Best Harvest Turkey Brine Recipes

HARVEST TURKEY BRINE

Harvest Turkey Brine image

Easy brine for an 11-pound turkey. Use any herbs you prefer.

Provided by Jeff Montgomery

Categories Side Dish Sauces and Condiments Recipes

Time P1DT1h15m

Yield 20

Number Of Ingredients 23

Ingredients

1 (32 fluid ounce) container chicken stock
1 (32 fluid ounce) container vegetable stock
2 cups Pinot Grigio wine
2 Fuji apples, sliced
2 medium oranges, sliced
3 small lemons, sliced
1 Anjou pear, sliced
1 head garlic, cloves peeled and crushed
½ yellow onion, sliced
½ bunch fresh rosemary, or to taste
½ bunch fresh thyme, or to taste
½ bunch fresh sage, or to taste
kitchen twine
1 cup water
¾ cup sea salt
½ cup white sugar
2 tablespoons dried bell peppers
2 tablespoons dried vegetable flakes
2 tablespoons multi-colored whole peppercorns
4 bay leaves
1 gallon iced water
1 (11 pound) whole turkey, neck and giblets removed
1 extra-large turkey bag

Steps:

Combine chicken stock, vegetable stock, and with wine in a large pot. Toss in apples, oranges, lemons, pear, garlic, and onion. Tie rosemary, thyme, and sage together with kitchen twine; add to the pot. Stir in 1 cup water, salt, sugar, dried peppers, vegetable flakes, peppercorns, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil; stir to dissolve salt and sugar.
Remove brine from heat and let cool to room temperature. Store in the refrigerator.
Combine brine with 1 gallon of heavily iced water 1 to 2 days before serving the turkey. Place thawed turkey in an extra-large turkey bag and pour in enough brine to cover completely. Refrigerate.
Remove turkey from the brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard brine and start cooking.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 477.1 calories, Carbohydrate 15.1 g, Cholesterol 169.9 mg, Fat 20.5 g, Fiber 2.2 g, Protein 52 g, SaturatedFat 5.7 g, Sodium 3530.5 mg, Sugar 9.3 g

THE BEST TURKEY BRINE

The Best Turkey Brine image

This is our go-to brine for turkey. It's simple, flavorful and most importantly leaves you with a succulent, juicy, perfectly-seasoned bird. It's also perfect for chicken, pork chops, Cornish game hens - you name it. While we like the combination of thyme and sage, you can also use other hearty herbs such as rosemary, oregano or marjoram.

Provided by Food Network Kitchen

Categories condiment

Time 10m

Yield 12 to 14 servings

Number Of Ingredients 7

Ingredients

Kosher salt
1/4 cup sugar
One 12- to 14-pound turkey
3 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
5 thyme branches
3 sage sprigs
1 lemon, zest peeled into strips with a vegetable peeler

Steps:

Combine 1/2 cup salt, the sugar and 1 quart water in a medium pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir until the salt and sugar are fully dissolved, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and add the peppercorns, thyme, sage and lemon strips. Let steep and cool to room temperature.
Pour the brine into a large stockpot or bucket and add 3 quarts cold water. Remove the neck and giblets (reserve for gravy) from the turkey and put it into the brine, pushing it down to cover. Refrigerate for 24 hours.
Remove the turkey from the brine; rinse and pat dry. Cook according to your favorite method.