HOW TO BRINE CHICKEN

Steps:

• Use a pot big enough to hold you meat. Dissolve kosher salt in water in the pot on slow simmer for about 2 minutes. The basic ratio is one tablespoon of salt for every one cup water.
• Now throw in all the fancy flavor enhancing ingredients into water. Add crushed garlic, pepper corns, bay leaves, lemon slices, honey and fresh herbs - rosemary, thyme and parsley.
• Bring water to boil for about a minute, stir to dissolve salt.
• Remove pan from stove. Allow water to cool completely.
• IMPORTANT NOTE: DO NOT put chicken in the brine before it's completely cool. Warm temperature of the brine will make scary harmful bacteria's in the chicken. It can lead to serious health hazards!
• Cook's Tip: To help brine cool down faster, allow the pot to cool down a bit and then place the pot in fridge to cool brine faster and cool it completely.
• Place whole chicken in cooled brine.
• NOTE: chicken should be fully immersed in brine.
• Cover pot with lid and brine chicken inside refrigerator for 8 to 24 hours. Do not go past that. Chicken will begin to absorb salt and will turn overly salty.
• Note: if chicken isn't fully immersed in water, go ahead and add 1 to 2 cups of extra water (room temperature water).
• After brining, remove chicken from brine. Rinse under tap water.
• IMPORTANT: Don't skip rinsing brined chicken under tap water. This will wash off some of the salt over the chicken. I found when not rinsed, brine chicken after roasting turned a bit salty.
• DISCARD THE BRINE. Raw meat in the brine marinade can cause contamination if used. Discard brine after removing chicken from it.
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