Brine Chicken Breast, Thighs and Wings: Salt and Time

For 2 lb (0.91 kg) of chicken pieces, the salt for a 1 quart (0.95 L) brine is 54 g (1.91 oz) for breast at its default 5.71% strength, and 56.8 g (2 oz) for thighs and wings at 6%. Breast and wings go in for 30 minutes to 1 hour, and thighs for 1 to 2 hours. The window follows thickness: about 1 inch (2.5 cm) for breast, 1 inch or less for wings and 2 inches (5 cm) or less for thighs.

Each cut below has its own strengths, tables and limits. All percentages are of the weight of the water, as the brine percentages explainer describes. For a whole bird, see the whole chicken guide.

Chicken breast

The default is a 5.71% brine for boneless breasts about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick, and a lighter 3.8% brine has the same 30 minute to 1 hour window.

Standard (5.71%) is the same strength as The Kitchn's quick-brine page, which gives 3 tablespoons of fine table salt per quart of water for chicken breasts, and Cook the Story uses the same ratio. Lighter (3.8%) comes from America's Test Kitchen, which brines four boneless, skinless breasts in 2 quarts of water with 1/4 cup of table salt. Only America's Test Kitchen was found at that strength, so it is one publisher's ratio.

Recipes differ on time. Amazing Ribs gives 1 to 2 hours for meat 2 inches (5 cm) thick or less at 6%, Cook the Story gives 1 to 2 hours at the standard strength and The Kitchn gives 30 minutes to 1 hour. The calculator uses the shortest maximum, 1 hour.

The lighter brine:

Amazing Ribs lists about 30 minutes for meat 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) thick and about 1 hour for meat 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick, so a thin cutlet belongs at the short end of the window. In its chicken test, a wet-brined breast gained 10% in raw weight, and 7% by the page's figure was still in the cooked meat.

Chicken thighs

Thighs are the one cut here with a longer window. At the default 6% strength they take 1 to 2 hours, and the stronger 7.61% brine takes 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Standard (6%) follows Amazing Ribs, which defines a 6% brine as 60 g of salt per liter of water and gives 1 to 2 hours for meat 2 inches (5 cm) or less thick. Destination BBQ gives 1 to 8 hours for chicken pieces at 5% to 7%, and the calculator takes the shorter maximum of 2 hours. No page behind the standard strength names thighs, so the time is set by thickness. Stronger (7.61%) comes from America's Test Kitchen's chart for 4 lb of bone-in chicken pieces in 2 quarts of water with 1/2 cup of table salt, 1/2 to 1 hour, a single-publisher figure for pieces that include thighs.

The stronger brine:

Bone-in and boneless thighs share one window because the measure that matters is the thickest point, not the weight. Smaller or thinner thighs belong near the short end. Taste the cooked meat before adding salt to a sauce or seasoning.

Chicken wings

Whole wings, flats and drumettes all take 30 minutes to 1 hour at both strengths for pieces 1 inch (2.5 cm) or less thick. The default is 6%, with a stronger 7.61% brine in the same window.

Standard (6%) follows Amazing Ribs, which gives about 30 minutes for meat 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) thick and about 1 hour for 1 inch (2.5 cm), and Destination BBQ's 1 to 8 hours for chicken pieces, shortened to 1 hour. Stronger (7.61%) comes from America's Test Kitchen's row for bone-in chicken pieces, which does not name wings, so it is a single-publisher figure for wings. America's Test Kitchen also has a gas-grilled wings recipe with a much stronger brine, about 11.41% with sugar, for 30 minutes. The calculator does not use it, because no second publisher gives that strength.

The stronger brine:

Weights, salt types and water

Weigh the chicken before brining, without any liquid. At 2 lb (0.91 kg) and 6%, 56.8 g of salt is 3/8 cup of Diamond Crystal kosher, 1/4 cup of Morton kosher or 3 Tbsp of table salt, because the same volume of different salts weighs different amounts. The kosher versus table salt guide explains why.

After the brine

Keep the pieces fully covered in a refrigerated, food-safe container, and take them out by the end of the window for the cut and strength. Pat them thoroughly dry. Amazing Ribs says a wet surface steams and does not brown, and Destination BBQ says to air-dry the skin after a wet brine. For skin-on pieces, Amazing Ribs advises a dry brine over a wet one, and the dry brine chicken guide covers that method. Cook to 165°F (74°C) on a food thermometer, as FoodSafety.gov lists for poultry. The mixing, chilling and cleanup steps are the same for every wet brine and are in how to brine meat.

Safety

The refrigeration, brine disposal and pre-salted meat rules in the calculator above apply to every wet brine and are explained in the brine food safety guide. In short: brine at 40°F (4°C) or below, throw the brine out after use, and do not brine poultry sold as basted, enhanced, marinated or kosher. The USDA FSIS says those labels mean a solution was added during processing.

Practical problems

The chicken tastes too salty. The brine was too strong, the time was too long or the pieces were thin. Use the lighter or standard strength and stay at the short end of the window for thin pieces.

The chicken is not seasoned enough. Check that the salt was weighed and not measured by volume, and that the pieces were fully submerged.

The skin is soggy. Amazing Ribs says wet brines make poultry skin soggy. Dry the pieces well, or use the dry brine method in the dry brine chicken guide.

You are cooking a mix of cuts. Each cut keeps its own window, so brine them separately or time them separately. The chicken brine time chart lists every cut, including the whole chicken and Cornish hen.