Wet Brining & Roasting a Turkey
Use for only a fresh turkey and not a frozen one. Also if buying from a supermarket check the label to see that it has not already be brined.
Only consider brining if you have a container large enough and spare fridge space to keep it chilled. Must be put in the fridge to do its magic, do not leave out at room temperature.
Brining not only adds moisture it helps the meat from drying out when you cook it. The result is a deliciously moist and tasty. A few hours in a brine will let salt penetrate deep into the meat, enhancing its natural flavour.
There is one disadvantage. The extra water in the bird can make it harder to get a crispy skin, but it's easy to fix, just let the bird air dry in the refrigerator for an hour or so before cooking.
Personally, I find brining poultry makes a huge difference to taste and texture, but everyone is different, and not everyone tastes things the same way. If you are buying a free-range slow grown turkey it can be very expensive and you want it to be the best. Most people like the taste, but if it's just not for you then don’t worry. If you don’t want to chance it with your turkey Christmas then have a go with a chicken to try it out.. You can practice and perfect the recipe that suits you best, then you can give it a go with your turkey.
Ingredients: For every 2 litres of brine.
You can play with the recipe, as long as you keep to the salt to water ratio the same.
2 litres cold water
100g Salt - You can use either fine crystal sea salt or table salt
70g light brown sugar (helps to balance the salt flavour)
1 very small orange cut into quarters
Sprig of fresh rosemary or thyme or ripped sage or fresh bay leaves or a couple of flatten garlic cloves - whatever takes your fancy or a mixture of.
There are two major processes at work during brining:
1. Diffusion. This is when particles move from a region of higher concentration to an area of lower concentration. For example, when you're brining poultry, the brine has a lot more salt in it than the bird. To balance things out, the salt gets absorbed by the bird, not just on the surface, but all through the meat (although it does take a bit of time).
2. Osmosis. This is when water (or another liquid) moves through a membrane from one region that has more water to another region that has less water. When you brine, you're creating just that situation, the brine has a lot more water than the bird, so the water moves through the cells, from the brine to the bird. The result is a moister end result.
It's all about keeping things in balance
On top of diffusion and osmosis, there's another thing that happens when you brine. When the salt gets inside the flesh, it makes some of the proteins molecules unravel. Then, when you cook the meat, the unraveled proteins interact and create a kind of shield that holds the moisture in.
You can add other seasonings to your brine, and they'll work the same way and diffuse into the meat.
Salt is the most important ingredient when brining, not only does it help keep the moisture in the meat and it doesn't just add saltiness, it enhances the natural flavour.
How To Brine, here’s what you need:
1. One container large enough to hold all your bird and the brine. It should be made of a non-reactive material like glass, plastic, or stainless steel.
2. Cold water. Depending on the shape of your container, you will need to work out how much brine to make. I suggest before you start you put the bird into your chosen container and cover with cold water then pour off the water into a measuring jug to determine how much brine you will need to make. I would like to stress at this point, that so you don’t cross-contaminate the water with anything, you dispose of it by carefully pouring the water down the sink, and that you rinse and sanitise the sink after.
3. For future brining. If you always use the same size container and approximately the same size bird you can make a note of how much brine you made. You will need to allow 2 hours for every kilo of turkey (i.e. 5 kg = 10 hours bringing)
Method:
1. Put the water into your chosen container. Squeeze the juice from the orange quarters into the water then place in the husks, now add all the other ingredients, stirring to combine allowing the salt and sugar to dissolve.
2. Remove the giblets from the turkey and put them in the fridge for stock making. Now carefully add the bird to the liquid, topping up with more water if it is not completely submerged. Cover and place in the fridge for 2 hours per kilo of turkey.
3. Once done, remove the bird from the brine and dry all over with kitchen paper.
4. You bird is now ready for stuffing and roasting.
Do not keep the brine and reuse, it’s had raw turkey floating in it and it's not safe to use. Pour away down the sink making sure you clean and sanitise the sink thoroughly afterwards.
The proportions and times give should give you good results, but everyone has different tastes. The main point of brining isn't to make the bird salty - it's to enhance the flavour. If it tastes too salty, just soak it for less time, or add less salt to the brine.
Roasting a Turkey:
I recommend you follow the timing instructions that came with your Turkey, but here are a few hints that will help you roast the perfectly moist bird. When you are working out timings for eating, don’t forget to allow at least an hours resting time after it’s out of the oven.
Removing the wishbone before you cook and stuff the bird, makes carving when cooked, a lot easier, giving you much neater, longer slices. To do this - Pull back the neck skin, being careful not to tear it, until the wishbone is located. You will be able to feel the upside V-shaped bone with your finger. Using a small, sharp knife, cut gently through the flesh following the contour of the bone on both sides, and behind it, just deep enough to free it. You will need to Ease it out carefully, cutting it free at the tips.
Stuff your bird the day before and refrigerate. Before stuffing the bird make sure the bird is fully dry inside and out. When it’s stuffed, weigh the turkey and calculate the cooking time (you may need to use your bathroom scales to do this).
For a bird over 4kg allow around 40 minutes per kilo (recommend checking the timings that came with the bird).
On the day, don’t forget to bring it out of the fridge one hour before putting in the oven,
To roast Put two large sheets of extra-wide foil in a large roasting tin, then put the turkey on top. Smear the breast generously with butter. Cover the breast with streaky bacon (I use smoked), Pour in about half litre water or light fresh turkey (from the giblets) or chicken stock, then loosely bring up the foil not too tightly, allowing space around the turkey and seal to make a parcel.
Pre-heat your oven (fan) 200 deg C/gas 6. Put the bird into the oven for 30 minutes then turn down the oven to (fan) 150 deg C and continue cooking.
60 mins before the end of cooking, open the foil, discard the bacon (keep and reheat for bacon sarnies for boxing day breakfast). Leave the foil open for the rest of the cooking time. Bast with the cooking juices and return to the oven to brown, basting with the juices several times. If the skin needs more colour turn the oven up a little during the final 20 minutes.
When cooked the core temperature needs to have reached 75 deg C in the thickest part and when the juices are golden and clear - (not forgetting to check the temperature of the stuffing) - a digital meat thermometer is good for this. Remember the bird will keep cooking for a while after removing from the oven, so bare that in mind when checking the core temperature, you may want to remove the bird when it gets to 65-70 deg C but check the temperature again after 5 minutes to check that the temperature is still climbing towards 75 deg C. If not, pop back in the oven until cooked.
When cooked remove from the oven and carefully pour off the cooking juices and use in your gravy.
Don’t forget to rest the bird somewhere warm, loosely covered in foil for at least an hour before carving. This will help redistribute the juices and help to keep the bird tastier, moist, and tender.
Finally:
Brining may seem like a lot of work but it's one of those things that's much easier to do in practice than to write about. You can make the brine in less time than you think, I think it’s really worth it.