Apr 17, 2006
Cannot even describe how amazing this was. My mom's turkeys have always been just okay, and so I decided to take charge for Easter dinner and make this. It was my first turkey and no one could believe how incredibly juicy, tender, and moist it was. I followed the recipe for the brine exactly, including just letting the bucket sit in a cool place overnight. To cook it, I put an onion, carrot and celery stalk into the cavity. It started breast side down in a 325 degree oven for 2 hours. Then I turned it over and it took another 45 minutes or so to be done. For the last 15 minutes I turned the oven up to 400 to finish browning and basted it with a little butter. Did not cover it with foil, and otherwise didn't bother basting it. The meat was literally falling off the bones it was so tender and the flavor went all through the meat. It was seriously about as foolproof as you could get. The only change I'll make next time is to either reduce the sea salt or substitute water for some of the vegetable broth. It was just a touch on the salty side, I think because broth is often high in salt to begin with. Don't be afraid to try this recipe, it really was that easy. Cannot recommend it enough.. and ditto the other reviewers' comments on the drippings -- they make amazing gravy.
—VACookie