I’m working on a post about cooking juicy, flavorful chicken breasts, and before I publish that, I wanted to post my very favorite brinerade for chicken, with a printable.

I got this recipe from Cook’s Country and my goodness, it’s SO useful.

What’s a brinerade?

It’s a cross between a marinade and a brine.  So, it’s got way less water than a brine does, and it’s basically a really salty marinade but with no acid.

(ATK/CC/CI feel that acidic marinades make chicken mushy, not tender.)

What does a brinerade do?

It does an amazing job of making chicken tender, juicy, and flavorful, in very short order.

A quick 90 minute (or overnight if you like) soak in a few pantry ingredients will transform your chicken. Seriously.

What’s in this brinerade?

A few ingredients that you probably have on hand already!

• oil
• water
• sugar
• salt
• pepper
• garlic

I know it seems like this should not make a big difference in your chicken, but trust me, it does.

Should you brinerate in a dish or a bag?

I always brinerate my chicken in a glass lidded Pyrex dish, which works great for me and avoids a single-use plastic bag.

But a plastic bag also will work fine.

What should you use brineraded* chicken for?

*is this a word? I don’t know!

I use this recipe whenever I need basic chicken for a dish.

For instance, it’s great in chicken salads, chicken pasta, on green salads, and in sandwiches. And it’s also tasty enough to be eaten just on its own, or with a sauce.

Give this a try if you struggle with chicken breasts! And stay tuned next week for a post with more tips about cooking chicken breasts.

(Scroll down for the recipe.)

The Best Quick Chicken Brinerade

Yield: 4 chicken breasts

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Additional Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

This juicy, flavorful chicken is perfect for sandwiches, salads, pasta, and any other dish that calls for cooked chicken breasts. This chicken is great grilled or cooked on the stovetop.

Print

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons water
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 4 (6-8 ounce) chicken breasts

Instructions

1. Combine first six ingredients in a lidded container; stir to combine.
2. Add chicken, toss to coat. Refrigerate at least 90 minutes or up to 24 hours.
3. Cook chicken on a preheated grill or in a hot pan on the stove until chicken reaches 160°F, flipping once.
4. Let chicken rest 5 minutes before serving.

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• 
  Pyrex Simply Store Glass Rectangular Food Container Set with Red Lids (6-Piece)

Nutrition Information

Yield 4 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 98Total Fat 10gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 9gCholesterol 0mgSodium 794mgCarbohydrates 2gFiber 0gSugar 1gProtein 0g