I was cleaning out the fridge over the weekend – moving and organizing things, you know.  And I came across an orphan can of V8 Juice.  Now I don’t much care for tomato juice and to be quite honest, the salt in a standard V8 would have my doctor up in arms with me!

V8 juice is a perfect pre-mixed flavored brine for chicken.

As I read the list of ingredients:

• Tomato juice concentrate
• Vegetable juice blend concentrate of Carrots, Celery, Beets, Parsley, Lettuce, Watercress, Spinach
• Lemon juice concentrate
• Salt
• Citric Acid

…it got me to thinking. These make up a perfect combination for a flavored brine mixture! The acidic nature of tomato and lemon, combined with the added citric acid would break down and tenderize and the overall ingredient composition would penetrate the flesh and make it juicier and impart some nice flavors.

CB’s EZ V8 Juice Marinated & Grilled Chicken

I trimmed excess fat and wing tips, etc. from the chicken parts and placed them in a double plastic bag into which I poured the contents of the V8 juice can – about 12oz.  It wasn’t enough liquid to cover the chicken, so I topped it with some tap water – bout a 1/2 cup or so – and placed the sealed bag on a tray into the well organized fridge.

The next afternoon I removed the chicken parts from the bag, rinsed and dried with a paper towel.  I spritzed the chicken parts with some canola oil and grilled them on a hot grill until all sides were ’sear marked.’

As smaller pieces were browned, I removed them from direct heat to finish in a holding pan, applying light glaze in the last 10 min.

I practice what I preach, and I use the Sear & Hold technique on chicken as well as steaks.  As the chicken pieces browned there were placed in a tray and moved to the side of the grill with no direct heat and the hood closed. During the final 10 minutes of this slow cooking finish process I brushed on a light coat of bottled BBQ sauce to give the crispy skin another layer of flavor.

Checking the internal temperature of 'browned' chicken is the best way to find out if it's done.

Just FYI the USDA recommends that chicken is done when it reaches an internal temperature of 165F degrees.  I agree. But the larger pieces may need to be a bit higher – depending upon your personal taste and judgment. For example, in the photo the digital read thermometer is inserted into the chicken and showing 173F. The legs and thighs were just over 165F degrees and cooked thoroughly, while still moist.  Because I’d brined the bird and used the Sear & Hold method, I was not concerned about drying the chicken out by over exposure to direct grilling heat, AND I’d grilled it on an infrared grill which really keeps meat juicy  when grilled. The chicken finished in the holding pan – and yes it was moist and tender! And the flavors added by the V8 Juice brine were very subtle – yet complimentary to the chicken and the bbq sauce glaze.

So the next time you grill a chicken – slap yourself on the forehead and say: “Hey – I coulda brined it with a V8!”

Happy Grilling!

For a printable version of this recipe CLICK HERE