Brining A Turkey
Brining turkey is so easy, and makes the most tender and delicious turkey! This recipe works for a 18 – 25 lb turkey. Time is 12 – 24 hours.
The best, most tender and flavourful turkey!
This is a recipe worth sharing over and over again! Have you ever brined a turkey? Or eaten one that’s been prepared this way? Roasted turkey that has been brined is SO moist, flavourful and delicious. They are truly amazing. When it comes to turkey preparation, brining a turkey is a the top of the list for us. So don’t be afraid, it isn’t as hard as you might think.
Tips for Brining a Turkey:
- Size of Turkey: This recipe is for a 18 – 25 lb turkey. If you have a smaller bird, like half the size, just cut the recipe in half.
- Make sure your turkey is thawed. The turkey must be almost completely thawed before it goes into the salt mixture. If it’s a little little bit frosty, that is fine.
- Gravy: If you make gravy from the pan juices of a turkey that has been brined, you will likely find that it is quite salty. I just cut down the saltiness with water from the potatoes I boil for this dinner. Just taste test as you go.
- Make it Festive! Tis the season right?! To make an extra festive brine, add 1 cup of whole fresh cranberries to the mixture. It just makes it look pretty.
- What type of container to use? Place the turkey in a container large enough to hold it and all of the brine. You can use a stock pot, a cooler, a bucket – whatever, as long as it is clean. Just make sure to clean it (with bleach) after you are done!
- How long to let the turkey soak in the brine? Let your turkey soak for about 12-24 hours, in the fridge. We prefer 24 hours.
- Turn it! You should turn the turkey once during the brining process.
- Roasting Instructions: For roasting instructions, I use this recipe here.
Brining Turkey
Brining turkey is so easy, and makes the most tender and delicious turkey! This recipe works for a 18 – 25 lb turkey. Time is 12 – 24 hours.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Marinating Time: 24 hours
- Total Time: 24 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 1 turkey 1x
- Category: Turkey
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 28 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups coarse salt
- 6 bay leaves
- 2 tbsp whole black peppercorns
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tbsp whole coriander seeds
- 8 garlic cloves
- 1 large onion (thinly sliced)
- 1 bunch fresh thyme
- 1 bottle dry white wine (Riesling)
Instructions
- Rinse your turkey and remove all the innards (neck, giblets, etc.). Pat it dry
- In a large saucepan, mix 4 cups of the water with the salt, peppercorns, mustard seeds, bay leaves, and coriander.
- Bring to a boil, and stir until all the salt has dissolved. Cool.
- Place the turkey in a container large enough to hold it and all the brine. You can use a stock pot, a cooler, a bucket – whatever, as long as it is clean. Make sure to clean the container (with bleach) after you are done brining the turkey.
- Add the remaining water (24 cups), wine, garlic, onions, fresh thyme and cranberries.
- Let your turkey soak in the brine for about 12-24 hours, in the fridge. We did 24.
- You should turn the turkey once during the brining process.
- Once your turkey is done brining, remove it from the mixture and rinse.
- Now it’s time to roast your turkey. Here is the recipe I use for the roasting instructions.
Keywords: turkey brine recipe, how to brine a turkey
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Have a delicious day!
I’ve heard that brined turkeys are the best. I think I need to give this method a shot this Thanksgiving. Thanks for the tip.
I wonder how old I will be when I am actually the one cooking the turkey. I guess when my mom or mother in law get too old to do it. Yikes!
Ok – now I am convinced. Thank you for making it so clear and easy to follow. I will be trying this!
I was looking out for a post like this. Any suggestions for a small er bird? I’m getting at 10-14 lb one this year. Thanks for the tips.
Hey Jo-Anna,
Inspired by you, I have brined a chicken once and will now brine our turkey for this weekend, after your on-line reminder about your recipe. When I did the chicken, I cut the skin over the breasts and slipped in lemon wedges and lemon thyme, a tip I read in another recipe (it actually called for lemon wedges and sage but I adapted it to what I had growing out front). The chicken turned out moist and lemon-y, it was so delicious! I thought I would share this variation. Keep up the good work!
I am unexpectedly out of town this Easter weekend after my father-in-law had a heart attack. He will be discharged from the hospital in time for Easter supper, which also happens to be my mother-in-law’s birthday. With all of my brother in-laws coming to see him, I am so happy to be able to access this recipe and do something special for them at this time!
To brine the turkey it is completely thawed right? I have never made a turkey dinner before, this is my first year. I have the turkey in my deep freeze. Do I thaw the turkey in my fridge? Or just in a container in kitchen?
Hi Katie! Yes, the turkey should be completely thawed. I usually take mine out about 4 or 5 days before I want to cook it, and I always unthaw it in my fridge. When you go to brine the turkey a day or 2 ahead, the turkey may still be a bit frozen but that’s ok, it will continue to unthaw in the brine! You can do it…it’s really easy to cook a turkey!