Great Recipe Experiment #2
Dec. 25th, 2007 05:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
baronessekatI did my first ever brined turkey for the holiday.
Taken from www.cookingcache.com
This is for a 12 - 18 lb. turkey
2 gallons water
2 cups kosher salt or 1 1/2 cups table salt
1 to 2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup each dried rosemary leaves, dried thyme leaves
The ratio of salt to water is 3/4 to 1 cup per gallon. Dissolve in cold or room temperature water by mixing well. Cover and refrigerate overnight before adding to poultry.
Place the brine in a food-grade plastic bucket, new plastic waste can or bag, or stainless steel stockpot. Remove giblets from turkey.
Submerge turkey in solution. Store covered in refrigerator. If you don't have room, place turkey in a double-layer food grade plastic garbage bag. Smoosh out air pockets, close the bags and pack in a cooler with ice.
Brine 4 to 6 hours, up to 48 hours. (The longer, the saltier.) Remove turkey, dicard brine. Thoroughly rinse turkey inside and out under stream of running water. Dry turkey well inside and out. Roast as directed.
DO NOT stuff brined bird. Also be aware that drippings from a brined turkey might be too salty for the gravy. (The length of brining affects this. If 4 to 6 hours, the drippings are usually not too salty.) Taste before using.
My notes: I didn't have quite a big enough container so I adjusted the salt accordingly. I used 2 cups of brown sugar and only 1/4 cup of the rosemary and thyme each (it's all I had)
I think next time I will use less brown sugar as I thought the turkey was a little on the sweet side. (It might have been sweet not only due to the amount but also it was Splenda brown sugar).
And yes, the drippings were too salty. Next time I will not sue so much of the drippings and use more chicken stock as the base for the gravy.
I did like how the turkey was moist. It also took less time than I expected to cook. (11 pound bird took 2 hours 5 minutes to fully cook - but that might also be due to the erratic temperatures of the oven).
I will try this again. Maybe not right away though.
Taken from www.cookingcache.com
This is for a 12 - 18 lb. turkey
2 gallons water
2 cups kosher salt or 1 1/2 cups table salt
1 to 2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup each dried rosemary leaves, dried thyme leaves
The ratio of salt to water is 3/4 to 1 cup per gallon. Dissolve in cold or room temperature water by mixing well. Cover and refrigerate overnight before adding to poultry.
Place the brine in a food-grade plastic bucket, new plastic waste can or bag, or stainless steel stockpot. Remove giblets from turkey.
Submerge turkey in solution. Store covered in refrigerator. If you don't have room, place turkey in a double-layer food grade plastic garbage bag. Smoosh out air pockets, close the bags and pack in a cooler with ice.
Brine 4 to 6 hours, up to 48 hours. (The longer, the saltier.) Remove turkey, dicard brine. Thoroughly rinse turkey inside and out under stream of running water. Dry turkey well inside and out. Roast as directed.
DO NOT stuff brined bird. Also be aware that drippings from a brined turkey might be too salty for the gravy. (The length of brining affects this. If 4 to 6 hours, the drippings are usually not too salty.) Taste before using.
My notes: I didn't have quite a big enough container so I adjusted the salt accordingly. I used 2 cups of brown sugar and only 1/4 cup of the rosemary and thyme each (it's all I had)
I think next time I will use less brown sugar as I thought the turkey was a little on the sweet side. (It might have been sweet not only due to the amount but also it was Splenda brown sugar).
And yes, the drippings were too salty. Next time I will not sue so much of the drippings and use more chicken stock as the base for the gravy.
I did like how the turkey was moist. It also took less time than I expected to cook. (11 pound bird took 2 hours 5 minutes to fully cook - but that might also be due to the erratic temperatures of the oven).
I will try this again. Maybe not right away though.
