Brining chicken quarters?

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binnesman

Meat Mopper
Original poster
SMF Premier Member
May 23, 2021
180
196
Is it worth brining quarters I have done turkeys and even chickens before but quarters worth the trouble?
 
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I sure think it is. Most people think of perfectly cooked meat as tender and flavorful.... but anytime you can keep cooked meat tender, flavorful and keep it moist is a plus in my book. Brining can do just that by hydrating the cells. Brining can also work in your favor if you slightly over-cook the meat a few degrees.

To save some time, sometimes I'll inject some of the brine into meat, then use the remaining brine to cover it. This is essentially brining from the outside in, and inside out at the same time.
 
I forgot to mention that I have 8 chicken quarters that Mrs ~t~ bought today for $0.83/lb. My plan is to brine all of them, have some for a meal, give a couple to my neighbor and freeze the rest.
 
+1 on brining chicken parts or quarters. A little more work than dry brining, but I think it pays off for chicken. If just a few, I use a large zip-lock bag...fairly easy to fill and purge out the air. I then put them in the fridge on a pan for secondary containment in case of leaks.
 
+1 on brining chicken parts or quarters. A little more work than dry brining, but I think it pays off for chicken. If just a few, I use a large zip-lock bag...fairly easy to fill and purge out the air. I then put them in the fridge on a pan for secondary containment in case of leaks.
Yes! The zipper bags work great. There are 2.5 gallon ones at the dollar store. I still don't trust a tray, but I have 2-gallon buckets from the bakery at the super market. They get frosting or something in them and can't give them away fast enough.
 
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If we planned ahead, I Brine all my poultry. Fast raised commercial poultry seems pretty flavorless and lacking otherwise...JJ
 
I guess I'll weigh in lol.


99% of the time I don't brine chicken dark meat. It can be seasoned up and be ready to immediately go!
That 1% is if I'm curing then I definitely brine them along with cure #1.

I do brine whole birds and breast meat that I smoke, that is basically mandatory cured or not.

If no cure #1 involved then I brine with the simplest brine known to man.
Salt + Water and that is it. I do 2% salt equilibrium brine. Equilibrium brine is the only way to go in my book.

Finally when done brining I pull out (I don't rinse) and I season with Pepper, Onion, and Garlic. This gives me a full SPOG where the S (Salt) came from the brine. Sometimes I'll throw on some Paprika but it just depends on how I'm feeling.

Can't go wrong with this simple brine approach because you have 100% control over all the seasonings and flavors you add. Just DON'T add any more Salt or any seasonings/rubs that have Salt and you won't mess up the seasoning :)
 
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Guys thanks for all the input what I decided to do was marinate the quarters in olive oil, garlic, rosemary, and thyme. Then I will shake on a rub. I will post the picks when all done
 
Guys thanks for all the input what I decided to do was marinate the quarters in olive oil, garlic, rosemary, and thyme. Then I will shake on a rub. I will post the picks when all done

Yeah your quarters will come out fine with that approach. Chicken quarters are easy. BUT one word to the wise. If skin on u gotta cook them at a high enough temp or the skin will be rubbery. So if smoking crank up to 325F or higher. If you can't get 325F, then smoke as high as you can and consider throwing them skin down on a hot grill before they finish to get edible skin :)

I hope this info helps :)
 
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Was going to smoke at high smoke low temp then crank up to 375 skin down.
 
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Was going to smoke at high smoke low temp then crank up to 375 skin down.

Oh yeah then u are all set man! Today is the last day of $0.99/lb whole chickens and some chicken parts. I may go buy a pair of big ones and brine them to smoke this weekend. We'll see if I make it happen :)
 
Bill what’s ur brine recipe?
tallbm's got you covered in Post #12.
Salt is a simple enough molecule (and it's ionic to boot) so it really can soak well into meat to flavor it. Everything else you might as well put on right before cooking. I used to add sugar and garlic in the brine but I was just fooling myself.
Search on "equilibrium brine" if the concept is foreign to you. Here's one relevant discussion: https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/favorite-whole-chicken-brine.124234/
Tallbm also alluded to Cure #1, a dilute form of sodium nitrite, an age-old way of preserving meat, but that isn't a factor in brining chicken you're going to put on the grill the next day. But I do like the flavor it imparts. And like NaCl, it will diffuse it's way throughout the meat so do I add it (in a calculated manner) to my brine. However it does have toxicity concerns at what may appear to be modest amounts so study up first and be careful with it.
 
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