Three Ingredient Chicken Brine 🍗 (2024)

Chicken brine is a simple way to make sure your chicken recipes are always moist, juicy, and perfect. This easy brine recipe is only three basic ingredients!

If you don’t know how to brine chicken yet, you’ve come to the right place! This easy brine made with kosher salt, brown sugar, and warm water will bring your dinner to the next level. Use as-is or dress it up with your favorite flavors. Then serve that perfectly cooked meat with an easy salad recipe or quick side dish.

Chicken Brine

Chicken Brine Ingredients

• Kosher salt – It is important to use kosher salt and not table salt when brining meats.
• Brown sugar – We use light brown sugar, but dark will work as well.
• Optional ingredients – Scroll down to see all the ways you can add an extra burst of flavor to your brine!

How do you make a brine? (Step-by-step)

⭐ First, warm your water. If you use tap water, just set your tap to very warm (you want the sugar and salt to dissolve, you don’t want to cook the chicken).

⭐ Next, stir in sugar and salt. Mix until liquid is translucent (not foggy).

⭐ Then, add additional seasonings if desired.

⭐ Finally, pour over chicken and refrigerate until ready to cook.

Preparation

Can you prepare brine ahead of time?

You can make the chicken brine one or two days ahead and store it in the fridge if desired. We typically don’t since it is easy to make and room in the refrigerator is pretty sacred with a family of seven.

How long to brine chicken?

For best results, let the chicken sit covered in the brine for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours. Longer than that can make the texture of the chicken mushy or too soft.

Where should you brine a chicken?

Chicken should always be brined in the refrigerator. Raw chicken should never be left out at room temperature longer than 2 hours.

Storage and leftovers

Can you save leftover chicken brine?

Leftover brine should not be saved and it should not be re-used. The brine will contain bacteria from the raw chicken and should be disposed of after one use.

How do you store brine?

If making brine ahead of time, it can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a few days or in the freezer indefinitely.

Variations {What to add to chicken brine}

You can absolutely use this chicken brine recipe as-is (we do often!), but if you want to jazz it up a little and infuse more flavor into the meat, we have a few suggestions!

Make it spicy!

• Sliced jalapenos or hot peppers
• A squirt of sriracha or red hot sauce
• Pour in some of the liquid from your pickled jalapenos

Add some acidity!

• Cut up oranges, lemons, limes, or grapefruit
• Your favorite vinegar (we love apple cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar)

Herb it up!

• Throw in a handful of fresh cilantro
• Try it with some dried or fresh thyme
• Rosemary is a classic flavor that goes well with chicken
• Dill (dried or fresh) is delicious

Bring the spice!

• Peppercorns are a great addition to chicken brine
• Is it even cooking if you didn’t add garlic?
• Try garlic or onion (fresh or powder) to elevate your flavors
• Toss in your favorite spice mixes, maybe add some Mexican, Indian, or Asian flare!

A touch of sweet!

• Stir in some honey
• Try it with maple syrup
• Molasses add an earthy sweetness

Frequently asked questions

Why brine chicken?

Chicken brine draws moisture into the meat and ensures that the cooked chicken will be perfectly juicy and delicious. Brining your meat is like giving it an insurance policy!

Does brining make the chicken sweet?

Even thought the brining mixture contains sugar, it will not make the meat sweet. The sugar adds some depth of flavor and also aids in tenderization.

Why do you use kosher salt for brined chicken?

Kosher salt is often recommended because it has a less intense and more pure taste. Also, the size and coarseness of the crystals makes them easier to pick up. You can use other salts in this recipe, but make sure to check your ratios as

Noteworthy: Kosher salt is NOT all the same. This recipe calls for Morton’s Kosher salt. The other brand of kosher salt available is Diamond Crystal. You can use it but, because the salt crystals are a different size (Morton’s are smaller and therefore saltier), you will want to adjust the amount up.

What happens if you brine chicken too long?

If you leave your chicken in the brining solution for too long (in excess of 24 hours) it can break down the muscle fibers too much and will result in a mushy texture rather than the tender texture we are going for.

Do you need to rinse brined chicken?

Some folks insist that brined chicken should be rinsed before cooking, but we find that a simple pat dry with a clean towel or cloth is all it needs.

It will not hurt the chicken to rinse it before cooking, but be careful as rinsing chicken can spread bacteria easily. Be sure to thoroughly sanitize the sink and surrounding area after rinsing.

Tips and tricks

🟢 I like to brine my chicken in a freezer bag so it takes up the least amount of space in the refrigerator.

🟢 To keep the bag from leaking or rolling, place it in a tupperware container.

🟢 Make sure you pop a label on the bag so you remember when the meat went into the solution.

How do you cook brined chicken?

You’ll want to cook the chicken in the same manner you would normally cook your chicken. Here are a few of our favorite recipes to try it on!

• Best smoked chicken drumsticks recipe
• Italian dressing chicken recipe
• Chicken baked in honey mustard
• Teriyaki chicken thighs
• Easy baked chicken
• Crispy pan seared chicken thighs
• Teriyaki and pineapple chicken kabobs

More awesome chicken recipes

• Coconut chicken strips
• Italian chicken sandwiches
• Baked buffalo chicken dip
• Easy chicken nachos
• See all our chicken dinner recipes!

Tools we love

• Gallon freezer bags – I like to brine our meat in gallon freezer bags so they take up the least amount of space in the fridge.
• Large glass measuring cup – This measuring cup is great because it can be safely heated in the microwave.
• Measuring spoons – These measuring spoons are great because their shape allows them to fit in most spice jars.

How to Brine Chicken

Try serving your chicken with our classic potato salad recipe!