Brining bone in chicken breast?
- Thread starter michele p
- Start date
Almost every brine that I see has a different proportion of salt to water or other liquid. It would be nice to have a clarification of a "regular-strength" or a "double-strength" brine---cups (or ounces) of table salt to cups of liquid.
Brining times are all over the place too.
Rita
Brining times are all over the place too.
Rita
Rita,I agree! I have a spread sheet with more combinations of salt to liquid and "suggested" times then I can figure. I've three whole chickens to do tomorrow but I won't be able to do anything with them till the AM. It's gonna be a major guess for a four hour flavor brine. Kevin K? Thoughts??
K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
To me, a regular brine is 2 T table salt per quart of water. (I use table salt here as a base, scale accordingly for the kosher salt (or other) you normally use.)
I don't buy the 'per pound' recommendations of brine charts one sees in CI and other places. They don't take into account flesh density, whether skinned or not, whether boned or not, etc. Though can often get you close enough, I think it is better to find an actual recipe for a brine concentration/time factor for the same item you plan on cooking and go from there. If it works for you, note what you did and use that as your new base of reference for an item of that type, size and trim level.
I do not often use sugar in straight brines. I find the claim that it 'reduces the harshness of the salt', frankly, silly--it's a brine not a cure--but if you like sugar in brines go ahead. I use them in those where I think some sweetness is beneficial, not because salt is somehow 'harsh'.
I don't, e.g., find much difference between a skin-on 3/4-pound bone-in chicken breast and, say, a 4-pound skinless chicken and would brine for roughly the same time. I do find a difference in, say, a 5-pound salmon side and a 5-pound pork loin and would brine the salmon for a much shorter time.
I go by what feels right to me (sorry, I don't have a chart--maybe we can collectively come up with one?). Were I doing a whole chicken I'd likely straight brine for ~6 hours. If flavor-brining I would want to go longer (it always seems to take longer to get flavor elements into foods, especially since so many are fat- rather than water-soluble) and would cut the salt just slightly and probably go 12 hours or better.
If rushed, as with Marc's current flow, I'd suggest a little more salt concentration than a regular brine and, possibly, an increase in the flavoring elements depending on what they are.
I wish I could be more helful than this.
I don't buy the 'per pound' recommendations of brine charts one sees in CI and other places. They don't take into account flesh density, whether skinned or not, whether boned or not, etc. Though can often get you close enough, I think it is better to find an actual recipe for a brine concentration/time factor for the same item you plan on cooking and go from there. If it works for you, note what you did and use that as your new base of reference for an item of that type, size and trim level.
I do not often use sugar in straight brines. I find the claim that it 'reduces the harshness of the salt', frankly, silly--it's a brine not a cure--but if you like sugar in brines go ahead. I use them in those where I think some sweetness is beneficial, not because salt is somehow 'harsh'.
I don't, e.g., find much difference between a skin-on 3/4-pound bone-in chicken breast and, say, a 4-pound skinless chicken and would brine for roughly the same time. I do find a difference in, say, a 5-pound salmon side and a 5-pound pork loin and would brine the salmon for a much shorter time.
I go by what feels right to me (sorry, I don't have a chart--maybe we can collectively come up with one?). Were I doing a whole chicken I'd likely straight brine for ~6 hours. If flavor-brining I would want to go longer (it always seems to take longer to get flavor elements into foods, especially since so many are fat- rather than water-soluble) and would cut the salt just slightly and probably go 12 hours or better.
If rushed, as with Marc's current flow, I'd suggest a little more salt concentration than a regular brine and, possibly, an increase in the flavoring elements depending on what they are.
I wish I could be more helful than this.
Actually Kevin you were quite helpful. It's nice to see a confirmation that although brining might be based on science the art of successful execution lies in the particular circumstances. With so many variables it's quite a challenge to make "rules" without specifying as many of the variables as possible.
Perhaps with such a short time frame, a dissection, a strong marinade with a trip to the grill is is in order. Oh well...
Perhaps with such a short time frame, a dissection, a strong marinade with a trip to the grill is is in order. Oh well...
K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
That would be how I'd play it--at least a back removal and butterfly were I wishing for flavor infusion. More often than not in that situation I simply make a flavored compound butter to go under the skin, oil or butter the surface of the skin, apply and light rub, then cook whole, making a simple sauce to enhance the flavors I'm looking to highlight. I tend to save the marinades or flavor brining for the times when I actually have time to execute them. I like all these approaches equally so it isn't of much concern to me.
You are quite right, imo, that circumstances (especially time, type of meat, cut, trim, etc.) are key variables. I have always found brining charts facile and I though I think they can be helpful in some circumstances, I also think that they can do the cook a disservice in that they seemingly remove key variables from the equation (they're scarcely mentioned if at all) and in doing so sometimes lead to results that are less than those expected.
You are quite right, imo, that circumstances (especially time, type of meat, cut, trim, etc.) are key variables. I have always found brining charts facile and I though I think they can be helpful in some circumstances, I also think that they can do the cook a disservice in that they seemingly remove key variables from the equation (they're scarcely mentioned if at all) and in doing so sometimes lead to results that are less than those expected.