How to Brine Turkey (or How I Learned to Love the Bird)
2 Comments | Written on November 14, 2011 at 5:00 pm, by Jason Best
Why brine your Thanksgiving turkey? Well, gravy can only do so much. And woe to you if the gravy boat doesn’t make it around your way a second time. Then you’re stuck gnawing on a drier-than-dust slice of turkey breast while Uncle Alan regales the table with a half-hour oratory about his latest back surgery, or Aunt Sandy prattles on about her cat’s diabetes.
As any convert will tell you, brine your turkey once, and you’ll probably never go back. Take it from me: roast turkey (even one that’s been dutifully basted every half hour or so) was never my favorite. If I was grateful for anything on Thanksgiving, it was that we only had to endure this bland, flavorless bird but once a year. Then we discovered brining. Granted, it was awkward at first—unless you have a second fridge, it can take some strategic planning to figure out what to do with a 10-pound turkey luxuriating in a salt bath. But for very little effort, the payoff was transformative. It was amazing that just soaking the bird in salt water overnight could make it so juicy, so succulent—not only did I crave seconds, I was first in line for leftovers the next day.
So how do you do actually brine a turkey? There are about as many variations for turkey brine as there are for pumpkin pies: you can flavor your brine with maple syrup, beer, buttermilk (but probably not all three). They all boil down to the basics, though: salt water and plenty of time. You want to soak your unfrozen turkey for at least 8 to 12 hours.
Better Homes & Gardens (one of Recipe.com‘s partner sites) has a great recipe for a classic turkey brine, enhanced with savory spices that complement the traditional flavors of the season. If you’re challenged for vertical space in your fridge, you can always try a brining bag (essentially a very heavy-duty Ziploc), which allows you to keep the bird flat in a roasting pan. You just want to make sure to turn the turkey every few hours or so. Otherwise, just sit back and let the brine work its salty, delicious magic.
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Holidays & Parties | Tags: Brined Roast Turkey, Christmas Turkey, Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Turkey
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2 Responses to “How to Brine Turkey (or How I Learned to Love the Bird)”
I absolutely agree..I cannot cook a turkey without brining it first. Agree it is a bit of a challenge, but so worth it.
We started brining our turkeys a couple of years ago and you right, once you brine you will never go back to regular roasted turkey.
It has so much more flavor from the spices and is super tender and juicy.
I buy pre-mixed seasonings that are sold for this purpose and have not had a bad turkey yet. We did two in one year last year.