A few years ago I discovered how easy (and cheap) it is to cook a chicken whole when you remove the spine. At Costco you can get 2 full chickens for around $13! The legs would be a couple of meals for me and then I'd use the breasts for chicken salad for the rest of the week. I cooked this meal weekly for years but got out of the habit recently. This week I scrolled across Serious Kitchen's article on Dry Brining and I was intrigued. I've always wanted to try to brine a bird, but it honestly just seems like such a pain when I'm perfectly happy with the results as they are! Ultimately it's worth the effort. This dry brine chicken had crispy skin and the meat fell off the bone.
Dry Brine vs Wet Brine
The difference between a normal brine and a dry brine is that a normal brine is a wet brine. You basically make a salty bath and let the chicken sit in the water for a day. This loosens up the meat fibers of the chicken and makes it moister. Dry brining is just putting the salt directly on the bird and allowing it to work its magic more directly. Dry brining seemed way more achievable so I gave it a shot.
Spatchcock
First thing you do is spatchcock the bird. This might seem intimidating, but spatchcocking a chicken is honestly SO easy when you give it a shot. First, flip the bird over and then use a pair of scissors to cut down each side of the spine. Once you've got the spine out, flip the bird back over and press down until it flattens. You can use regular scissors, but I highly recommend getting a pair of chicken shears. These are my favorite! You will get a clean cut without much grip strength.
For the brine, mix together the salt and baking powder. Take a pinch of the mixture and, holding your hands 10 inches above the bird, let out an even stream of salt onto the bird. Once you've coated the bird well let it rest for 12-24 hours in the fridge uncovered. You can rinse the bird off after it's sat or you can leave the salt on. It will make your bird saltier so it's up to you!
If you want to mix up the spices you can honestly do any that you like! Chili Lime, Thyme Mustard, and Jamaican Jerk are some of my favorites to use. The one listed here is for Thyme Mustard and imparts a really great chicken flavor that will go with almost any sides you're serving.
To Smoke or to Bake
Adam has a Traeger and I like to put it to work whenever I can so I smoked this chicken. If you don't have access to one (or don't like smoked chicken), just use the oven! Besides adding smoke flavor, the brine adds most of the moisture to this dry brined chicken and relies less on the smoker than normal. Just preheat the oven to 400 and roast for 45 minutes, just like in the smoker.
I will definitely dry brine chicken for all of my future birds, smoked or baked. This was one of the moistest and most flavorful birds I have had in a long time. Plus it was super easy! Adam and I were out late last night with friends, plus I spent the day painting my table blue. I was really happy that all I needed to do was pop the bird in the oven to get lunch on the table.
Try dry brining all of your cuts of meat the day before cooking! It will add a depth of flavor to your meals that you haven't experienced before. I recommend checking out Roasted Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Thyme to see how this works in a one pan meal!
I can't wait for you to try this! Let me know what you think and what spices you used. I'd love to see your pictures so tag me @thatzestlife!
Don't throw away the chicken bones or the spine when you are done eating this delicious bird! Throw them in a bag in the freezer and when you have a whole chicken or two, make Chicken Bone Broth! It's super simple and a great base for soups and other dishes.
Recipe
Dry Brined Chicken - Spatchcocked and Smoked
Equipment
- Smoker optional
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken
For the Dry Brine
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- ¼ cup salt
For the Rub
- dried thyme
- ground mustard
- ground onion powder
- ground garlic powder
- ground sage
- ¼ cup olive oil
Instructions
- About 24 hours before you want to cook the bird, combine salt and baking powder in a small bowl. Remove the spine from the chicken and set aside. Taking a pinch of salt at a time, hold your hands about 6 inches above the bird and liberally apply to the entire bird, on all sides. Rub into the chicken. Refrigerate uncovered for up to 2 days, a minimum of 24 hours.
- When you're ready to cook, either preheat the Traeger or the oven to 400 degrees. Cooking times should not vary dramatically between the two.
- Remove the chicken and on a cutting board, apply liberal amounts of all the seasonings listed under "Rub". The quantity depends on the size of the bird, but you want a lot of the seasonings on the bird. Apply under skin as well if you are able. Use olive oil liberally to help distribute the seasonings.
- Cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the internal temperature of the bird reaches 160 for the breasts and 165 for the thighs.
- Let rest for 10 minutes and then carve and serve!
NOTES
Nutrition
If you make this recipe, be sure to tag @thatzestlife in your photo! I would love to see what you made!
Brandon
Well this was wonderful! Thanks, Megan!
Megan
Thanks for trying Brandon!
Jeannette
This will definitely overtake the regular roast chicken. I can't believe how easy spatchcocking is! The steps make it so easy to follow.
Megan
The spatchcocking makes it so much easier to cook evenly!
Katherine
I need to try this way of cooking chicken! Thanks for breaking it down step by step.
Megan
Can't wait for you to try it!
Jacqueline Meldrum
That rub sounds so tasty, I really must try it.
Megan
This is my go to rub!
Amanda Wren-Grimwood
This looks perfect for barbecuing too. I've never made a dry brine so definitely trying this out.
Megan
The dry brine is a game changer. It make the bird much more flavorful and tender!
Helen
That chicken looks so crispy and delicious. Definitely giving this a try - thanks!
Megan
Thank you! I hope you enjoy.
Dannii
I have never cooked chicken this way, but it looks perfectly cooked and delicious.
Beth
Yummy! This looks so yummy and tasty! Can’t wait to give this a try! My family is going to love this recipe!
Andrea
I've never tried dry brine before. It sounds much easier than wet brining. The final spices on this chicken sound marvelous and the chicken looks divine.
Cate
This chicken looks so flavorful and delicious, thanks for the simple recipe can't wait to try it!
Michelle
So simple and juicy! The brine really makes it!
Bill Powell
Made this for Thanksgiving in lieu of boring turkey. Let it dry brine for about 30 hours. Added some rosemary to the rub; two teaspoons of each ingredient made just enough for a good-sized chicken. I put it on my Traeger starting on high then leaving it at 375 for about an hour. When I finally pulled it off I looked at it and said to myself, Bill, it's going to be dry. I put it in a 13X9 dish, covered it with foil and let it rest for about 15 minutes. The result? Incredibly moist and flavorful, and the house smelled like heaven. I am sharing this recipe with friends and family. Thank you ma'am!
Megan
I'm so thrilled you loved it! The brine really helps seal in that moisture and make the bird shine. Thanks so much for your comment!