Description
The brine recipe is from Cook’s Science. The marinade comes from this Dead Easy Steak Marinade.
Update: Recently, for time purposes, I skipped the brining step, and they breasts came out as juicy as ever — I pounded them, cut them in half (so I had 6 small-ish breasts) and let them marinate for several hours in the fridge. I do think brining is a wonderful technique for breasts, but perhaps pounding is more of the key to tenderness here.
Ingredients
For the brine (optional, see notes above):
- 1/4 cup salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
For the chicken:
- 3 to 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon honey
- lemon pepper, salt-free if possible, to taste
- 2 teaspoons neutral oil or olive oil
- kosher salt to taste
Instructions
- To make the brine (note I do not do this in anymore… see notes above): In a large bowl, dissolve the salt and sugar in 1.5 quarts of cold water.
- Place the chicken breasts on a clean cutting board. Cover with a sheet of plastic wrap, parchment paper, or wax paper. Use a meat mallet to pound the breasts to a thickness of 1/2 inch. Submerge the breasts in the water and leave for 30 to 60 minutes. I’ve also left the breasts in the brine for 3 to 4 hours without any adverse effects. I brine the breasts at room temperature if the brining period is going to be brief (under 1 hour), and I refrigerate the breasts if it’s going to be longer.
- Remove the breasts from the brine, and pat dry.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, honey, and lemon pepper to taste — I use at least a teaspoon in the marinade. Let the breasts marinate for 15 minutes or up to 24 hours.
- Heat a grill or a grill pan over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, brush with 2 teaspoons of the neutral oil or olive oil. Remove the breasts from the marinade, letting the excess marinade drip off. Place the breasts on the grill or grill pan — if you are using a grill pan, you’ll likely need to do this in batches. Season the top side of the breasts with salt. I like to sprinkle on a little more lemon pepper at this step. Cook 3 minutes. Flip. Season the cooked side with salt, and cook for 3 minutes more or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Transfer the chicken to a plate to cool. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
- Prep Time: 60 minutes
- Cook Time: 6 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Grill
- Cuisine: American