Ditching wet brine for a dry rub changed my chicken game

I used to mess with bags of salt water for hours before air frying chicken thighs. Last month I just coated them in a simple spice mix and let them sit in the fridge for 20 minutes while I preheated. The skin came out way crispier than any wet method I ever tried - anyone else switch to dry only?

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holly_green823mo ago

Yeah "20 minutes" is really not doing much of anything, you could skip the rest and just pat them dry before cooking lol. Actual dry brining needs way more time for the salt to work into the meat, 20 minutes is just seasoning with extra steps. I tried that quick method and the inside was still bland while the skin got salty in spots. Wet brine for at least a few hours gives me juicier meat every time and the skin still crisps up fine if I let it dry out a bit first.

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keithharris3mo ago

Whoa, hold on - 20 minutes? You let them sit for only 20 minutes? I've been dry brining my chicken for a full 24 hours sometimes. The salt needs time to actually get past the skin and into the meat. Twenty minutes is barely enough for the salt to even stick, let alone do any good. I bet your skin got crispy because you started with dry chicken, not because of the rub sitting there. If you want that method to work, try letting the spice mix sit on the thighs for at least a few hours, or overnight if you can. You'll get way more flavor all the way through, not just a salty crust on the outside.

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