After many years of trial and error, I finally realized that the secret to the juiciest roasted and grilled meats is a super easy technique known as brining. A brine is a salty water bath prep step that adds moisture to temperature-sensitive proteins like chicken, turkey and pork. These meats risk drying out as they roast or are grilled at high heats because the inside cooks at a different rate than the outside.
And boneless chicken breasts run the biggest risk of drying out because they don’t have the bone to protect the meat.
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A quick brine is the key to juicy chicken
Brining is always a hot debate in culinary reader forums especially around Thanksgiving. Whether you use a wet or dry brine method, you will soon discover that brining proteins like chicken, turkey and pork is a form of recipe “insurance”.
After testing and experimenting with brining chicken, I have found that 30 minutes is all it takes to brine boneless chicken breasts with amazing, consistently juicy results.
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psst…my mess-free, super easy dry brined Thanksgiving turkey will help settle the “to brine or not to brine” deliberation.
30 minute chicken brine mixture
Step 1: Brine base
A brine starts with salt (in this case—kosher salt – I use Morton’s Kosher Salt) and water. And you can’t just dump salt in water and call it a day. There is a ratio that works best as the salty water breaks down the fibers and tenderizes the meat to take in all the moisture.
Chicken Breast : Brine Ratio
1 cups of cold water : 1 tablespoons of salt : 1 chicken breast
I have found that a 1:1:1 ratio works best to optimize the juiciness especially in grilled or barbecue chicken as we do here.
See the recipe card if table salt is all you have.
Step 2: Brine flavor boosters
Because I’m grilling chicken breasts and many times grilled chicken becomes barbecued chicken after being brushed with bbq sauce, I chose to add a little sweet to the savory.
Here is my favorite chicken brine mixture:
- Light or dark brown sugar. Adds a rich molasses flavor especially if you use dark brown sugar and it dissolves beautifully with no grittiness.
- Garlic powder. The Spice House roasted garlic powder is my go-to. The roasted flavor gives a toastiness to the chicken.
- Black peppercorns. Whole not crushed so that a subtle flavor is imparted. Tellicherry peppercorns are my favorite!
Brined chicken pro tips
You only need 30 minutes to quick brine chicken breasts. Keep in mind the following guidelines:
Don’t over-brine! I know things happen but make sure that the chicken doesn’t sit in the brine for no more than 45 minutes to an hour tops. There is such a thing as poultry sitting too long in brine. Over-brining results in chicken with a spongy texture because it has soaked up too much water.
Don’t rinse the chicken when removing from the brine! I promise it won’t be too salty!
Don’t adjust the salt:water ratio. It has been developed that way for a reason. More isn’t better in this case!
DO pat dry the chicken with paper towels. After brining and before grilling, pat the chicken dry so the barbecue sauce will stick to the chicken.
Brined chicken breast step-by-step
- Pour the cold water into a large, bowl with a fairly wide bottom.
- Add the salt to the bowl. Stir until the salt is dissolved.
- Mix in the brown sugar and garlic powder. Submerge the chicken breasts into the brine giving it a quick stir with your hands to make sure the garlic powder and peppercorns aren’t sitting at the bottom of the bowl.
- Brine the chicken in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Chicken breasts grilling method
A few starting points:
Each chicken breast used here is approximately 1/3 lb and took about 10 minutes to cook.
For reference, I use a large gas Weber grill that I heat with the knobs set to medium-high to start and then I reduce the heat to medium to reach the desired temperature. Adjust based on your particular grill.
I also keep the flame directly below the chicken to a lower temperature than the flames around the chicken. While not completely an indirect grilling method, it isn’t fully “direct” either.
1. Grill the chicken
Light the grill and adjust the individual knobs for the temperature gauge reaches 400-425° (see tip above).
2. Brush on sauce
If you love a really good, rich and not too sugary sweet barbecue sauce, you’ll love my no ketchup bbq sauce. It’s made with a base of roasted tomatoes and garlic and is an Italian inspired barbecue sauce.
Barbecue chicken pro tip
Starting the chicken on the bottom or the wrong side ensures that when it’s time to put the sauce on you’ll sauce the top side first producing a photo-worthy charred and caramelized barbecued chicken breast.
Scroll down to the recipe card for more pro tips like make ahead timing and suggestions.
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Brined Grilled Chicken Breasts (30 minute brine)
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Ingredients
- 3 cups cold water
- 3 Tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 3 boneless chicken breasts, with the skin removed
- ½ cup homemade or store bought barbecue sauce, or more; I used this no ketchup barbecue sauce
Instructions
Make the brine
- In a large bowl, mix the water and salt until the salt is dissolved. Stir in the garlic powder, brown sugar and black peppercorns.3 cups cold water, 3 Tablespoons kosher salt, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 2 Tablespoons brown sugar, 1 teaspoon black peppercorns, 3 boneless chicken breasts
- Place the chicken in the brine for 30 minutes, cover with plastic wrap and brine in the fridge. Do not exceed more than an hour in the brine or the chicken texture will be absorb too much water and it's texture will be affected.
Grill the chicken
- Preheat a gas grill to 425°. Make sure the grill grates are cleaned. Dip a paper towel in a little vegetable oil and hold the towel with a set of tongs as you wipe and oil the grates.
- Remove the chicken from the brine. Pat dry with paper towel – do not rinse the brine off the chicken!
- Use tongs to place the bottom side of chicken on the grill. Turn the chicken breasts to get angled grill marks. Close the lid and cook for 5 minutes (set a timer!).
- Open the lid and run a grill spatula under the chicken. If the chicken releases easily from the grates, flip the chicken and cook for another 5 minutes with the grill closed.If the chicken doesn't release from the grates easily, give it another minute or two.
- If you are making the chicken ahead, use a meat thermometer to check the temperature of the chicken. You want it to reach around 165°. If you have reached 165°, you can stop here, allow the chicken to cool and then refrigerate until you're ready to finish it with barbecue sauce. If not cook a little longer until desired temp is achieved.If you are eating right away, raise the heat a bit and then brush the top side of the chicken with a heavy sweep of a rich barbecue sauce. Flip and cook for about 2 minutes before flipping and repeating on the bottom side.½ cup homemade or store bought barbecue sauce
