Buttermilk Brine for Chicken: A Perfect Result Every Time
Using a buttermilk brine for chicken will give you perfectly cooked, juicy chicken every time!
I’m not sure if you caught Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat on Netflix, but Chef Samin Nosrat made a buttermilk brine for chicken that peaked my interest quite a bit! While I’ve heard of using buttermilk in baking as a leavening agent, I’ve never heard of using buttermilk to brine chicken. Mind blown!
According to Samin, the buttermilk brine leaves the chicken juicy and absolutely perfect every time, even if you overcook it a little bit! Have you ever noticed that chicken can be super dry when you cook it? That’s because chicken has a very low fat content. Fat keeps the meat tender and juicy when cooking which is why that dark meat on your chicken isn’t quite as dry as your white meat. The claim is that buttermilk can help, so I had to try it out.
Spoiler alert – it works, and this chicken is AMAZING!
How does Buttermilk Work as a Brine for Chicken?
Buttermilk is a cultured food which means that it uses good bacteria to digest the sugars in milk. The digested sugars produce an acidic byproduct causing the tart/tangy taste of buttermilk. When you brine with buttermilk, according to Bon Appetit (How to Store and Cook With Buttermilk – Bon Appétit | Bon Appétit (bonappetit.com) the acid of the buttermilk slightly breaks down some of the bonds in the proteins, tenderizing the meat.
What You’ll Need for Buttermilk Brined Chicken
Equipment
- Large freezer bags (1 or 2 gallon if you can find them)
- 9×13 pan
- Roasting pan
Ingredients:
- Coarse sea salt
- Buttermilk
- Whole chicken
Preparing the Buttermilk Brine
- Heavily salt the chicken on all sides.
- Place chicken into your freezer bag.
- Cover with buttermilk.
- Place into 9×13 pan and put into refrigerator overnight.
How to Roast Your Buttermilk Brined Chicken
- Remove your chicken from the bag with buttermilk, and rinse with water. Be sure to wipe off excess buttermilk with a paper towel to prevent burning.
- Place your chicken in your roasting pan and bake at 375 for 50-60 minutes or until 165 F when tested at deepest part of the thigh.
FAQ’s:
Will the buttermilk make it taste funny?
Nope! The buttermilk doesn’t add any unusual flavor to your chicken, but it does help the salt to really get into your meat. This will ensure that the entire bird is seasoned inside and out!
What should I serve with this chicken?
- Mashed potatoes – I LOVE these potato flakes for instant mashed potatoes. They’re literally just potatoes, so you don’t have to worry about any other weird additives.
- Steamed broccoli
- Simple Artisan Sourdough Loaf
How should I store any leftovers?
Save any leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator and use within 3 days.
What can I make with any leftover chicken?
- Best Sourdough Chicken and Biscuits
- Simple Homemade Chicken Pot Pies from Scratch
- Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup: Comfort in a Bowl
- How to Make Homemade Chicken Stock
Buttermilk Brined Roast Chicken
Equipment
- Gallon zip top bag
- 9×13 pan
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Coarse Sea Salt
- 3 cups Buttermilk
- 1 Whole Chicken
Instructions
Brine the Chicken
- Place chicken into zip top bag.
- Pour salt over chicken. Zip bag closed, and massage salt around the chicken so it is evenly distributed.
- Pour buttermilk into the zip top bag to cover the chicken.
- Place in a 9×13 pan in the refrigerator overnight to prevent a mess if the bag leaks.
Roast the Chicken
- Remove the chicken from your zip top bag.
- Rinse with cool water and pat dry with a paper towel.
- Add chicken to roasting pan and season as desired (I often just use this buttermilk brine alone).
- Bake at 350℉ degrees for 45-60 minutes, or until chicken reaches internal temperature of 165 °F
