Fat Man
BBQ List


The Fat Man's Brine

This brine was originally developed for turkeys. It's outstanding in that application by itself.

I like to inject them with a 50/50 mix of honey + butter just before putting them in the smoke.

The injection makes for a "no-leftovers" bird.

The brine is equally suited for use on chickens with only one modification;
Lessen the sage content.

I soak turkeys a minimum of three days prior to smoking and chickens a minimum of 2 with a maximum of three days.

The Dave's Insanity Sauce is optional, but I don't find that it adds too much heat as per instructions.

This is something I came up with after a little fiddling around with standard brines. Everyone seems to love it, but feel free to modify it to suit your own particular tastes.

The Fat Man's chicken kickin' brine

2 gallons water
1 1/4 cup pickling salt
3/4 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp ground sage
2 tbsp crushed red pepper
1 tbsb fresh black pepper
4 bay leaves
1 tbsp Old bay seasoning 
1 tbsp Dave's Insanity Sauce
2 tbsp Italian seasoning (oregano, marjoram, thyme, rosemary and sage)

Some folks want to heat the brine to dissolve the salt and sugar faster. I use a wand or stick blender and mix it cold. In either case, make sure the brine is COLD before dunking the birds. Keep it well under 40 for the duration of the soaking.

33 works just fine for me if the birds are completely thawed. 

                                       

           
