Turkey Brine

I love brining but I think it's important to mention when brining in a plastic bag or container, make sure that the plastic is FOOD GRADE! You should NEVER, NEVER, EVER brine in a garbage bag or ordinary household bucket. PCB's are not good for you.

A great brine. I doubled the recipe for a 22 lb. turkey and used 1 gal. apple juice and 1 gal. vegetable broth instead of all broth. I also used ground spices instead of dried. I put the turkey in a clean plastic trash bag, then placed it in a large cooler. Next, I poured the brine in the bag and tied it closed. I placed a gallon of frozen water in the cooler next to the bag to keep the whole thing cool while it marinated overnight. Watch out for the cooking time on this one as a brined bird cooks much faster - especially if you're using a roasting bag (which I did). My 22 lber cooked in only 2 1/2 hours!!

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.

* 5 STAR RECIPE!! * I use this brine for chicken, and it's outstanding! (I omit the Savory seasoning since I never can remember to buy it.) I adjust the recipe to 4 servings for a 5lb. chicken, then place it into the largest rubbermaid container I own. Add seasonings mixed with two cans of vegetable broth. Fill to top of container with cold water making sure chicken is thoroughly soaking in brine. Cover, and let marinate for 24 hours in fridge. Bake at 325 degrees for about 2-1/2 hours... FANTASTIC!! My very picky 7 year old loves this recipe!! As do the rest of us :)

After using this recipe for our recent Thanksgiving get-together of three families, I have been proclaimed the official turkey roaster. 12 out of 12 said it was the best turkey they ever tasted. (My son said it was the best turkey he had in the past 5 years. When I asked him whose turkey he had 5 years ago that was better he said that was merely as far back as his memory went!) The most difficult part of this recipe was finding a bucket large enough to accommodate the turkey. Then the bucket wouldn't fit into the fridge. I didn't feel comfortable leaving it out all night, so I found a large cooler, placed the bucket in there and surrounded it with freezer packs. It worked very well - it was still very cold the next morning. After checking out several "brine" recipes, I didn't read of anyone actually stuffing the turkey so I wasn't certain whether the stuffing would end up too salty. I stuffed it anyway, but rinsed the turkey with cold water first. It was excellent! Try this once and you'll never go back to your regular recipe!

Made this for Christmas and my mother-in-law stated she wouldn't have deep fried turkey again. I've cooked turkeys for 20 years and will never cook it any other way. I baked it uncovered at 500 degrees until brown and then covered and baked at 350 degrees. This turkey was the most beautiful brown glazed turkey you would ever see! My husband actually took a picture of it! I am making it again this weekend! Thanks!

This was my first time brining a turkey, I will NEVER do it any other way from now on! I used the recipe as called for except I was a little short on the Veg. broth so I topped it off with apple juice as suggested by previous posters. I only had 14hrs for it to soak, and I wayyyyyy overcooked because I had accidently turned off the alarm on my temperature gauge (oops) but the turkey was still moist and very very tender. It had such a nice flavor and the gravy from the drippings was good although a tad salty. I omitted the salt I normally put in my potatoes and it balanced. ^__^ Thanks for the recipe!!!! <3

My turkey turned out beautiful after letting it sit in the brine over night. Very Moist unlike most turkeys I have had. I also used the herb roasted turkey recipe from this site. Very delicious!!

I brined my 24 lb turkey last year and it cooked uncovered in three hours. it was so tender and delicious that there were no leftovers.i make my own vegetable broth by cooking carrots,celery onions,parsley,tomatoes. wash and cut up vegeatables but do not peel. cook in enough water to cover for an hour. add salt, peppercorns and i use two cups of brown sugar or maple syrup. cool and strain. half of my kitchen sink is very deep and i put my turkey in the sink, cover with a 20lb bag of ice and pour cooled broth over. i marinate for two days, replenishing ice as needed. then rinse and dry. stuff with lemons and onions