Thanksgiving is only a couple of weeks away. Time to talk turkey! No matter what method you prefer to cook your bird, brining it beforehand will make it tastier and juicier. And it’s easy to do.
It’s basic high school science: the brine has a greater concentration of salt and water than the molecules of the protein (in this case, a turkey) that is soaking in it. By simple diffusion, the protein molecules suck up the salty water and keep it. When you cook the meat, some of the water evaporates, but the meat still has far more moisture in it than it would have without the brine soaking, and the result is a moister, more delicious bird.
Some people use giant syringes to inject their turkeys with crazy solutions, but I think that the old way is still the best when it comes to brining. Get a big pot, fill it with the brine, and soak the bird in it. Done.
Here’s my tried-and-true turkey brining recipe. Once the brining is done, you can cook the turkey whatever way you like best. I use a method where I grill it inside a Weber grill with charcoal. It comes out smokey and absolutely amazing. I’ll have that info in the next blog.
1 gallon of water
2 onions
3 carrots
3 stalks celery
1 cup kosher salt
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons whole allspice
4 bay leaves
1 gallon of ice water
14–15 lb turkey, thawed
Pour the first gallon of water in a large pot. Quarter the onions, carrots and celery (no need to peel them) and add to the water. Add salt, black peppercorns, brown sugar, allspice, and bay leaves.
Let the pot come to a boil for a few minutes. Remove it from heat and let the brine cool down to room temperature.
Remove the giblets from the turkey and place the bird in a container just big enough to hold it and 2 gallons of liquid.
Pour the now-cooled brine over the turkey, then pour in the gallon of ice water.
Make sure the turkey doesn’t float up by placing a plate on top. Put the turkey container in the fridge for 4 to 6 hours, flipping the turkey over in the container halfway through.
Drain the turkey, pat it dry with paper towels, and then cook it using your favorite recipe.
Live the Live ™ 