Pickle-brined chicken thigh

[NKoehler]

Hi all.

I smoked some chicken thighs Sunday afternoon and they turned out great!

I brined them in pickle juice and fresh ground pepper overnight. Then oiled and rubbed them with SPG. Smoked for two hours @250F with peach wood chips. Finally, I popped them into the broiler for five minutes to crisp up the skin.

I hope you all had a great day!

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[old sarge]

Looks good. First time I have heard of a pickle juice brine.

[lcdearman]

Those look good! I have heard that Chick-fil-a uses pickle juice. I'm gonna do some thighs soon, did you just use straight dill pickle juice from a jar? Also, how long did you smoke them?

[NKoehler]

Yup, pickle juice straight from the jar. I did strain before dumping it into the bag. Smoked for two hours @250F.

[tpcdelisle]

Sounds great Nick. I’ve pickle brine for number of other things, including fried chicken, but haven’t tried it with smoked. Might try that tonight!  Thanks.  👍😋

[Ken]

A restaurant in Seattle that had about 10 locations had lots of pickle juice to find a home for.  One use was to brine cod for fish and chips.  Who would have thunk? 

[tpcdelisle]

Hey Ken. If I was near Seattle, I would have grabbed some of that in a heartbeat.  Olive brine is good too. Good stuff! 😋👍

[oldfogey]

When I make potato salad I put the warm potatoes in dill  pickle brine. They absorb the flavor and tang of the brine. Tip from Alton Brown.

[tpcdelisle]

Good idea Charles.  Pickle brine can used for a lot of things, 👍