Prior to discovering the power of the brine, I always thought roast chicken to be rather boring and bland. I credit my brine to my cousin, the biotech engineer, who filled me in on the logic of the brine and something about how molecules in the meat meet equilibrium with salt yadda yadda. Any who, you need a good brine to make your bird pop.

In a large pot: throw in water, lots of salt (like think 3 times what you usually put when cooking pasta – and you better be salting your pasta water!), a bunch of whole peppercorns, rosemary sprigs, and just a lil bit of honey. Bring it to a boil and then set aside and let cool (if you are lucky enough to have ice in Europe throw a bunch in). Once it is about room temperature I transfer to the fridge to get it nice and cold. Once cold, submerge da bird. You will need some kind of weight mechanism to keep it submerged – we use a plate and whatever we can find to keep it down. Keep overnight in fridge.

The following day, take the chicken out of the brine and set aside to dry (about 2 hours before cooking). I even pat the breast and legs with paper towels because I want the skin nice and crispy later on. Now your bird is good and brined. See “Not your momma’s roast chiggin” for next steps!

What you need:

• A large pot
• A bird
• Water
• Salt & Pepper
• Rosemary
• Honey
• And Time! (not thyme, like actual time to soak the bird)

Image from: https://www.motherearthnews.com/real-food/brining-meat-zerz1508zcwil