Does brining a turkey really work?

Brining is a lot of unnecessary work that is kind of on the way out.

However, some, like Benwick, say there is no reason to brine at all. “I don’t brine my birds, because I like my birds to taste like birds, not like watered-down birds,” J. Kenji López-Alt wrote in Serious Eats. “Even advance salting is not a necessary first step. I see it more as a safeguard against overcooking. It provides a little buffer in case you accidentally let that bird sit in the oven an extra 15 minutes.”

Only one way to truly find out

[quote] Only one way to truly find out

Starting a DL thread and waiting for the responses? I agree.

Good luck, OP.

Remember... it's just turkey.

Necro feasters!

OP, don't worry. There are more turkeys in the shop, you know?

Save it for Christmas and go buy a fresh turkey (or two small ones) today. Brining will not speed up defrosting and your turkey will be frozen solid tomorrow.

R3 Yes, of course, wanting authentic help from DL posters is definitely the smartest way!

I have no idea if this will work but try filling the bathtub with cold water and put the turkey in it. Change the water every 30 minutes. I don't know how many times you will need to do this as it's a 20 lb turkey. I know this method works well to quickly defrost a chicken. The link below from Butterball provides some info.

Good luck and gobble, gobble!

[comment] [R3] Yes, of course, wanting authentic help from DL posters is definitely the smartest way!

I find that the DL is a wonderful vestibule of interesting information. Brining turkeys is right in the DL wheelhouse of information.

r7, has it right, best be safe. I'm roasting my bird the way Dan does it here....

Ok Op, let's look at your options, unless you put the turkey back in the freezer as suggested. Leaving the turkey out to defrost is a bad idea. By the time the giblets are thawed the meat under skin will have been raw poultry sitting out for hours at room temperature. You know what that means, salmonella. Dumping the turkey in plain, cold running water does the same thing, only slower. The fact that there is so much salt in the brine does keep the chances of salmonella down, but keep it in the fridge until you cook it.

I'd go buy another, unfrozen turkey, or a couple chickens, and leave that one in your freezer for another time. Bad planning, OP.

If you put the turkey in cold water you can thaw the turkey in about 10 hours. Get to it, and refresh the water on a regular basis.

When are you serving?

Defrost in cold water as advised until you go to bed and then leave it in the fridge overnight. There will probably still be some ice in the cavity come morning, but there usually is.

OP, just use the Defrost function on your microwave.

It might drip a bit. But you can totally mop it up with a couple of bath towels.

Why torture yourself every TG with cooking something that doesn't really taste look and creates more leftover to deal with?

I love turkey. I don't mind, ONCE a year, cooking a big bird and having lots of leftovers till Christmas.

WHET turducken?

I know wet brining is out of fashion, but I really enjoy the flavor.

I hate brining. I do find the meat tastes wet. I tried it and am no longer a fan.

Brining my own tonight, food fashion can go fuck itself.

R18, I feel the same way. I have 7-9 turkey breast so I will be eating turkey on Christmas and probably the rest of the week. I felt the same way about Mom's spiral ham every Christmas. We only ate ham on Christmas. I was usually on vacation the week between Christmas and New Year's so I ate ham or ham and cheese omelets for breakfast most of that week.

I love turkey. I could eat it Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. Love it.

I skipped brining it last year and it was really dry. You really need to brine, to ensure the white meat is not dry.

I roast mine covered, usually with the breast covered in olive oil or butter soaked cheesecloth. I finish the roasting with the lid off for the last hour. Never had any problems with dryness. I have also heard people roasting the bird upside down, so the juices stay in the breast.

Most people roast too high and too long, in my experience. Turkeys today can roast at 325.

We bought a brined turkey a few years ago. It was juicy but tasted weird, the meat wasn't slimy but it sort of felt that way compared to the usual dry white meat.

I suggest you leave it in the freezer for another time and go out ASAP to try to find a non frozen turkey or better yet one that's already been prepared. If you can't find such a big one go for two smaller ones. You'll have more drumsticks that way too. No way will you be able to thaw and get a 20 lb turkey ready for tomorrow. You'll be looking at food poisoning.

I'm available.

I agree with R18.

Martha Stewart was on the Today Show this morning. Her suggestion was to soak a white cotton t-shirt in butter and white wine (I don't remember if there was any seasoning in the mixture). Drape the t-shirt over the turkey breast and cook normally. She said it's almost as good as using a cheese cloth. I would guess you would remove the t-shirt at some point so that the skin can get at least brown.

OP, are you ardorkably ditzy? If so, you can get away with serving your guests sliced turkey from the deli counter and telling them all about "forgetting" to thaw the turkey in time. They will be delighted and think you're cute!

What about cooking a bird on a rack or not. I always seem to get a soggy bottom, but I wonder if it will drain better on a rack?

Oh, honey, back in the day whenever I get a soggy bottom, I drained it on a rack. Especially, at the baths.

If your turkey meat is dry, you're doing it wrong. Roast with the breast side down. Turn it over to brown at the end. Or not.

Yes, use a rack. My roasting pan came with one that has handles to pull the bird, rack and all, up and out.

That’s a new one r321. I don’t have a spare t-shirt, but I’m going to try Martha’s method with a couple of pairs of jockey shorts.

Yes !!!!! Brine brine brine = delicious turkey, you will know why people dont like turkey if u dont brine it. !!!!

If u can fit it into your microwave there is a chance.

I have a question about cooking a small frozen butterball Turkey breast. The directions are extremely confusing, vague and seem to leave a lot up to the customer.

At this point the Turkey is still frozen but it needs to be cooked in 24 hours. It says you can cook it frozen, but should I? Or should I thaw it out now and cook it tomorrow afternoon? How best to thaw? I have never cooked anything in the oven before besides pizza. This is a first.

Is this ok to post here or do I need a separate thread?

OP, shave your head and buy a pair of lensless frames. Put some Courtney Love albums on shuffle. Look straight ahead and tell everybody Jesus woke you up in the night and now you're vegan. Make sure your home is stocked like a liquor warehouse, mixers and all. Oh, and with lovely shoes. Good luck.

r39 Call the Butterball Hotline.

Or just ask Alexa.

You could always try... and I know this sounds crazy... cooking it longer...

You can cook a turkey from frozen.

Brining a turkey results in soggy spongy meat and super-salty drippings - too salty to make gravy with.

If that's your idea of fine eating, have at it.

Otherwise, if you want moist breast meat without brining the bird, just mix up some seasoned butter (salt, pepper, assorted snipped fresh herbs or a small spoonful of poultry seasoning). Take a large serving spoon and slide it upside down between the skin and the breast to loosen and lift the skin from the meat. Once it's all loosened, get in there with your butter and lube it up good. Spread more butter on top of the skin. Put it in the fridge overnight or at least for several hours to dry the skin a bit.

That will result in nice moist breast meat with deliciously browned, crispy skin.

I find brining makes everything taste like ham, and it ruins the drippin's.

[quote]get in there with your butter and lube it up good

I want to cook it, not fist it!

Speaking of which ...

why are you all buying frozen turkeys?! just get a fresh one and you don't have to worry for days about defrosting and salmonella poisoning,

Today's the day!!!!!!

I'm brining myself ... in vodka.

Cook something from here!

Don't the white and dark meats cook (get "done") at different temperatures? (Dark meat requires more cooking; white meat gets overcooked & dry in the process.)

If I'm ever again responsible for a turkey, I'd cook the white and dark meats separately.

[quote] WHET turducken?

A gimicky waste of turkey, duck, and chicken.

Turducken has nothing on the cherpumple.

Moving this into personal care, I hereby invent the pimpstyboil.

Let the Youtube videos commence.

Okay, I did it. I brined it and everyone ate it. We shall see tomorrow if everyone is still alive. Thanks to all!