can you brine for too long?

[mymach70]

I want to smoke my first chicken tomorrow for dinner. If I soak it in brine over nite will the chicken be nasty? 3.8 lb chicken how long should I soak it.

 

[desertlites]

Yes you can brine for to long but for your chicken overnite or up to 24 hrs. would be perfect.Bringing your brine to almost a boil than letting cool you will get more flavor in the bird,I have brined without heating with great results also. good luck on the bird.

 

[fire it up]

Exactly, overnight will be perfectly fine for your bird, as long as you aren't brining in some form of acidic solution that contains vinegar or pineapple juice, things like that. Acidic liquids will break the meat down a lot quicker.

If I'm doing a simple brine of just salt and sugar I won't heat it because salt and sugar will completely dissolve in cold water if you stir enough, if adding garlic or peppercorns or bay leaves or things of that nature I will heat the brine first, many ingredients need heat to activate their oils and helps to fully activate and release their flavors.

 

[mymach70]

I went with the first answer I got. I mixed 1 gal. water 1 cup kosher salt and 1 cup sugar and let it sit over nite. chickens in smoker now. will let you know how it turns out

 

[richoso1]

Pleae let us knpw how salty it turned out, and if after smoking/grilling, did the texture change? I don't brine because I need to watch my salt intake, and my wife doesn't like the change in texture whenever I brine poultry. Here's hoping that it works the way you expected it to. Happy New Year.

 

[fire it up]

Good luck

 

[bill in mn]

OH I know how it will turn out "Fantastic!!"

if this is the first bird you ever brined it wont be your last .In fact it might be the last bird you ever don't brine .Keep us posted .Bill

 

[mymach70]

O.K. here is the update so far. ALWAYS have a back-up tank of propane. I was lucky enough to have an extra tank and yes I ran out. I am currently waiting for the smoker to recover some heat. I also found out that a few ice cubes on top of the smoke wood (added priodically) will slow down the wood consumption and it makes a steamy smoke that seems to be more free flowing and visible than just wood alone. I couldnt wait and I ate the tip of the wing. OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!! I am so sad I didnt try smoking sooner. I will give final update as soon as I finish dinner!

 

[mymach70]

chicken is finaly done! tastes great started out at 225 after 4 hours not done, went to 300 full bore on my smoker 45min and ready to eat. people asked about the salt cause I brined it. not too salty for me and I have high blood pressure.

 

[mballi3011]

I'm glad that everything came out alright for you. I use alittle less salt then you did in your brine but as long as it didn't taste salty thats all that matters.

 

[grizandizz]

Sounds great, smoked chickens is one of favorites and very cost effective for my large family!
I usually go 24 hours on the brine time but 2 weeks ago I soaked two birds and 12 legs, had a family situation and had to leave them in the brine for 72 hours!
Didn't want to chuck them so I smoked em, they were delicious!!

 

[mymach70]

I soaked the chickens in brine for 19 hours then smoked them. used two different types of rubs, rib rub and kicken chicken rub, both store bought commercial stuff. The chicken had what I felt to be a typical smoked texture firm, easy to chew and very moist. I put too much of the rib rub on the one chicken so I couldnt eat the skin it was too salty. I think with the rubs less is more. My family (3 kids,wife and myself) finished 5 pounds of chicken, there is only a little bit left. If future chickens are better than this that would be a miracle cause these are the best chickens I have ever eaten, bar-none period. Thank you to all who gave advice you made my first ever smoked meat a complete success

 

[meateater]

Glad ya found this place, wait till ya find out the fattie's! The drool factor will expand!