Best Brined And Baked Chicken Recipes

BUTTERMILK-BRINED ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• The day before you want to cook the chicken, remove the wingtips by cutting through the first wing joint with poultry shears or a sharp knife. Reserve for stock. Season chicken generously with salt and let it sit for 30 minutes.
• Stir 2 tablespoons kosher salt or 4 teaspoons fine sea salt into the buttermilk to dissolve. Place the chicken in a gallon-size resealable plastic bag and pour in the buttermilk. (If the chicken won't fit in a gallon-size bag, double up 2 plastic produce bags to prevent leaks and tie the bag with twine.)
• Seal the bag, squish the buttermilk all around the chicken, place on a rimmed plate, and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours. If you're so inclined, you can turn the bag periodically so every part of the chicken gets marinated, but that's not essential.
• Pull the chicken from the fridge an hour before you plan to cook it. Heat the oven to 425 degrees with a rack set in the center position.
• Remove the chicken from the plastic bag and scrape off as much buttermilk as you can without being obsessive. Tightly tie together the legs with a piece of butcher's twine. Place the chicken in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or a shallow roasting pan.
• Slide the pan all the way to the back of the oven on the center rack. Rotate the pan so that the legs are pointing toward the rear left corner and the breast is pointing toward the center of the oven. (The back corners tend to be the hottest spots in the oven, so this orientation protects the breast from overcooking before the legs are done.) Pretty quickly you should hear the chicken sizzling.
• After about 20 minutes, when the chicken starts to brown, reduce the heat to 400 degrees and continue roasting for 10 minutes.
• Move the pan so the legs are facing the rear right corner of the oven. Continue cooking for another 30 minutes or so, until the chicken is brown all over and the juices run clear when you insert a knife down to the bone between the leg and the thigh. If the skin is getting too brown before it is cooked through, use a foil tent. Remove it to a platter and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving and serving.

BRINED ROASTING CHICKEN

Steps:

• For brine, combine the first seven ingredients in a large kettle. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until salt is dissolved. Remove from the heat. Cool to room temperature., Remove giblets from chicken; discard. Place cold water in a 2-gal. resealable plastic bag; add chicken. Place in a roasting pan. Carefully pour cooled brine into bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible; seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 3-4 hours, turning several times., Discard brine. Rinse chicken with water; pat dry. Skewer chicken openings; tie drumsticks together. Brush with oil. Place chicken in a roasting pan. , Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 80-90 minutes or until a thermometer reads 180°, basting occasionally with pan drippings (cover loosely with foil if chicken browns too quickly)., Remove chicken to a serving platter and keep warm. Pour drippings and loosened browned bits into a measuring cup; skim fat and discard. Add enough broth to measure 1 cup. , In a small saucepan, combine flour and broth mixture until smooth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with chicken.

THE BEST BAKED CHICKEN BREASTS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the parsley in the center of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish and top with the lemon slices. Pour the wine around the parsley. Brush the tops of the chicken with the olive oil and season with the paprika, 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Arrange the chicken breasts on top of the lemon slices. Cut an 8-by-10-inch piece of parchment and place it on top of the chicken.
• Bake until the chicken registers 165 degrees F on a digital thermometer, 40 to 45 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving. The chicken can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

SIMPLE CHICKEN BRINE

Steps:

• Pour the warm water into a container that is twice the volume of the water. Pour in the salt, sugar, soy sauce, and olive oil. Stir until the sugar and salt have dissolved, then allow the brine to cool to room temperature.
• To use, place chicken in the brine, cover, and refrigerate two hours for skinless breasts, 4 hours for bone-in pieces, and 4 hours to overnight for whole chickens. Drain and pat the chicken dry before cooking. One gallon of brine is enough for 6 pounds of whole chicken or bone-in chicken pieces, and up to 10 pounds of skinless, boneless chicken breasts.

PERFECT CHICKEN BRINE

Steps:

• Mix water, kosher salt, white sugar, garlic, sage, basil, peppercorns, and bay leaf in a large pot over medium-high heat; bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the salt and sugar are dissolved completely, about 20 minutes.
• Remove pot from heat and cover with a lid. Cool brine at room temperature for 2 hours before refrigerating to cool completely.

DRY-BRINED CHICKEN BREASTS

Steps:

• In a spice grinder, blitz the bay leaf pieces and peppercorns until finely ground. Transfer to a small bowl and add the salt, brown sugar and garlic powder, and rub it all together with your fingers.
• Cut each chicken breast in half crosswise into two pieces of equal weight, creating one shorter, thicker piece and one longer, thinner piece. Place the four chicken pieces on a large plate or sheet pan and sprinkle generously on all sides with the spice mixture, moving the chicken around to catch any fallen spices. Refrigerate, uncovered, to dry-brine for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour (any shorter and the osmotic brining process won't complete; any longer and you'll end up with deli meat).
• When ready to cook, take the chicken out of the fridge and heat a large skillet with a lid over high heat. Add enough oil to lightly coat the bottom of the skillet. Carefully add the chicken pieces, smooth sides down, and immediately reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook until the bottoms are browned but not burnt, 5 to 7 minutes. Flip the chicken, cover the pan and cook until the other sides are browned and the internal temperature at the thickest part of the meat reaches 155 degrees, another 5 to 7 minutes. You may want to pull the longer, thinner pieces off the heat a minute or two sooner, as they may cook faster.
• Transfer the chicken to a cutting board to rest for at least 10 minutes so the juices can redistribute. The meat will continue to cook as it sits and should reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees. You can also check for doneness by cutting into the chicken; it should look white and juicy and no longer pink. Slice the chicken against the grain (that is, perpendicular to the parallel fibers that run within the breast) and serve with lime wedges if you'd like. You can also keep the meat whole and refrigerate it, covered, for up to 4 days.

DRY BRINED ROASTED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Remove chicken from packaging, remove giblet packet from cavity, and pat thoroughly dry with paper towels. Place in a 9x13-inch baking dish.
• Mix salt, orange zest, rosemary, and thyme together in a small bowl; rub 3/4 of the mixture all over outside of chicken; rub remaining mixture inside cavity. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 to 3 days.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Remove plastic wrap from chicken.
• Bake chicken in preheated oven until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, 2 to 2 1/2 hours depending on size. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C). Remove chicken from the oven, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 20 minutes before carving.