using brine at butcher time

[pugnacious]

Has anyone brined their meat birds immediately after butchering? When we did our last batch we just froze them. I was thinking about doing 5 or so at a time and brining them for 24 hours before freezing. Anyone see any potential problems with this. These will be almost exclusively smoked and grilled.

 

[AlbionWood]

I always chill ours in an ice brine. Anywhere from a few hours to overnight, then drain and rinse, and then air-dry in a fridge or an ice chest (with some ice in bags) for 24 hours before packaging. The iced brine chills them good, leaves a nice clean meat and helps protect against bacteria. Air drying before packaging seems to firm the meat a little; and for whole birds meant for roasting, it really helps to dry the skin out.

 

[Oregon Blues]

I just chill in a big tub of ice water. My family eats low sodium and I don't ever brine my birds.

Mine are only in the ice water long enough to chill the meat and then they are moved to a fridge where they are not standing in water.