When I first started reading this site, I learned to brine my chicken before cooking it. This was a big revelation and was one of the things that took my chicken to above average. At that time, I had just read the wet brining recipes, which called for salt and sugar in equal amounts, and a soak for several hours or overnight. As usual, I didn't know what I was doing, the first time I did it I let the boiling water cool just enough to not cook the chicken, and then put the whole thing in the fridge. Nearly broke my refrigeration unit trying to cool that big heat mass, the temp inside the fridge was 70F. After learning to let the water to cool to room temperature before refrigerating, I then discovered dry brining. This is much less mess, but harder to do for some reason. I find it's very easy to oversalt this way. Nonetheless I've kept at it and I think I've figured it out.
Last week's cookout was a great success with the kind of chicken I was looking for. Moist, crisp skin (at first anyway), nice color, not oversalted, and a perfect level of smoke. BUT I find I miss the succulent nature of the wet brined chicken. It was kind of like biting into an aloe vera, a toothy outer cuticle and moist inner flesh. Like KFC's chicken. The dry brined chicken is great, but is more like bundles of string-flesh. I'm sorry, I lack the culinary vocabulary to adequately express the concept of what I'm trying to say.
I haven't seen any difference being made between wet and dry brining, as far as taste goes. From Meathead's article on dry brining: "Since discovering it I almost never wet brine anymore." He calls the process of making the meat succulent "denaturing" and doesn't make any difference between wet and dry. An another article, he says "But I've gotta tell you, I no longer wet brine anything. It is a lot of work, a waste of ingredients, and it just dilutes the meat flavor."
Is there any difference between wet and dry brining regarding the taste and texture of the chicken?
Last week's cookout was a great success with the kind of chicken I was looking for. Moist, crisp skin (at first anyway), nice color, not oversalted, and a perfect level of smoke. BUT I find I miss the succulent nature of the wet brined chicken. It was kind of like biting into an aloe vera, a toothy outer cuticle and moist inner flesh. Like KFC's chicken. The dry brined chicken is great, but is more like bundles of string-flesh. I'm sorry, I lack the culinary vocabulary to adequately express the concept of what I'm trying to say.
I haven't seen any difference being made between wet and dry brining, as far as taste goes. From Meathead's article on dry brining: "Since discovering it I almost never wet brine anymore." He calls the process of making the meat succulent "denaturing" and doesn't make any difference between wet and dry. An another article, he says "But I've gotta tell you, I no longer wet brine anything. It is a lot of work, a waste of ingredients, and it just dilutes the meat flavor."
Is there any difference between wet and dry brining regarding the taste and texture of the chicken?
Comment