| An important part to Barbecuing is the brining of the | | | | brining or to little salt is better than to much. The rule |
| meat. | | | | of thumb here is 1 hour of brining for every pound of |
| A little science for you here. Brining adds moisture to | | | | Poultry. A whole chicken should be left in the brine |
| the meat and keeps it moist and juicy during the | | | | for 5 to 8 hours and a whole chicken cut into pieces |
| cooking process. A Brine is a combination of water | | | | should be in for no longer than 4 hours. If you are |
| and Salt. About one cup of salt to every gallon of | | | | brave and are doing a whole turkey you should allow |
| water. The salt is added to the water because it | | | | for 24 hours for the bird to brine. Believe me you will |
| breaks down the proteins and therefore tenderizes | | | | thank me later. |
| the meat. If you weigh a chicken or just the pieces | | | | Remember that like all cooking it may take a little bit |
| before you put them in a brine and then weigh them | | | | of playing with to get it just how you like it. Start of |
| afterward, you will see that it is heavier. | | | | cautiously and slowly get braver each time you brine. |
| OK, now we have that out of the way we can get | | | | After you have brined your chicken it is time to cook |
| on with the Brining. Measure the water you need by | | | | it on the grill. It is so easy to burn it so if I am using |
| placing the chicken in a container and then covering it | | | | a gas grill I will only light one side and place the |
| with water completely and adding 2 or 3 inches more. | | | | chicken or the pieces on the other and close the lid. |
| Take out the bird and now you know how much | | | | Check every so often turning once in a while and |
| water you need. Dissolve the salt in boiling water and | | | | then use a thermometer to check the internal temp. |
| then add to the ice cold water then place the chicken | | | | 140 is right for a chicken on the grill. |
| back into the container. Congratulations, You are now | | | | I do like to cook a chicken on a charcoal barbecue as |
| brining. | | | | I just love the flavor. If your barbecue is big enough |
| When you take the Chicken out of the brine | | | | just put the coals on one side and the chicken on the |
| remember to thoroughly rinse off the chicken and let | | | | other. If however you have a circular BBQ grill light |
| it drain. Also give what ever containers you are using | | | | the coals first and then push them to the outer |
| a really good wash and discard the brine. | | | | edges. I place a circular tin pan in the middle by the |
| So, How Long do I need to Brine for? | | | | coals under the grill filled about three quarters of the |
| Brining for to long or with to much salt can be bad so | | | | way with water. |
| add a little caution when doing this Not enough time | | | | |