Turkey Brine Bath

[purr]

I brined for the first time last year and will never again do a turkey any other way. Mine is sitting in the brine right now and it smells fantastic but I couldn't find Juniper berries either.

 

[Overeasyplz]

Ok, update..Hubby says I cannot cook another turkey ever again WITHOUT brining it first! He totally loved this!! And I must admit I never had a bad turkey but this one scored first in my book as well!! So, what else can I brine? chicken? Duck? Rabbit? hmmmmmm Again, thank you very much for posting this recipie! It's definitely a keeper!!

 

[peeplessinNC]

This year I received a turkey breast from my employer and found a package of 3 drumsticks at the market, so I decided to brine them together.

Brine:

1 qt. water
1/2 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 long sprig of rosemary, leaves chopped
2 t. dried poultry seasoning herbs
1-2 t. fresh ground pepper

1 large bag of ice

Bring all but the ice to a boil; simmer for 5 minutes; add 1 qt. cold water and let cool.

Put 1 large turkey breast and the 3 turkey legs in an extra large zip bag. Pour cooled brine over. Make sure all the meat is covered by the brine, zip up bag and put in a cooler with loose ice on the bottom and more ice on the top. I set the cooler on the back porch stoop and worried about it all night long: would someone come along and steal it? would animals get into it? Nope, it was fine the next morning.

About 12 hours later: one hour before I began roasting I removed the breast and legs from the brine and washed off remaining herbs/pepper etc. I patted the meat with paper towels to dry it off really well. Seasoned the legs with salt and pepper, put them in a glass baking dish with about 1/2-inch of water, covered with foil. The breast was rubbed well with butter all over the skin and seasoned with salt and pepper, placed on a rack in a roasting pan with 1-inch of water added to the pan. Both the legs and the breast were baked at 325 for about 2 1/2 hours, the legs removed before the breast. The legs were very tender and completely cooked, the breast was done at 170 degrees on an instant read thermometer.

My mom made gravy at her house from some chicken parts as the drippings from a brined bird can sometimes be too salty. I saved the drippings from the legs and the breast and plan to use the liquid in turkey noodle soup, adding extra chicken broth and some water to decrease the saltiness. I think it will be delicious. With sending leftovers home with everyone, I don't have much left from the breast and 3 legs.....just enough to make a good soup.

 

[jeremy]

Quote:
The juniper berries were a bit difficult for me to find as well. Last year I did the brine without them and the turkey was just fine. This year though I was determined to have the complete recipie. I looked online and found a small, independent, 100% organic, free of any sort of corporate influence, fair trade, etc. etc. market and purchased them there. I paid like $18 for a half pound, but I found them!

I honestly couldn't tell much difference with them though, maybe it's just my lack of memory, but with or without the berries is fine by me. Maybe someone could find a better substitute. Blueberries? Cranberries?

I'm glad those of you who tried my brine recipie enjoyed it! Happy Holidays!

 

[Kim_NC]

Quote:
So glad it turned out great for you! We brine any/all poultry - turkey, chicken, duck. My dad always brined goose too, but we never cook goose as it's not a favorite of ours. Not sure about rabbit, never tried it.

Happy brining!

 

[dixie&trixie]

Quote:
Well imagine that….I search for turkey brine recipes and of course you’ve posted an absolutely fabulous recipe. I get to process my own turkey this year from start to finish and I’m so excited. I’m going to try your recipe. I’ll keep you posted. Too bad you’re so far away, you could come and enjoy it with us!

 

[jeremy]

How funny! I was like, "Who on earth is replying to that old thread...", I'm glad I can help though!

That brine makes a wonderful bird. The meat is so moist you hardly even have to chew.

Talk soon!

 

[DMRippy]

Ok I know this is old but it is the holidays....

This is my recipe for a brine... Will never make a turkey without a brine!

Ok I use a cooler with ice, just don't have room in the fridge anymore... now I make more than one

1 can of frozen Orange juice
1 can of frozen Cranberry juice

Or juice of your choice

1 cup of kosher salt
1 cup of sugar (could use brown sugar too)

I don't measure this but

a good handful of rosemary
1/2 a handful of Thyme
Water to cover the bird or half and flip regularly.

the more you marinade the better! The good thing about a brine you can do what ever you want really and you can't use too much... I don't think.

Ok now for the oven stuff. I pull the skin away from the breast and put a butter (1 stick softened) mix of some salt NOT much, Pepper, thyme, rosemary, if I do a whole bird I cut lemons and oranges and onions to put in the cavity for extra moisture. I also cook it upside down... all the juice will settle in the breast and not dry it out.... Julia Child thing I heard her say once. I also put butter on the outside of the skin for more color.


I just cook by the directions on the bird package (I don't have fresh turkey yet) and put aluminum foil over it to keep from burning especially the legs and wings. You can tuck the wings under the bird too to keep them from burning too.

I am going to try something a tad different this year

CranApple juice with brown sugar, pepper, allspice, thyme, rosemary but not as much... This year 3 birds!

Enjoy!

 

[twinklemama]

I shall have the best turkey this year now. Mwuahahahaha thanks

 

[dixie&trixie]

Funny that I saw this. I used this recipe for my farm raised/farm killed turkey last year and it turned out better than I could have EVER expected. I would recommend this recipe to anyone who wants a perfectly flavored, and herbed bird. I printed off the recipe and it has made its way into my keep recipes. Me and my husband butchered our 3 turkeys today and I made 2 batches of this brine since my bird dressed out so big. Im letting my brine for almost 3 days this year.
Fellow BYCers-Use this recipe!!

Thanks Jeremy!!!