Recipe Time: Turkey Brine

I know Thanksgiving is over. We are in full Christmas mode. I also know some people like to have turkey again on Christmas Eve or Christmas day. I personally love turkey, but I've had turkey that falls short in the taste department. A dry turkey is not a yummy turkey. Years ago I learned about brining whenever I was watching Alton Brown on Good Eats. I did tweak his brine recipe a bit. That's what I love about doing things myself instead of pre-bought; I can modify it to my liking. This is how I make my brine. Feel free to tweak it to your liking, too.

Ingredients:

1 cup kosher salt

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1 gallon (4 quarts) vegetable or chicken stock

1 tbsp. black peppercorns

1/2 tbsp. allspice berries

1/2 tbsp. ginger root

Several sprigs of fresh rosemary, sage, and thyme

1 gallon ice water

I want to make clear that you want kosher salt and not table salt or iodized salt. There is a big difference. 

I typically use the Costco brand of chicken stock for my brine, but they were out. Instead I got the Swanson chicken stock which is also very good.

I used a total of nine cans and washed the lids thoroughly.

The rest of the ingredients are about flavoring the brine. The kosher salt is essential; everything else is pretty much about personal taste. I like adding fresh herbs to my brine but dried herbs would work as well. The brown sugar gives it a hint of sweetness, while the ginger root gives it some bite. 

Combine all the ingredients except for the ice water in a large stockpot, and bring to a boil. 

Stir to dissolve the solids, then remove from heat, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled. Late the night before cooking, combine the brine and ice water in a clean five gallon bucket or a brining bag (you can find them on Amazon). Place your thawed turkey breast side down in the brine, cover, and refrigerate or set in a cool area for 6-8 hours.

Next day, remove the turkey from the brine, rinse inside and out with cold water, pat the bird dry with paper towels, and it's ready for your next step. Don't forget to discard the brine. I like to smother my turkey with herbed butter for flavor. I also roast my turkey in an oven bag, though I've done it without the bag and it's still delicious. You don't need to add salt and pepper to your turkey because the meat absorbed it from the brine. What you will have is a moist, flavorful turkey that is always a hit. It's really that simple! I hope you give it a try.