I hope people are still looking in this forum from time to time...

For those of you that have done the Alton brine, I have a question. I tried his recipe for the first time on New Years. Excellent results. The family loved it.

He talks about boiling the brine to dissolve the peppercorn, allspice, and candied ginger. I boiled and stirred but these little things just didn't dissolve. When I pulled the bird out of the brine, they were still in tact in the bottom of the bucket.

Did your items dissolve? I'm thinking about pulverizing the spices first but I'm not sure. Thoughts?

I'm just a little concerned that I didn't get the full flavor from the brine. Okay, I'm a little OCD

Once the boil gets going good, and those things begin to soften a little, I mash them up against the side of the pot with the back of a wooden spoon.

I make this brine at least twice a year. It's definitely our favorite. I boil 2-4 cups of water until the brown sugar and salt dissolve, not the peppercorns and allspice berries (I use raw, sliced ginger, not candied).

Erik

Doug's suggestion is spot on. The point is to extract flavors (something AB should know, and should say as much--but flavor development is not his strong suit) and simmering the aromatics in the brine helps to achieve this. Doug's mashing will help extract further, especially the denser oil-soluble volatiles that, once floating in the brine, will better attach themselves to the fat on the bird and thus absorb. Actual dissolving is not required.

Thanks for the input. Perhaps one day I'll be smart.

I just thought it was odd that his instructions say to "dissolve the solids". At the rate I was going, I think I would have been there forever until that happened.

Next time, I will batter the spices with the spoon.