Apple-Brined Chicken Thighs
I love the flavor of chicken baked with apples, and when I had a bumper crop of green beans, I wanted to include them, too. Brining chicken thighs give them great flavor.—Kathy Rairigh, Milford, Indiana
Ingredients
- 3 cups apple cider or juice
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 1 medium lemon, sliced
- 4 fresh rosemary sprigs
- 1/3 cup kosher salt
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, divided
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon whole peppercorns
- 2 cups cold water
- 10 bone-in chicken thighs (about 3-3/4 pounds)
- One 2-gallon resealable plastic bag
- 1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
- 3 medium tart apples, cut into wedges
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Reviews
I only used the brine for this recipe. I brined skinless chicken thighs for 6 hours. I didn't have rosemary (though I love it), so I substituted about a tablespoon of beau monde seasoning. I also use organic bay leaves. I don't typically buy organic foods, but the organic bay leaves are so fresh, and impart a wonderful flavor in anything that I cook. I put the chicken thighs in my smoker for about 3 hours. They were moist, tender, delicious...with a delicate apple flavor.Tonight I'm going to brine some thick pork chops over night and put them in my smoker. This time I'm using fresh rosemary, a wee bit more salt, and I pricked the pork all over. Oh, and I think maybe my chicken had more apple flavor because I used frozen apple juice and only added 2/3 of the water recommended. And, for smoker enthusiasts, I used mesquite chips, though I also have some Jack Daniels chips that are wonderful, but I misplaced them in the throes of moving. :)
Loved this recipe. Did make a few changes tho. We don't like rosemary so we substituted with 1 tsp of thyme. Also no fresh lemons so used I 2 1/2 tbs of lemon juice and no peppercorns so I used 1 1/2 tsp of black pepper. I didn't cook it with any veggies only the apples for fear that the veggie flavor would get into the chicken and the kids would have issues. So I just served veggies on the side and my kids ate it with no complaints. :-)
Did the recipe neglect to remove the salt by rinsing under cold running water? I can't imagine why you would leave all of that salt in the chicken. Just a thought.
This did not work out at all for me. I might however try the brine out again but on a rotisserie
I love this brine. I have used it on pork and chicken and it adds so much flavor that you don't even need anything else.
Loved it. May brine longer next time. The green beans and apples were very good but would also like to try other vegies. Not hard to make but start early!
not hard to make, but not worth any of the effort, couldn't taste the apple juice past all of the salt.
We grilled the chicken instead of baking it, and it was great!
I will definitely marinate the thighs longer next time I make this. It was very good but I felt like it would have had more flavor with a longer marinade time.
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