American

Citrus Brined Turkey

Name: Citrus Brined Turkey
Total time: 45 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 16 pound turkey; 2 gallons water, divided in half; 1 ½ cups kosher salt; 1 cup brown sugar; 3 ounces honey; 1 lemon; 1 navel orange; 10 garlic cloves; 2 bay leaves; 2 tablespoons black peppercorns; 1 teaspoon cardamom; ½ teaspoon whole clove; ½ teaspoon allspice; 1 tablespoon star anise; 1 bunch thyme; 1 pound unsalted butter; 1 onion; 2 carrots; 3 stalks celery; 1 bunch sage; 1 bunch rosemary; 1 bunch thyme; As needed kosher salt or truffle salt or flaky sea salt

My recipe

Brine overnight — minimum twelve hours.

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Total45 min

LevelEasy

AheadYes

24h brine + overnight dry + 3h temper + ~3.5h roast

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Method

1
Two days ahead. Remove the giblets from the turkey and set aside for giblet gravy (optional).
2
In a large pot over high heat, bring 1 gallon of water to a boil. Add the salt, sugar, and honey and whisk to combine. Add the spices, garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. Whisk everything together until the sugars have dissolved.
3
Peel strips of rind off of the lemon and orange and add to the pot. Halve the citrus and juice it into the pot, discarding any seeds. Stir in the remaining gallon of water and allow to cool to room temperature.
4
Transfer the brine to a container large enough to hold the turkey and the brine. Submerge the turkey and transfer to the fridge to brine for 24 hours.
5
A day ahead. Remove the turkey from the brine and rinse very quickly under cold running water. Dry the turkey very well with paper towels then transfer it to a rack set inside of a tray. Transfer the turkey to the fridge and allow it to dry, uncovered, in the fridge until tomorrow when we will cook the turkey.
6
On the day. Take the bird out to temper for 3 hours before you plan to cook it. Preheat the oven to 350F, fan on if you have a convection oven.
7
Peel and chop the onion, carrot, and celery into 1 inch pieces. Stuff the vegetables along with the herbs inside of the turkey cavity along with a generous pinch of salt. Melt the butter in a small sauce pot and coat the turkey with it on all sides.
8
Season the turkey generously with salt on all sides. The salt is essential to get a delicious crust on top of the turkey. Roast the turkey on a roasting pan for about 13 minutes per pound total.
9
Roast the turkey at 350F for one quarter of the time, then lower the heat to 325F and continue to cook for the remaining time, basting every 25 minutes. When you baste, ensure that you remove the turkey from the oven and close the door so you don’t let the heat out of your oven! Remove the turkey from the oven and allow it to rest, uncovered, for half the cooking time. Ensure that you reserve the cooking juices to make the gravy!
10
Example: 16 pound turkey = 208 minutes total cooking time. 52 minutes at 350F, then 156 minutes at 325F basting every 25 minutes. Let rest for 104 minutes.