Best Sweet Tea Brine Recipes

SWEET TEA BRINE

Steps:

• 1. Bring 4 cups water to a boil. Remove from heat, add tea bags, cover and let steep for 10 minutes.
• 2. Remove tea bags. Add sugar and salt to tea, stir until dissolved.
• 3. Add rosemary, pepper, garlic, onion, and lemon to tea, mixing well. Cool completely. When completely cooled, stir in 2 cups of ice until melted - brine should be cold.
• 4. Transfer cold brine to plastic bowl(with lid) or heavy duty zip locking freezer bag. Completely submerge chicken in brine. Place in fridge 24 hours before cooking. *If you use a freezer bag, do yourself a favor and put the bag in a large bowl in case of leakage.
• 5. Before grilling, drain and discard brine and then pat chicken dry before grilling. Do not rinse chicken.

SWEET TEA BRINED CHICKEN WITH PEACHES, MINT AND ARUGULA

Steps:

• Combine 4 cups water with the sugar, ginger, and 1/4 cup salt in a large pot. Halve the lemon, squeeze the juice from half and add the juiced half. Reserve the remaining lemon half. Bring the water to a simmer over medium-high heat and stir until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from the heat, add the tea bags and let steep for 5 minutes. Remove the tea bags and add 3 cups of ice to cool the mixture to room temperature, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the chicken pieces and make sure they are submerged. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours and up to 16 hours.
• Remove the chicken from the fridge and remove from the brine. Pat dry.
• Prepare a grill for medium indirect heat: For gas grills (with 3 or more burners), turn all the burners to medium-high heat; after about 15 minutes turn off one of the middle burners (2 if you have a grill with 4 or more burners) and turn the remaining burners down to medium. For charcoal grills, bank one chimney starter-full of lit and ashed-over charcoal briquettes to one side of the grill. Set up a drip pan on the other side to avoid flare-ups. The grill should be around 350 degrees F so adjust the burners or air-flow vents as necessary to maintain that temperature. (Be sure to consult the grill manufacturer's guide for the best results.)
• Lightly oil the grates of the grill and lay the chicken pieces, bone-side down, on the indirect heat side of the grill. Cover and cook until the skin is golden and the chicken is cooked about three-quarters of the way (130 to 135 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer), 20 to 25 minutes. Flip the chicken pieces so they are skin-side down and continue indirect grilling until the chicken is cooked through and reads 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, about 15 minutes more.
• Meanwhile, lightly oil the flesh of the peaches and the remaining lemon half and place flesh-side down on the direct side of the grill. Grill until marked but not too soft, about 2 minutes. Turn the peaches (leave the lemon flesh-side down) and grill just until marked on the other side, about 1 minute more. Remove the peaches and lemon from the grill. Slice the peaches into wedges. Squeeze the lemon into a small bowl and whisk in the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Toss the arugula with the mint, peaches and the grilled-lemon vinaigrette. Serve with the chicken.

SWEET TEA-BRINED PORK CHOPS WITH PEPPER RELISH

Steps:

• Make the brine: Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a large pot. Turn off the heat, add the tea bags and let steep 10 minutes. Discard the tea bags. Stir in 3/4 cup sugar, 1/2 cup salt, the bay leaves and coriander seeds. Cook over low heat, stirring, until the sugar and salt are dissolved, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat, pour into a large heatproof pitcher (reserve the pot) and let cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Refrigerate the brine until very cold, at least 1 hour. Pour the brine into the reserved pot and add the pork chops. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.
• Meanwhile, make the pepper relish: Put the bell peppers, onion and chiles in a food processor and pulse 2 or 3 times until slightly broken down but not pureed. Transfer to a small saucepan and add the vinegar, preserves, remaining 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until slightly reduced but still juicy, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, transfer to a serving bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve. (You can make the relish up to 1 day ahead.)
• Preheat a grill to medium. Oil the grill grates. Remove the pork chops from the brine and pat dry. Season the chops with salt and pepper. Grill, covered, until well-marked, 14 to 16 minutes (rotate the chops 90 degrees if they get too dark). Flip the chops and cook, covered, until well-marked on the other side and a thermometer inserted sideways into the center registers 145 degrees F, 14 to 16 more minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest about 10 minutes. Serve with the relish.

SWEET TEA-BRINED CHICKEN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Sweeten the tea to taste, then add the canola oil, pickling spice, garlic, onion, kosher salt, celery salt and black pepper while it's still hot. Refrigerate until cool, then add the chicken breasts to the brine. Refrigerate for 4 to 8 hours.
• When ready to cook the chicken, preheat a grill to 375 degrees F.
• Remove the chicken from the brine and grill until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the middle registers 165 degrees F, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Let the chicken cool, then dice it.
• Add the diced chicken, mayonnaise, pecans, honey and apple to a bowl and toss to combine. Put a large scoop of chicken salad on each croissant bottom, then top with lettuce, tomato, red onion and the croissant tops.