Brining Poultry with Kikkoman–#JuicyBirdProject

I must be honest, we have been cooking Thanksgiving turkeys for over 10 years and I have never have used a brine before. I have read about the advantages of brining turkeys and chickens before but just never have. I don’t think I have a container big enough to hold the size of our usual turkey in liquid over night either.


When I was given the opportunity to brine a chicken using Kikkoman Soy Sauce I was definitely up for the challenge. I just love trying new cooking techniques. I never imagined using soy sauce but the sodium content makes sense.


The hardest part of this recipe is knowing ahead of time that you want to bake a chicken for dinner in advance. Although the recipe suggests only 4 hours are needed to brine the chicken I can only imagine overnight will make the most affect on the flavor.

I purchased my whole fryer chicken and rinsed the chicken inside and out very well. In a large stock pot I created my poultry brine using Kikkoman Soy Sauce.


Recipe for a 5-6 lb turkey. (mine was 7 and did just fine)

  • 1 gallon cold water
  • 3/4 cup Kikkoman Soy Sauce
  • 3/4 cup kosher salt
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon dried sage
  • 1 tablespoon dried celery seed
  • 1/2 tablespoon dried Thyme
Stir all the ingredients well allowing the salt and sugar to dissolve.


Place the chicken in the brine, cover and refrigerate 4 hour or overnight.



Rinse it well and cover it with 3 tablespoons of seasoned salt. Cook for 400 degrees for 45 minutes. This was not long enough for my 7 lb chicken. Adjust accordingly, no one wants raw chicken.



There was so much juice that ran out of the chicken it was amazing. I did not baste it at all during the baking process. If I was making chicken gravy I definitely would have had more than enough juices to make a substantial amount.

The chicken was flavored nicely as well. My kids described it as salty in flavor. I don’t think anyone enjoys a bland roast chicken, this would not fit the bill. This was so easy I am not sure why I have never even researched how to brine a chicken or turkey before… You can teach an old dog new tricks.

I used the carcass the next day to make chicken soup. Another great recipe. Thanks Smiley360 and Kikkoman for making me try a new cooking technique and having my menu planned for two nights in a row.

For more information on Kikkoman: check them out here http://bit.ly/OfxP73

Follow Kikkoman on Facebook too.

I was provided the Kikkoman soy sauce through Smiley360 to perform this review. I was not provided with any further compensation.

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3 Comments

  1. Look yummy! I love anything that candle a chicken dinner unique. We all feel we eat it so much we’re going to start plucking feathers off each other! lol Great use age of the carcass too!

  2. I often have a hard time finding uses for soy sauce when I’m not making oriental dishes…..will have to try this. Thank you.

  3. Looks great! Such a simple and fun new use for Soy Sauce.