Brine-Cured Roast Turkey
- Total Time
- 4 hours 15 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Advertisement
Ingredients
- ¾cup plus 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- ¾cup sugar
- 1carrot, peeled and diced
- 1large onion, peeled and diced
- ¼cup diced celery
- 1leek, white and light green parts only, cleaned and diced
- 2bay leaves
- 1tablespoon black peppercorns
- 1tablespoon coriander seeds
- ¼teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼teaspoon fennel seeds
- 2star anise
- 2 or 3sprigs fresh thyme
- 112- to 14-pound naturally fed, free-range turkey
- Wild Mushroom Stuffing (see recipe) or other stuffing
- 4tablespoons olive oil or butter
- Fresh rosemary branches, optional
Nutritional analysis per serving (15 servings)
561 calories; 23 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 9 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 11 grams sugars; 73 grams protein; 862 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered by
Preparation
- Step 1
In 16-quart or larger stockpot, bring 2 gallons water to a boil. Add salt and sugar, and stir until completely dissolved. Turn off heat, and add carrot, onion, celery and leek. Add bay leaves, peppercorns, coriander, red pepper, fennel seeds, star anise and thyme. Refrigerate until cold.
- Step 2
Remove giblets from turkey. Cover and refrigerate liver if using in stuffing. Discard remaining giblets or reserve for another use. Add turkey to stockpot. If necessary, weight it with a plate so that it stays below the brine's surface. Refrigerate for 72 hours, then remove from brine and allow to come to room temperature.
- Step 3
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Loosely fill the turkey at both ends with stuffing, and truss as you would a chicken.
- Step 4
Place turkey in a large roasting pan, and roast until it starts to brown, about 25 minutes. Reduce oven setting to 350 degrees, and roast for 12 minutes more per pound, until internal temperature at the deepest part of the leg reaches 130 degrees. (Total roasting time will be about 3 hours.) Baste frequently with olive oil or butter and pan juices, using rosemary branches as a brush if desired. If the bird begins to darken too much, cover it loosely with a piece of foil. Before serving, remove turkey from oven and leave covered with foil. Allow it to rest for 20 minutes before carving and spooning the stuffing into a serving dish.
Private Notes
Comments
I use this method and have no problems but I cool my brine concentrate (use less water) by setting the pan outside for several hours, use a 7 day cooler, dump in the cooled brine and mix ice with the water to measure the water I left out of the concentrate. I used qt. jars filled with ice and water to set in the cooler and take up empty space. 3 days later, I open the cooler and there is still ice in the jars and some in the brine. Best turkey I ever had and will always fix it this way!
I've been making this turkey every year since the article came out. It's perfect every time. And I do cook some of the stuffing inside the bird, not overpacked. This is not advice, just my experience: in 26 years no one has suffered.
As someone involved in public health, I strongly recommend the stuffing be cooked outside the bird. It is much safer. I make mine in a slow cooker, adding Turkey broth and schmaltz. It comes out great.
Astonishingly good. New Thanksgiving tradition established!