He was exactly 28 weeks old as he was born on Mother's Day this year. We have two more toms and 3 hens. We are going to butcher the other tom for Christmas so hopefully he will weigh more. The hens I might wait on two of them till spring. We are going to keep the one hen and are keeping the one tom. I like the paper towel idea, my hubby agrees.
The one tom got clobbered by the other two and almost died, even the hens were ripping him to shreds, so we put him with the chickens. Well he survived and now has turned into a big baby sitter for my English Game Hen's flock of 2 month old kiddos. She is overly protective and runs all the other chickens away from them, but this big ole tom turkey she doesn't mind and her babies cuddle up to him on the roost. If any of the other chickens make an aggressive move towards the little ones this tom goes after them and steps on them.
Does anybody have a good brine recipe? When should I put the turkey in a brine solution, the night before? or sooner. Thanks in advance.
We like to brine for 24 hours but it can be shorter. We also LOVE, LOVE, LOVE using oven bags! I have also brined just using purified water, salt, sugar and dry spices instead of the vegetable stock because I was in a hurry and it was good that way also.
These are ideas from several different people. Heritage birds are best cooked on low heat (250 degree F) for
long periods of time. Cooking with moist heat, such as in an oven bag, cookware with heavy lid, or crock pot, will help tenderize meat.
Base is vegetable stock. Easy to make if you don't have it. Large stock pot with
lots of good water: Root veggies of choice, some would be leeks, carrots,
celery, onions, garlic, turnips, parsnips, etc. Cut in chunks and wash well,
skin can stay on. Herbs of choice, some people use juniper berries;
whole peppercorns, bay leaf, rosemary, thyme, parsley, marjoram, etc. Simmer as
long as possible, at least 2 hours, then add 2:1 (2 cups salt to 1 cup of sugar) salt versus
sugar. Sea salt and kosher are the two best, brown sugar or whatever you
prefer. Add these when hot to dissolve fast. Strain everything out and if you are in a hurry,
add 5 lbs or so of ice to cool quickly and then dunk the bird. You may need
to add a heavy plate, etc., on top to keep it from rising to the top. Brining
can be done in just an hour, but should be done for a minimum of 8 hours. My
favorite would be to brine for 12-16 hours. If in a cold area, you could probably
set the stock pot outside for this. My frig never has enough room, so it's either outside or
place pot in a huge cooler and surround with ice in warmer temps. You can also brine in
an oven bag in the frig and just turn the bird every few hours. I have even cooked a turkey
in the brine without even draining. Amazing how juicy this makes a turkey. Most
recommend patting dry and then adding your butter, herbs, etc., under the skin and roast.
My thoughts are: taste the brine before adding bird, if it seems extra salty, then you may want
to quickly rinse bird and then pat dry.
We have always added fresh herbs, celery, apples either whole or halves, and
half onions in the cavity to help the bird cook evenly. Lastly before
roasting: Add olive oil to outside skin and massage that bird for even
browning.
For turkey, I use a brine and use 1 cup Kosher salt and 1 cup sugar to a gallon of water and whatever spices I want. I usually add cranberry juice and orange juice too. I mix mine in a cooler and add ice every day maybe a couple of times. I soak them for 2-3 days.
