Everyone now desires to learn how to brine a chicken! Brining a chicken not only gives it a great flavor but also makes it very moist and soft.  Since most of us look forward to low fat meat and thereby cook it in the oven, we are left with dry chicken. In such a condition brining a chicken gives it a very soft texture which makes it delicious in any way you choose to cook it.

Brining a chicken is simple – you will need:

• Container to place chicken.
• Sugar
• Kosher salt
• Black peppercorns
• Bay leaves
• Lemon
• Fresh herbs
• Spices
• Garlic cloves

1. You have to know how much water you need to prepare the mixture.  As per rules you should take 1 quart for every pound of chicken.
2. Let this water heat up in a microwave oven for 5 minutes.
3. Remove it from oven after 5 minutes.
4. Now, take 1 ½ cup kosher salt and 1 ½ cup sugar and add it in the water.
5. Stir it well to dissolve.
6. Add peppercorn, spices, garlic and lemon.
7. Let the solution cool for 20 minutes. If you are in a hurry, you can refrigerate it also.
8. Add washed chicken pieces or whole chicken to this solution. The chicken should be completely submerged in the solution or else all parts won’t be marinated well.

9. Cover up the container and put it in the refrigerator for 12 hours at least.
10. Remove the chicken after 12 hours…let it get back to room temperature before you start cooking once again.
Image courtesy: farm4.static ;  insomniahaiku