Juicy turkey brine

Name: Juicy turkey brine recipe
Prep time: 8 h
Cook time: 4 h
Total time: 12 h
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 turkey; 1 cup kosher salt; 3 tablespoons molasses (optional); 1 gallon vegetable stock (with salt); 1 tablespoon black peppercorns; 1 tablespoon whole allspice berries; 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, sliced; 1 gallon heavily iced water; 1 apple, sliced; 1/2 onion, sliced; 2 cinnamon sticks; 1 cup water; 4 sprigs rosemary; 6 leaves sage; 3 tablespoons canola oil

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Brining results in juicy, tender, tasty meat - without basting! Every bite is perfectly seasoned. Say goodbye to dry, boring turkey!

😋 Carbs in turkey brine - 1g

brined roasted whole turkey — This is the best turkey brine recipe!

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😍 Why you'll love this recipe

With this recipe for brined turkey, you'll look forward to digging in to Thanksgiving turkey. It makes turkey taste, look and smell amazing!

No basting!
Tender, juicy, flavorful meat - no more hard, dry, tasteless turkey!
Brown sugar flavor and aroma without the sugar!
Crispy, golden-brown skin!
Tasty pan-juices for amazingly delicious gravy!
Cooks faster because of the moisture!

💪🏼 Insulin-resistance diet for diabetes

This low-carb turkey brine recipe is perfect for the insulin-resistance diet. It is keto-friendly, dairy-free, gluten-free and nut-free.

🌊 What is brine?

Juicy turkey brine steeping in pot — Wet brine for juicy turkey

A brine solution is basically salt water that is flavored with aromatic ingredients of your choosing. Brine can be seasoned with herbs, spices, sweeteners and fruit. The salt and flavor permeates the cells of the turkey meat, by the process of osmosis, and keeps it tender and juicy.

There are two types of brine: wet brine and dry brine. This is a wet brine recipe.

🦃 Ingredients for turkey brine

Turkey brine labeled ingredients — Turkey brine ingredients

Molasses (optional)

The only sweetener used in this recipe is a tiny amount of good old-fashioned molasses. The turkey only absorbs about 1% of the brine solution, so the sugar in the molasses adds only 1g of carbs. The molasses is used to add that brown sugar flavor without actually using a full cup of brown sugar.

Skip the molasses if you feel strongly about eliminating all sugar from your diet.

Seasonings

Seasonings for the brine include whole allspice berries, fresh ginger, whole peppercorns, Kosher salt and vegetable broth.

Ice water

You'll need a gallon of water and a bag of ice to keep the turkey chilled while brining.

🍎 Ingredients for aromatics

Turkey brine aromatics labeled ingredients — Turkey roasting aromatics

Aromatics for roasting turkey include sliced onion, sliced apple, a few sprigs of rosemary and sage, a couple of sticks of cinnamon and water for steeping the aromatics.

🔥 Ingredients for roasting turkey

Oil is used to coat and crisp the skin. Use any neutral flavored oil that you like.

🔪 Equipment you'll need

large roasting pan for roasting the turkey
pot with lid for steeping the brine
5 gallon pot or bucket or cooler large enough to hold the brine, ice water and bird
thermometer for checking for doneness
roasting rack (optional)

I personally prefer not to use a roasting rack. Since I make gravy with the tasty, brine-seasoned juices, I let the bird cook directly in the roasting pan. This method collects more pan juices. When I use a rack, the juices dry out and burn to a blackened crust on the bottom.

👩🏻‍🍳 How to brine a turkey

You can make this brine up to a week ahead of time. Keep it chilled until ready to use.

Begin by thawing frozen turkey in the fridge 2-3 days before you plan to brine it. Remove the innards and set aside for other uses such as giblet stuffing.

Step 1: Combine salt, molasses, vegetable stock, peppercorns, allspice berries, and ginger in a large stockpot over medium-high heat.

Step 2: Bring to a boil and stir to dissolve solids. Remove from heat. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate. Keep chilled.

Turkey brine step 2 bring to a boil and stir — Steep spices in hot broth.

Step 3: Combine the brine, water and ice in a 5-gallon bucket, pot or cooler.

Turkey brine step 3 combine brine water ice — Prepare turkey brine ice bath. I used a canning pot with lid. It comes with a convenient rack for lifting the bird.

Step 4: Place thawed turkey breast side down in brine. Press down until fully immersed, cover, and refrigerate or set in cool place for 6 to 24 hours.

Turkey brine step 4 submerge turkey in brine — A garage or porch, on a cool November evening, is a good place to set the brining turkey.

Note: A turkey brining bag may not be large enough to hold the brine plus ice water and bird. I used a large canning pot with a lid. These are inexpensive and cost me $25 at the hardware store. You may also use a clean 5-gallon bucket or a large cooler. If it is very hot where you live, you may want to keep your turkey in the fridge, covered in plastic wrap.

👩🏻‍🍳 How to roast a brined a turkey

Step 1: Preheat oven to 500°F. Remove the bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard the brine.

Turkey brine Step 5 remove from brine — Brined turkey.

Step 2: Place turkey in a roasting pan, breast side up, and pat dry with paper towels.

Turkey brine Step 6 pat dry — Roasting rack is optional.

Step 3: Prepare aromatics. Combine sliced apple, onion, cinnamon stick and water in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 5 minutes on high heat.

Turkey brine Step 7 prepare aromatics — Aromatics make the kitchen smell delicious!

Step 4: Stuff turkey’s cavity with hot aromatics, rosemary and sage.

Turkey brine Step 8 add aromatics to cavity — Discard aromatics after roasting.

Don't worry carb counters, you won't be eating the apple, it is just for the aroma.

Step 5: Tuck the wings under the bird and rub the skin with oil. Tie legs together with cooking twine, if desired. Roast the turkey on the bottom rack of the oven at 500°F for 30 minutes. Then reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Don't open the oven door.

Turkey brine Step 9 coat skin with oil — Use a neutral flavored oil to coat the skin.

Step 6: Check the turkey's temperature after 2 hours. Turkey is done when a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast reads 165°F or more.

Turkey brine Step 10 turkey is done at 165 F — This 14 lb. turkey was done in 2 hours.

🌡️ What temperature is turkey when done?

Insert a thermometer into the thickest part of the breast. Turkey is done when the breast meat reaches an internal temperature of 165°F or more.

Note: If you stuff your bird, the thickest part of the stuffing should also read 165°F.

⏲️ Turkey cooking time

A 10-12 lb. bird will take 2-2 ½ hours to cook
A 12-16 lb. bird will take 2-3 ½ hours to cook
A 16-20 lb. bird will take 3-4 ½ hours to cook

🛎 How to serve

Let the turkey rest, loosely covered, for 15-30 minutes before carving. Discard the aromatics in the turkey cavity. When ready to carve checkout this post on how to carve a turkey.

💭 Top tips

Plan ahead, give yourself a few days to thaw a frozen turkey and one day to brine it.

🐿 How to store

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

❄️ How to freeze

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 6 months.

🦃 How long to defrost a turkey?

Defrosting a turkey can take a few days so plan ahead!

Here's how to thaw a frozen turkey so that it is ready for brining. Just place frozen turkey in the fridge until thawed.

An 8-12 lb. bird will take 2-3 days to thaw in the fridge
A 12-16 lb. bird will take 3-4 days to thaw in the fridge
A 16-20 lb. bird will take 4-5 days to thaw in the fridge

🏃🏻‍♀️ How to thaw a turkey fast!

Life gets busy and the Thanksgiving countdown can be upon us before we know it! If you, like many Americans, go shopping the night before, you'll need to know how to thaw a turkey overnight.

As soon as you get home, submerge the bird, in its packaging, in a bucket of cold water. Then, you'll need to get up early to brine it.

An 8-12 lb. bird will take 4-6 hours to thaw in a cold water bath
A 12-16 lb. bird will take 6-8 hours to thaw in a cold water bath
A 16-20 lb. bird will take 10-12 hours to thaw in a cold water bath

🧐 Frequently asked questions

Why do we eat turkey on Thanksgiving?

Turkeys are indigenous to North America. Wild turkeys were readily available when the first Thanksgiving took place, and became part of tradition.

How long to brine a turkey?

At least 6 hours and no more than 24 hours.

What is the difference between dry brine and wet brine?

Wet brine infuses flavor quickly and permeates the meat. It is a combination of salt, seasonings and liquid. It requires a container large enough to hold meat, salt and liquid in a cool place. Dry brine is made without liquid, takes longer to infuse flavor, draws moisture from the meat and can be saltier. Use dry brine when you want a crispy crust on your meat.

💛 Credit

This turkey brine recipe was adapted, for carb counters, from Alton Brown's Good Eats Roast Turkey recipe. It is the best recipe for turkey brine. I made Alton Brown's recipe for years before I had to cut sugar from my diet. My adaptation uses molasses to add brown sugar flavor and aroma to the brine, without all that sugar. I've also substituted candied ginger with fresh ginger.