Beer Brined Chicken

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bmaddox

Master of the Pit
Original poster
Jan 5, 2015
1,705
144
Central FL
I picked up 5 pounds of chicken leg quarters and 5 pounds of split breasts at the store this week and was looking to do something a little different with them. I came up with a simple beer brine that worked great. The chicken was juicy and tender (as it always is when I brine it) and it had a ton of flavor. 

Beer Brine:

4.5 quarts water

4 12oz beers

1.5 cups salt

2 cups brown sugar

1 T chipotle powder

1 T ground red pepper

Since the brine had enough salt I made up a quick salt-free rub:

2 T black pepper

1 t onion powder

1 t garlic powder

1/2 t chipotle powder

1/2 t ground red pepper

And to continue with the chipotle theme I had going, the wife made a chiptole BBQ sauce:

1 C ketchup

1/2 C finely diced onion

1/3 C brown sugar

1/3 C molasses

4 T ACV

1 t chipotle powder

It was my best chicken to date.

 
Looks good I use beer a lot as a tenderizer, have to try as a brine. Guess I will have to wait, for someone to bring light beer over here.
 
 
What temp did you smoke them at, and how long did they take?  Looks great.

Richard
240 degrees and it took about 3.5 hours.
 
chicken looks great, very good color, never used a beer brine, can you taste the beer when it is cooked?

dannylang
You couldn't taste the beer itself but it had more flavor than when I brine without it. My wife asked "what is that flavor" when she took her first bite.
 
Looks good I use beer a lot as a tenderizer, have to try as a brine. Guess I will have to wait, for someone to bring light beer over here.
I have the same problem at my house. When my wife was heading to the store I specifically asked for "cheap beer". She came back with PBR!
 
 
do not understand, you really do not need to tenderize chicken, did the beer add that much flavor, to use it, instead of a brine. or just a different flavor concept.

dannylang
It was just for a different flavor. I really had no idea how it would work out but I figured it was worth a try. I know that beer can chickens are extremely popular so I thought why not try a beer brine.
 
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