Holiday Turkey Brine
By: Mike, Posted: 9/19/2023
Want a juicy turkey every time? Try our Holiday Turkey Brine, it’s just what you need to be the Holiday Hero.
Our Holiday Turkey Brine
Minda and I love Fall, it is our favorite season. From the change in color of leaves on the trees to the nip of cold air in the morning we love it all. My favorite things about Fall are the holidays and food. Thanksgiving is my jam, and the turkey is favorite thing to cook. This was not always the case. Minda and I didn’t always cook the turkey and the problem we had was not knowing if the turkey was going to be dry or moist.
When I took over cooking the Turkey for Thanksgiving dinner I went all out. I started with several practice turkeys. The first few were ok, but I needed to improve. I turned to the internet and found the solution I was looking for. Brine. It turns out the key to a perfectly moist and flavorful turkey is letting your thawed turkey sit in a brine solution. After experimenting with a few more turkeys in brine, I was excited to have found a solution to an amazing juicy turkey every time. Now that I was comfortable with brining, I added some extra ingredients, and I created my Holiday Turkey Brine.
Ingredients, Substitutions, and Additions
Water – Water is a key ingredient in any brine. You need to make sure that you have the right ratio of water to salt.
Salt – We use a coarse Kosher Salt. Its flakiness is perfect for dissolving completely in water.
Fresh Herbs – Fresh herbs are a perfect aromatic that help leave a subtle hint of flavor in your turkey.
Citrus – I love oranges. Zesting and slicing an entire orange then adding it to your brine gives it a nice light citrus note.
Dry Seasonings – If your grocery store does not have fresh ingredients, you can always use dry seasonings. Dry seasonings have a more potent flavor so measure accordingly.
Tips for Holiday Turkey Brine
- When brining a 14-pound turkey we need about 2.5 gallons of water. This is around 40 cups of water. This is a lot of water and when you add the rest of your ingredients then a turkey a super large bowl or a 5-gallon bucket is needed. You want the turkey to be fully submerged when brining.
- For 1 gallon of water 1 cup of Coarse Kosher Salt is needed. That’s 1 tablespoon of salt for 1 cup water.
- We use Coarse Kosher Salt because it dissolves quickly and leaves you with a clear brine.
- When using fresh herbs, use some cooking twine to tie them into small bundles for easy disposal. For dried herbs, use a piece of cheese cloth to make a pouch as they can be a pain when rinsing the turkey.
- During the holidays the grocery store will have brine bags that will usually hold up to a 24 lb. turkey. This is a life saver if you don’t have a bucket or bowl large enough. It’s also great for clean up because you can place the turkey in the sink and cut a small piece off the corner and let the brine drain slowly.
- Brine your turkey 1 hour per pound or overnight for best results.
- When you’re ready to pull the turkey from the brine and rinse make sure there is no food nearby that can be contaminated. Particles from the turkey can travel around 3 feet in all directions. When rinsing the turkey make sure to get the cavity good. Always disinfect all areas when the turkey is transferred to the roasting tray.
Ingredients for Holiday Turkey Brine
- 1 14 lb. thawed Turkey
- 40 cups or 2.5 gallons Water
- 40 tbs or 2.5 cups Coarse Kosher Salt
- 8 tbs or ½ cup Black Peppercorns
- ½ bundle Fresh Thyme
- 4 sprigs Rosemary
- 2 sprigs Sage
- 1 Orange
- 2 Lemons
- 2 heads Garlic
- 1 large Onion
Directions
In a super large bowl or 5-gallon bucket add water and coarse Kosher Salt and mix until liquid is clear about 3 to 5 minutes.
Stir in peppercorns, thyme, rosemary, and sage.
Zest orange then slice orange and lemons into ½ inch slices. Chop heads of garlic in half then peel and quarter onion. Add zest, orange, lemons, garlic and onion to brine and mix thoroughly. Set brine aside and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
Remove thawed turkey from packaging and rinse. Remove giblets and neck then discard or keep for gravy. Place turkey into brine and make sure it is fully submerged. Place brine and turkey into refrigerator overnight or 1 hour per pound.
After 14 hours remove turkey from brine and rinse thoroughly. Pat dry with paper towels and place on roasting pan.
Hi, We are Mike and Minda. Thank you for stopping to take a look at our Kick’n Kitchen! We are a husband and wife team that have a love for food and cooking. Come with us on our journey of rediscovering recipes from our youth and find new recipes to fall in love with.
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Holiday Turkey Brine
14
hoursWant a juicy turkey every time? Try our Holiday Turkey Brine, it’s just what you need to be the Holiday Hero.
Ingredients
1 14 lb. thawed Turkey
40 cups or 2.5 gallons Water
40 tbs or 2.5 cups Coarse Kosher Salt
8 tbs or ½ cup Black Peppercorns
½ bundle Fresh Thyme
4 sprigs Rosemary
2 sprigs Sage
1 Orange
2 Lemons
2 heads Garlic
1 large Onion
Directions
- In a super large bowl or 5-gallon bucket add water and coarse Kosher Salt and mix until liquid is clear about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Stir in peppercorns, thyme, rosemary, and sage.
- Zest orange then slice orange and lemons into ½ inch slices. Chop heads of garlic in half then peel and quarter onion. Add zest, orange, lemons, garlic and onion to brine and mix thoroughly. Set brine aside and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Remove thawed turkey from packaging and rinse. Remove giblets and neck then discard or keep for gravy. Place turkey into brine and make sure it is fully submerged. Place brine and turkey into refrigerator overnight or 1 hour per pound.
- After 14 hours remove turkey from brine and rinse thoroughly. Pat dry with paper towels and place on roasting pan.
