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Sweet Tea-Brined Chicken

from Southern Living

Ingredients

  • 2 family-size tea bags
  • ½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
  • ¼ cup kosher salt
  • 1 small sweet onion thinly sliced
  • 1 lemon thinly sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves halved
  • 2 fresh rosemary sprigs
  • 1 tablespoon freshly cracked pepper
  • 2 cups ice cubes
  • 1 about 4 pound cut-up chicken

Instructions

  1. Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a heavy saucepan; add tea bags. Remove from heat; cover and steep 10 minutes.
  2. Discard tea bags. Stir in brown sugar, salt, onion, lemon, garlic, rosemary, and pepper; stir until sugar is dissolved. Cool completely (about 45 minutes); stir in ice. You want the mixture to be cold when you add the chicken.
  3. Place tea mixture and chicken in a large zip-top plastic freezer bag; seal. Place bag in a shallow baking dish and chill 24 hours. Remove chicken from marinade, discarding marinade; use paper towels to pat chicken dry.
  4. Light one side of grill, heating to 300F to 350F (medium) heat; leave other side unlit. Place chicken, skin side down, over unlit side, and grill, covered with grill lid, 20 minutes. Turn chicken, and grill, covered with grill lid, 40 to 50 minutes or until done. Transfer chicken, skin side down, to lit side of grill, and grill 2 to 3 minutes or until skin is crispy. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Serve with grilled lemon slices and rosemary.