Taking the time to brine your meat is one of the easiest ways to improve your cooking. This is a basic brine recipe that uses water, kosher salt and brown sugar.
Let’s take a look at how to make and use this simple brine.
Make the Brine
This recipe is extremely easy to remember when you keep the following ratio in mind, 1:1:1. This ratio means:
- 1 gallon of water
- 1 cup of kosher salt
- 1 cup of brown sugar
Mix the ingredients together in whatever container is needed for the amount of meat you have. You can use a turkey bag
Use the Brine
You want the brine to fully penetrate the meat so the tenderizing and flavor enhancing capability of the brine is fully realized. The amount of time required will vary based upon the type of meat you are working with.
Brining times for common cuts are given below:
- Fish/Shrimp: 30 minutes
- Chicken Pieces: 4 hours
- Pork Loins: 12 hours
As you can see, smaller cuts need a short soak time while larger cuts should be brined overnight.
The meat MUST be refrigerated as it brines.
When you remove your meat from the brine, rinse thoroughly with cool water. Pat dry and your meat is ready for spices/rubs and off you go!
Recipe Adjustments and Substitutions
Below are some of the most common substitutions and adjustments people make to the basic brine recipe.
Type of Salt
If you are out of kosher salt then you can use coarse sea salt as a straight 1:1 substitution.
If you want to use iodized table salt then only use 3/4 cup instead of a full cup.
Amount of Salt
There are times when I want to start brining chicken pieces tonight so they are ready to grill for lunch tomorrow. If you use the standard brine recipe on small pieces overnight then they can come out too salty.
In these cases where I want to brine small cuts for extended periods of time I will cut the salt in half and use 1/2 cup salt per gallon of water.
There are also times, like at a barbecue competition, where you will want the meat to brine fast. In these cases I will double the salt concentration as you can see in this brine for chicken thighs.
Type of Sugar
The brown sugar in this recipe helps counteract the salt flavor of the brine. I like brown sugar the most for this recipe but it can easily be substituted on a 1:1 basis for white sugar, turbinado sugar, honey or even maple syrup.
Addition of Aromatics
You can dress up the brine by throwing in your favorite aromatics. People routinely add ingredients such as:
- Onion slices
- Crushed garlic cloves
- Celery stalks
- Black peppercorns
- Rosemary sprigs
There is no set amount or limit of aromatics you can add. Use whatever you have on hand and enjoy.
To get the most flavor from the aromatic brine the mixture should be brought to a boil and simmered for a few minutes. Place the warm brine in the refrigerator and make sure that it has completely cooled before use.
Simple Basic Brown Sugar Brine Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 gallon water
- 1 cup kosher salt
- 1 cup brown sugar
Instructions
- Mix all of the ingredients together in whatever container is needed for the amount of meat you have.
- Add your meat and don’t forget it MUST be refrigerated. Small cuts should be brined for four hours while larger cuts can be brined overnight.
- When you remove your meat from the brine, thoroughly rinse with cool water. Pat dry and your meat is ready for spices/rubs and off you go!
Have you ever tried using orange juice?
I have! With Pork I believe it pairs well. Great idea.
Have a ? . Smoking some venison . Friend told me 1gal 2cups of salt 1 cup sugar 1 cup brown sugar and 1 cup of Morton’s tender mix . Seems like a lot for one gal of water
Yup. Sounds good for 2 C of H2O, though.
Would you recommend adding garlic to your brine
Absolutely. I use garlic all the time. Love it. You can add any herbs/seasonings/ingredients you prefer. Have fun messing with it!
Trying this for the first time tonight, probably will brine for 4-5 hours. New smoker with a new smoker… Wish me luck
Jeff what did you smoke and how did it come out? I am also new to this. My hubby got me a smoker for Christmas. So far I’ve only had one fail my very first one but I’m real curious about the brining.
Fixing the third time. Only recipe I use. Try a little Pure maple syrup w/the b sugar or a bunch of instead of.
I read on one recipe they add a little bit of apple cider vinegar. Is that OK to do? Thanks bud.
Just be careful with vinegar. It can begin “cooking” the meat. I wouldn’t use it overnight.
Hi Kevin,
If the chicken was frozen and then thawed, can it still be brined? If so how long do you recommend to keep it the refrigerator.
Thanks!
Shane – definitely still safe to brine. I do that all the time. I would say it’s safe for a few days in the fridge before cooking. But I usually try to cook chicken that has been frozen as quickly as possible, just to be safe.
Just put a hip of venison in this simple brine, I will take it out Friday afternoon and it will be cooked in a garbage can Saturday afternoon. I’ve done lots of turkeys this way but never brined and I’ve never done venison I will let you know Saturday evening how it turned out! Cheers.
When brining 4 chickens, can I double or triple the recipe without being too salty?
Charlie – yes – if you stick with the measurements, you should be safe. But just to be cautious, you could cut back the salt a bit.
Thanks for your response! I did four chickens and tripled the recipe and got excellent reviews. Live your site!!
Why is brine necessary?
Hi Sonya, I wrote a separate article about why I think brine is important. Take a look and see if this answers your questions! Brine Que Tip
Kevin, whats the minimum amount of time ????
I’ve never brine befor and the bird has just goneback into the fridge
Kathy – any time is better than no time! Truly. But in general, I like to give it at least 30-60 minutes.
thanks…. smoked sckiken tonight!
can you use this brine on seafood
I haven’t tried – but I’m SURE you could. Just be careful with the salt – seafood really takes in any flavors you brine with. I’d either cut back the salt or just brine for a shorter period.
Dry brine fish 1 cup kosher salt and 2 cups brown sugar pat dry brine on fish min 3 hours
Hi there, can this brine be used for meat as well ,such as pork
Dave – you can use this brine on anything. Water/Salt/Sugar is a safe and basic combo for any meat.
Thanks Kevin.
Can you add things like sherry or wine? Or will it mess up the brining process?
Absolutely! Add whatever flavors you prefer. Anything you add will definitely change/enhance the flavor you give the meat through the brining process.
These come out fabulous and remember if you looking you not cooking
I am looking forward to having my husband smoke the chicken for tomorrows dinner guests. I was wondering if I could use pickle salt instead of kosher salt?
Thank You
Michele Forster
I’ve honestly never used pickle salt, but I’m sure it would be fine. Maybe just use less if it’s a more potent salt.
Why use kosher salt?
I prefer the taste of kosher and sea salt to iodized. You can you iodized, just use less. It’s more potent.
Is the brine for one or two whole chickens? I see two in the bag…
It can be for as many chickens as you can fit! The basic brine recipe is just that – basic. A starting point. Feel free to increase or decrease as needed for how many chickens you’re doing.
Thanks…smoked two chickens today…meat was tender and they tasted awesome…