Who is Brining a Turkey this Year?

[Beearewhyain]

I make a fairly basic brine with 1C. Kosher salt and 3/4 brown sugar to the gallon with peppercorns, rosemary and thyme.

Any tips or tricks that you find work best?

[packman]

1. I've had great results with Emeril's brine for a TURKEY BREAST

not a whole turkey, but it does call for a lot of this-and-that . However the end result is amazing in that the turkey breast is infused with hints of wine and orange overtones and perfectly moist. I always do two because of excessive prep involved and the demand for the finished product. The aroma of the cooking turkey is heavenly. And do the glaze recommended, it is the perfect spicy counterbalance to the subtle tastes in the turkey meat. I've done this for 4-5 years and wanted to try others, but the family now DEMANDS I do it. Great stuff.
HOWEVER- if doing two, which I strongly recommend- DO NOT DOUBLE up on the salt. Doubling everything else is OK, but watch the salt.
Also, 24 hours brining is recommended.

[link:http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/roast-breast-of-turkey-recipe/index.html|

[rdharma]

3. That looks like a good recipe!

Orange juice and white wine. Yum!

[Beearewhyain]

6. Thanks for the tip!

[rdharma]

2. I'm reading Ruhlman's "Ratio" book...... so I've got ratios on the brain.

He suggests 1:20 salt to water by weight. He also says that the brine should not be so salty as to feel acrid on the tongue, but should taste like "soup that has too much salt in it". I don't know how dense the salt you are using is, but it might be just a tad on the "too salty" side. Taste....add...taste.

If you want to, you could add some chopped garlic cloves, onion and maybe even some lemon juice.

If you do a "google" on "brown sugar brine", you'll come up with several different recipes.

Good luck and enjoy!

[Beearewhyain]

5. A quick Calc and I am running about 18 to 1 by weight

so I am in the ballpark plus I have a salty palate and don't mind a little extra. I also add ice to the container I put the turkey and brine in so I might be right at 20 to 1 in the final analysis. I usually reserve most of the aromatics for the cavity while roasting as I have not had much success in getting the flavor to transfer from the brine into the meat. Still, IMHO a brined turkey a so much better turkey than I remember from those dark, pre-brine days .

[rdharma]

7. I think it's going to be good!

But I liked the pre-brine days too! ..... With gravy!~

[Beearewhyain]

9. Giblet Gravy!?

MMMMMM, that should be it's own thread.

[pscot]

10. Ratios, Yes!

I started using them in bread making. Ruhlman's book extends the idea to all cooking processes. Great stuff.

[Major Nikon]

4. Here's a few tips

In books that are geared more towards pros or serious amateurs, brines are usually expressed in percentages. I'm generally in the 5-10% range for most things usually leaning towards the lower end. For a 5% brine, this means the salt accounts for 5% of the weight compared to the water. It's really easy to overdo the salt when making a brine, so make sure your water to salt ratio is what you want. For other ingredients, any water soluble flavoring agent works for a brine, so you are only limited by your imagination. Herbs can be somewhat problematic in terms of water solubility because most of their flavor agents are contained in essential oils. If you use herbs, be sure and add them when you are heating up the water to dissolve the salt, as this will release more of their flavor compounds (at least that's my theory).

If you are heating up the water to dissolve the salt, make sure you do not add the hot water to the meat. Cool it down by either refrigerating it overnight or adding ice after you have dissolved the brine ingredients (adding the weight of the ice to your ratio calculation). When using ice I will go with 50% ice to total water weight which usually works out about right. Just make sure the solution is room temperature or cooler, preferably closer to 40F which is the USDA max temperature for meat storage. This isn't a huge consideration because pathogenic and spoilage bacteria don't thrive in salt solutions, but it doesn't hurt to be safe.

Personally I do not like brining whole turkeys and prefer to salt them (the reasons and methods are found in the OP I posted yesterday). When I do brine I like to use as little brine solution as I can by containing the meat in something like a ziplock and removing as much air as possible from the bag. With a big turkey this is very difficult to do so you wind up dunking them in a 5 gallon bucket or other large container. Brining is still a good practice even if you do it this way and the benefits far outweigh doing no prep.

[Beearewhyain]

8. By my calculations I am looking at a 5% solution

or really close. I learned a harsh lesson on over brining with a chicken once, turned it into a Arbyesque processed meat abomination. I strive not to make that mistake again.

I saw your post on salting after I posted this. Really interesting information that I am going to have to try sometime, but being so close to the big day I am going to stick with the tried and true. I'll experiment with it during the off season.

Part of the reason I posted this is I will be making the brine tonight (yes, heating and "steeping" the herbs) so that it has enough time to cool down when I add it to the turkey. I do use a water cooler to put it all in and add ice as well as a gallon ziplock fill with ice on top to help keep the turkey submerged.

Thanks for the great information!

[rdharma]

11. Do it! It'll be perfect!

Who dares, wins!