sure to let us know what you do and how it goes.

Keri C
Smokin on Tulsa Time
 
Robert, I agree with Keri on 1/2ving the recipe. Sounds like you got way too much for 1 bird. Save the expense for a turkey.
I don't care for the white meat so I've only done 1/4ers. Usually at the 240-250 range for 4 hrs for 6lbs of dark. The skin is quite edible to me. I don't mind it a little chewy (stays in the mouth a bit longer) he he he. /infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif
Near as I can tell, you could'nt possibly go wrong with what you've got.
That's the beauty of the WSM! It really is hard to turn out a bad pc of meat unless you make a mistake, or outright ignore the cooker.
Keep us "posted".
 
Wow Keri. Great Post! Very informative.

If a person can't make kick @ss chicken after reading your post, they got something wrong with them.
 
Well I made the chicken and I wasn't really to happy with the results. Reason being I don't think that I cooked it long enough. Other then that it was okay. Flavor was good no doubt.

I have the hardest time telling when chicken is done. I measured the temp. in both thighs with my Maverick ET-3 and it read 180 in one and 184 in the other. However it still wasn't done enough to my liking.

I perfer to have my chicken falling off the bone.
Does that normally happen at 180 degrees in the thigh or should I have taken the temp. higher?

I will have to try this again soon.
Thanks again for all your help.
Robert.
 
It's much easier to take a temp reading in the breast than the thigh. In the thigh, chances of touching bone or pockets of juices are much higher, and can present an inaccurate measurement. If the breast hits 160-165*, the dark meat will be 170-180.
 
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