Never eat dry, tasteless chicken again. My Wine Brined Grilled Chicken Recipe makes boneless, skinless chicken breasts super flavorful and juicy! The trick is to soak them in salt and wine brine before grilling.
Why we love this Grilled Chicken in Wine Salt recipe
Salting might sound messy or best left to the professionals, but let me assure you it’s about as complicated as marinating. Plus, the wine brine makes plain grilled chicken breast so incredibly juicy.
It’s a great recipe for summer and special occasions. But even in the colder months, if you’re a year-round griller, this is a great option. The wine and rosemary flavors are amazing in these sautéed portobellos.
Recipe Highlights
- High in protein and low in calories.
- It’s a great recipe to make ahead – the chicken will take a long time to soak in the brine.
- Perfect for BBQs, summer BBQs and entertaining.
Main ingredients for this recipe
- Kosher salt
- Boiling water: The water must be hot for the salt to dissolve properly.
- White wine: The wine should be cold and preferably fruity.
- Ice
- Fresh rosemary: Whole fresh springs of rosemary are added to the brine to add flavor and aroma. You can also experiment with other herbs like thyme or sage.
- Peppercorns: You can use either black or mixed peppercorns for this recipe.
- Skinless Boneless Chicken Breasts: You can also make this recipe with chicken thighs or even bone-in chicken. Adjust the cooking time accordingly.
Chef’s Note on Wine Brine: This brine differs from a base brine by the added bottle of white wine. After testing and loving the results, I suspect the brine forced the alcohol into the chicken. I don’t know exactly, but I do know that the result is a juicy and incredibly tasty chicken.
Step-by-step ingredients to make this chicken marinated in wine
Step 1: Marinate chicken in wine brine
Combine salt and boiling water in a heatproof bowl or measuring cup and stir until salt dissolves. Pour wine and ice into a large resealable bag or deep bowl. Add hot salt mixture. Add rosemary and peppercorns. Stir the mixture until completely cooled. add chicken. Seal the bag and place in a bowl or cover the bowl when using. Refrigerate the chicken for 18 to 24 hours.
Step 2: Grill the chicken
Preheat the grill to medium-high heat. Oil the grill grate. Take the chicken out of the brine. Discard brine. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Grill the chicken until no longer pink in the center and cook 4 to 6 minutes per side. Rest 5 minutes before cutting.
FAQs and expert tips
Store the grilled chicken in airtight containers for 3 to 4 days. To reheat, simply place in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes until warmed through.
Store in freezer bags for freezing up to 4 months. To reheat the frozen chicken, place it in the refrigerator overnight to thaw. Alternatively, defrost in the microwave.
As mentioned above, you can make this recipe with bone-in or thick-thigh chicken. You can also experiment with red wine instead of white wine and add other fresh herbs to taste. Garlic is also an option.
Simply put, brine is a salt water solution that soaks chicken, other poultry, or meat before cooking. Often brine is also made with sugar. Sheets are also commonly flavored with juices, herbs, and spices for added flavor. In addition, brine is used to preserve foods in jars, such as olives, and is used in smoking and curing meat to prevent spoilage.
Sheets are not as strong as marinades and typically do not contain acidic elements. Marinades typically act on the outermost layers of protein, while brine penetrates deeper into the meat.
Soaking chicken in brine before grilling makes it juicy and flavorful. Basically, the brine soaks into the chicken and binds to it, making it juicier before it’s cooked. The salt denatures the proteins and binds water to the protein, making them juicier.
The raw chicken stays in the brine for a relatively long time (24 hours in this recipe) and the salt and flavor can really penetrate the chicken. For larger poultry or bone-in meat, you can leave it in even longer. The brine in this recipe is a relatively weak brine, which allows the chicken breasts to stay in the solution longer. Stronger (fast) brines work in just two to four hours.
Additionally Grilled Chicken Recipes to try
More brine recipes to try
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Have fun cooking! ~Kati
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Description
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts stay moist, juicy, and flavorful when grilled because they’re first marinated in a simple solution of rosemary and wine salt.
- 2 tablespoons Salt
- 2 cup boiling water
- 3 cups cold white wine, preferably fruity
- 1 cup Ice
- 4 rosemary
- 1 tablespoon peppercorns
- 2 Pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Combine salt and boiling water in a heatproof bowl or measuring cup and stir until salt dissolves. Pour wine and ice into a large resealable bag or deep bowl. Add hot salt mixture. Add rosemary and peppercorns. Stir the mixture until completely cooled. add chicken. Seal bag and place in bowl or cover bowl when using. Refrigerate the chicken for 18 to 24 hours.
- Preheat grill to medium heat. Oil the grill grate. Take the chicken out of the brine. Dispose of brine. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Grill the chicken until no longer pink in the center and cook 4 to 6 minutes per side. Rest 5 minutes before cutting.
- Preparation time: 35 minutes
- Cooking time: 12 minutes
- Category: main course
- Method: salting and grilling
- Kitchen: American
Nourishment
- Serving size: 3 1/2 ounces each chicken
- Calories: 160
- Sugar: 0 g
- Sodium: 1976mg
- Fat: 2 g
- Saturated Fatty Acids: 1g
- Carbohydrates: 3 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 21 g
Keywords: Wine brine, chicken in brine, grilled chicken breast