Brining VS Mad Max

Carolina Wizard · November 2005

Hey all, I've been brining my gobblers the past few years with great results, but we are short of frig. space this year so I'm considering Max's great sounding recipe. This may have already been discussed but I can't find it. Would some of you experienced briners give me your opinion on Max's plan? Many thanks!

Unknown · November 2005

Carolina Wizard,[p]Did a 17lb this weekend with great results. Average of about 20 min per lb, with apple chips (couldn't find chunks). The bird looked like it came out of a Williams Sonoma cookbook. [p]Max's recipe = A++[p]JA

Eggtuary · November 2005

Carolina Wizard,
I'm going to combine brining with Mad Max's recipe. I did a test turkey over a month ago using Max's recipe as shown on Naked Whiz's site. While I thought the taste of the gravy from Max's recipe was fantastic, the meat wasn't quite as moist as birds that I've brined in the past. I also think brining would help bring out some of the more subtle flavors that Max gets from putting herbs and veggies in the cavity. I'm going to be careful to limit salt in every other way I can (unsalted butter, no salt on the veggies, etc.) so that my brining doesn't mess up the magnificent Mad Max gravy.[p]Then again, I didn't perfectly follow Mad Max's recipe on my test run. I had to leave the house for a while, so I didn't baste quite as often as he suggests. I also overcooked the breast meat a few degrees trying to make sure I got the dark meat done. On Thanksgiving, I'm going to apply the ice bag longer than the 20 minutes in Max's recipe (probably 30 to 40 minutes) and I'll try to apply the butter more quickly before putting the bird in the Egg (that sounds weird, doesn't it?) I'll also place the turkey so that the breast is up near the front of the Egg. Hopefully those 3 changes will help me to get a better temp differential between white and dark meat so that it all comes out ready at the same time, as Max's method tries to do.[p]Good luck!
Mike

Chicago Wine Geek · November 2005

I'm going to try MMax's method on Thursday as well. And I'm going to brine it first. Can't wait! Thanks for the heads up on more ice time for the breast.

Unknown · November 2005

Carolina Wizard,[p]I have had nothing but good luck with brining my birds in a plastic 5 gal bucket from Wal Mart filled with the brine, then the bird and the rest of the way with ice. Put the lid on it and stick it in the garage for the duration and then remove, rinse, butter, season and put on the egg. Works great everytime, and you can use the fridge for the other goodies!
Give it a try...[p]

Why1504 · November 2005

Carolina Wizard,[p]I tested a Mad Max turkey this year. I did not care for it. I felt the aromatics and herbs overpowered the traditional turkey flavor which I perfer. I also did not care for the effect the wine had on the bird. As for gravy I also don't care for giblet gravy perfering a smooth gravy made with turkey drippings flour, and water/chicken broth. I realize I am in the minority here but YMMV applies.[p]Good Luck.

BobbyG · November 2005

David Thomas,
Great idea. I use a cooler, but the 5gal bucket would be much easier to clean. [p]Thanks,
BobbyG

Nessmuk · November 2005

David Thomas,
During the learning curve, I brined in ice. As I became more aware of the 40 to 140 rule, I changed to the frig. I added a frig in the garage that is dedicated to my cooking...i.e., marinating & brining etc.[p]I now brine only in the frig overnight.[p]I use a 2 gallon plastic bag with a positive slide. Even the, I set the bird in a large foil pan in case of an unplanned leak.[p]I also added a utility sink that keeps me from needing space in the kitchen.[p]The bird will rest on a Spanek tower.[p]The local market that took on the American Heritage turkeys, sold out the first day @ $5/lb.[p]

Brining VS Mad Max

Comments

Categories