Thanksgiving Chicken

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I had to make a small thanksgiving dinner at my sister's apartment this year. We decided to forgo the turkey and have chicken instead. This recipe is such a delight! Brining the chicken makes such a big difference - it made our chicken fall off the bone. It was so tender and juicy! 

 6lb chicken
1 gallon water 
3/4 cup kosher salt (1/2 of this amount if using table salt)
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup olive oil
2/3 cup sugar (but I personally only used 1/3)

 1. Pour cold water into container that is 2x the volume of the water. Pour in salt, sugar, soy sauce, and olive oil. Stir until sugar and salt dissolved. 

 2. Place chicken in brine, cover and refrigerate for two hours for skinless breasts, 4 hours for bone-in pieces, and 4 hours to overnight for whole chickens. 

 3. For whole chickens, wash off brine. Drain and pat chicken dry before cooking. Take a knife and separate skin and meat - makes skin extra crispy upon baking!

 4. Chop up herbs and sprinkle on top, under skin, and in cavity. Stuff cavity with anything (used apples but onions, carrots will also work - also threw in remainder of herb stems)

 5. Add generous amount of pepper and sprinkle light salt. One galloon of brine is enough for  6 lbs whole chicken or bone-in chicken pieces, and up to 10 lbs of skinless, boneless chicken breasts. 

 6. Bake at 425 degrees, for 1 hr 30-45 mins (6 lb chicken). Key is cooking at HIGH heat to make skin extra crispy. 


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