Recipe: Turkey brine

With the holiday season upon us, there are a lot of turkeys destined for tables everywhere.  One method of getting the turkey ready for cooking is to brine it.  It helps get some flavour into the meat the same way a marinade does, but more importantly, it helps the bird retain a lot more moisture within the meat once cooked.  Hate dry turkey?  This is one of the best defenses.  This recipe starts with 4 litres (1 gallon) of water - test by placing the bird in your brining container, then pouring the water over it.  If the bird isn't covered, you will need to multiply the recipe.  For efficiency, you want your brining container to be close to the size of the bird with room to allow brine to freely circulate around - no squeezing it in against the sides.  In our family, we bought a new plastic garbage pail, and it has and only will ever be used for brining.  And yes, this recipe will work nicely with other poultry as well.

You will need:

4L / 1gal               water

220g / 7.8oz          kosher salt

80g / 2.8oz            sugar

25g / 0.9oz            black peppercorns

small handful        fresh thyme

2                            oranges

Method:

 - place the water, sugar, salt and peppercorns in a pot on the stove 

 - bring to a simmer until the salt and sugar have dissolved

 - turn off the heat and add the thyme 

 - peel the oranges, then segment the flesh (we just don't want the bitter white pith)

 - add the orange to the brine

 - allow the brine to cool completely

 - if the bird came tied up in any way, untie it and remove any of the goodies inside you don't plan to roast

 - place the bird in the brining container and cover with the brine

 - brine in the fridge (or garage if it's cold enough outside) for 48 hours

 - remove the bird from the brine

 - rinse the bird under cold water - this removes any excess salty brine

 - pat dry

 - you won't need any more salt, but anything other surface seasonings are up to you

 - roast as you would normally