Brining Chicken or Turkey Before Roasting for more flavorful, juicier meat

Brining will provide juicier and more flavorful meat. Chickens or turkeys you buy in the store don't have the flavor those old barnyard chickens used to have, so brining is a perfect way to add in the flavor.

The brining process forces water into the muscle tissues of the meat by a process known as diffusion and osmosis. The additional moisture causes the muscle tissues to swell and hold more water, and will make the meat more moist and tender. Any spices, herbs, or other flavorings you add to the brine solution will get taken deep into the meat along with the water.

The brining mixture and the chicken are placed in a large pot and stored in the refrigerator during the brining process, or alternatively, you can put it in a cooler and close the lid. Leave the chicken or turkey to soak for approximately one hour per pound. If your chicken or turkey is large and needs to soak a while and you're using the cooler, you can add ice periodically or use those blue ice thingies in the water. But I recommend using the pan in the refrigerator. Keep the fowl down in the water by weighting it with a brick or a plate or anything heavy in a freezer bag (or just turn it over once in a while).

Be sure to rinse well before cooking.


Perfect Brining Recipe

1 gallon water

3/4 cup kosher salt

2/3 cup sugar (only if grilling, frying, or broiling the chicken or turkey, not if you're roasting. See note below.)

3/4 cup soy sauce

1 teaspoon each of dried tarragon, thyme, black pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

Start by boiling the water and then adding the salt and sugar, so that it will dissolve easier. Then add the spices to the hot liquid so that the flavors are extracted. Cool the brine solution.


**If you're going to broil, grill, or fry the turkey or chicken, you can add sugar in amounts equal to the salt. Sugar, in the brining solution, will add flavor to the chicken and will improve the natural caramelized flavor that occurs when the meat is grilled or fried. Don't use it if you're roasting, if the pan drippings are going to be used for making gravy, or if you're cooking any vegetables in with the fowl, adding sugar to the brining solution may result in gravy and vegetables that are too sweet.

Roast Garlic Mashed Potatoes

These are great served with the pot roast. If you don't love garlic, cut down on the amount you use. Never use an electric mixer to mash potatoes, it breaks down the gluten and makes them gluey. Mash with a fork, or use a hand masher. Lumps are good.

Roast Garlic Mashed Potatoes

1 medium head garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon romano or parmesan cheese, grated
salt and pepper to taste



Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Drizzle garlic with olive oil, then wrap in aluminum foil. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain, cool and chop. Stir in butter, milk, cheese, and salt and pepper.
Remove the garlic from the oven, and cut in half. Squeeze the softened cloves into the potatoes. Mash to desired consistency.

Pot Roast

Pot roast is one of my favorite dinners. It takes longer to cook, because you have to melt that tough connective tissue, but you don't actually have to do much to it. Turn it to a low simmer, and let it cook away. Make sure you use a pan with a tight fitting lid, or your pot roast may turn out dry. If using a slow cooker, just brown the meat, then put it in the cooker. Serve with a spinach salad and garlic mashed potatoes, or add carrots and potatoes to the pot.

Pot Roast

3 to 4 lb of beef shoulder or boneless chuck roast
1 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, peeled
1/2 cup of red wine



Use a thick-bottomed covered pot, such as a dutch oven, just large enough to hold roast and vegetables. Heat 1 Tbsp of oil on medium high heat (hot enough to sear the meat). Sprinkle and rub salt and pepper all over the meat. Brown roast in pot, all over, several minutes on each side. Don't move the roast while a side is browning, or it won't brown well.

When roast is browned, add garlic and chopped onion to the bottom of the pan. Let the roast sit on top of the onions. Add 1/2 cup of red wine. Cover. Bring to simmer and then adjust the heat down to the lowest heat possible to maintain a low simmer when covered.

Cook for 3 1/2 to 4 hours, until meat is tender.

Cucumber Salad

This is a simple cucumber salad, and it's great for when you have a surplus of cucumbers. Tasty.

Cucumber Salad
2 tablespoon vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 tsp sugar
1 cucumber, unpeeled and thinly sliced

1. In medium bowl, with wire whisk, mix vinegar, salt, sugar, and oil until blended.
2. Add cucumber and toss to coat.

Corned Beef Hash

Don't wrinkle your nose like that. This stuff is actually good. I like to shred the corned beef, not chop it, but you can chop it if you want. Use leftover baked potatoes from last night's dinner; if you don't have leftovers, nuke one in the microwave, poking it full of holes with a knife and turning it over halfway through the cooking time.


Corned Beef Hash



* 2 to 3 tablespoons butter or olive oil
* 2 cups cooked corned beef
* 3 cups cooked, chopped potatoes
* 1/2 cup chopped onion


Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add corned beef, potatoes, and minced onion; spread evenly in the skillet. Brown on one side; turn with a spatula and brown the other side. Continue turning until most of the meat and potatoes are well-browned. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste. Serve with fried egg on top.

Jamaican Jerk Shrimp

This is one of my favorite meals; it's quick, easy, and delicious. I love shrimp, and it's quick cooking and economical. If you don't want to fire up the grill for the five minutes, tops, that it takes to cook this, broil them in the oven. Careful, though; shrimp doesn't take long to get tough, and this requires only about a minute for each side.


1 dozen large shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Curry Powder
1/4 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon dried sage
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
3/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons canola oil
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 large clove garlic, minced

Mix all spices together. Toss the shrimp in the bowl to coat well.

Then grill, 1 to 2 minutes on the first side, about 30 seconds to 1 minute on the other. You can thread them on skewers first if you want; it makes them easier to turn. Make sure you soak wooden skewers in water for about 20 minutes before you do it, though, or you'll set your skewers on fire.

If you absolutely don't have the five minutes it takes to make this seasoning, you can buy a reasonable alternative. I've used this kind before, and it's pretty good.
Jamaica Jerk Salt Free Seasoning Blend 1 lb: C


Here's my apron for when I'm cooking shrimp:

Who ordered the Jumbo Shrimp?

Black Beans and Rice

This is one of my favorite dishes. I serve it with chopped raw onions on the top, and lime wedges and avocado slices on the side. It's also great without the rice, and potatoes as a side dish. I roast them in the oven with olive oil and garlic. Great economical dish with wonderful taste.


Black Beans and Rice


Makes 7 Cups

* 1 lb. Dried Black Beans (3 cups)
* 8 cups Water
* 6 Cloves Garlic; Crushed
* 2 Tbs. Dried Oregano
* 1 Bay Leaf
* 2 tsp. Olive Oil
* 1 Large Onion; Chopped
* 1 Red Bell Pepper; Chopped
* 1 Tbs. Ground Cumin
* 1 Jalapeno Pepper; Seeded and Chopped
* 2 Tbs. Balsamic Vinegar
* 1 tsp. Salt
* Freshly Ground Black Pepper to Taste
* 2 cups Long-Grain White Rice


Soak beans in cold water overnight making sure all beans are covered by 2-inches of water.
Drain and rinse beans.
Place in a large soup pot or Dutch oven.
Add 4 cups of water, garlic, oregano, and bay leaf.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. cover and simmer until beans are tender, approximately 2-hours.
Remove bay leaf and discard.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Add onion and pepper, cook, stirring occasionally until softened for about 5-minutes.
Add cumin and jalapeno, cook, stirring until softened for approximately 1-minute more.
Stir onion mixture and vinegar into beans.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring remaining 4 cups of water and 1 tsp. salt to a boil.
Add rice, cover and reduce heat to low. simmer until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed, approximately 15 to 20-minutes.
Serve the beans over the rice with lime wedges on the side of the serving dish.