Smoked Chicken Brine

How to make simple smoked chicken brine for smoking. Best for marinating chicken legs, thighs, breasts, quarters or a whole bird. Then smoke, bake or grill your meat. If you loved our smoked turkey dry rub this is a great one too.

Smoked chicken marinade is great. An easy way to add a ton of flavor as it sits for a few hours. Then we love to cook it as a Traeger recipe but it can be used for any other method too. Not only does it add flavor but moisture too. (affiliate links present)

Smoked Chicken Brine Recipe

Whether you’re cooking pieces or need Whole Chicken Brine, this makes them just so good! You can whisk your favorite flavors you love in with some beef broth and soak, or use our measurements below. I will say we love sweet and savory together in all the things.

I do love all of our dry rub recipes too but those don’t add extra tenderness into your meats. This does. You will want a few hours set aside before you cook your pieces for the best results. You can’t rush this. If you are in a crunch for time you could leave in overnight if you needed to, it’s versatile.

Ingredient Notes

• 8 c water or broth even would add extra flavor to this
• 1/2 c kosher salt I like better than the others for flavor
• Some brown sugar will give it sweetness, sugar free version would be fine too
• Rosemary is a nice touch, chopped from fresh or jarred
• Fresh herbs like sage are a nice add in
• 1.5 tsp marjoram may be new to you but a for sure must for seasonings
• Whole black peppercorns will add more flavor than crushed
• 2 bay leaves are optional but a must for us

Variations

Love a little spicy marinade for your chicken before smoking? Go ahead and add 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes into the mix to amp things up a bit y’all. Want a punch of citrus in the mix? Add lemon pepper to your next batch of marinade, adjust and tweak it next time too if you like.

for Chicken Thighs

If you are smoking chicken thighs specifically make the brine recipe below and then once it has soaked for a while, go for it.

This isn’t specific to smoked chicken though, or one particular part of the bird either. We do really love chicken thigh recipes though y’all. Dark meat is already more moist, if you buy skin on bone-in they are usually the cheapest cuts at the meat counter, and they’re just delicious.

Marinade for Chicken Wings

If you love grilling or cooking air fryer wings marinated this is a great one to choose. It doesn’t take nearly as long for wing marinade to start working since they don’t have much meat on the bone which is nice. Leave naked, spray with olive oil and let the outsides get crispy this way.

Can you brine frozen chicken?

Yes you can! As long as you use cold or cool water to make this it essentially will defrost it slowly as it works those flavors into the meat. It is best for your protein to be defrosted or fresh for this to work the best but is an option if that is all you have. Keep in the fridge, never leave meat at room temperature longer than 30 minutes.

We have done this when we bake frozen chicken breasts right out of the freezer. It can’t get soaked in if the whole thing is rock hard to begin with and will take a lot more time.

Then you can decide how you want to cook them, chicken quarters smoked is best. If you have lots of kiddos in the house their favorite will likely be baked chicken legs. Simple and delicious. You don’t need a sauce on the outside since there is already tons of flavor but if you really feel like you must then go for both.

Many times kids need barbecue sauce or ketchup on anything before they will put it into their mouths so I get it. My husband and I don’t need anything beyond this though.

Tips

If you wanted to smoke beer can chicken you could start with this. You would likely need to make this x4 or so so that the whole bird is submerged. Make sure you have a pot that is large enough, and room in your fridge for it to sit for a good 5-6 hours too. Cooked low and slow once this is done is just TO DIE FOR.

When done with brining solution you will not want to rinse chicken, rather set on a few paper towels to absorb moisture from the brined chicken before baking. Patting dry will allow the skin to get crispy.

Can you make chicken brine ahead of time?

Want to use this for a few recipes throughout the week? Make a double batch, use one to bake chicken leg quarters and then save the other in a mason jar. Keep that in the fridge for 12 hours – 2 days, shake it up when you are ready and try another cut after that with this. The flavors won’t change but with white meat vs. dark it does taste different.

How Long Can I Marinate Chicken in the Fridge?

Realistically you can keep it in there for up to 2 days!! I have never gone beyond 24 hours, 5 hours is minimum. If I am making air fryer marinated chicken and don’t have overnight I just set them in there around lunch time and we’re set for dinner. I love this method because you get really crispy skin with tender meat.

You could save a bit of this at the beginning and use it as a bit of a sauce at the end too. We have done this with how to smoke salmon. Just set about 1 cup aside and warm over medium heat when you’re ready to eat. Allow to sugars to dissolve and then pour it over your smoked chicken drumsticks to make extra juicy. Jump to the recipe card below and get started on our smoked chicken brine recipe here.