Turkey Brine and 8% solution

Raining Claw

I was thinking of doing Alton Brown's Honey Brined Smoked Turkey on the egg for Thanksgiving, but noticed the turkey that i have says that it contains an 8% of solution, but has no msg etc. Will it still be okay to go as planned, or will i end up with a Turkey that tastes more like salt cured ham?? Forgive the ignorance, this is my first attempt at a brined turkey.
Thanks for all the help!!

MB

AZRP

I wouldn't brine an injected bird. -RP

Celtic Wolf

That 8% solution is brine..

The Naked Whiz

You know, I've been wondering about that. If you brined a bird for 3 weeks, I don't think it would turn out all that well. So I wonder what the injected birds are like and if their solution is truly a brine. Do they only inject frozen birds? If not, how can an injected bird tolerate being brined for who knows how many weeks?

The second thing I've been wondering about is that Alton says that once the turkey and the brine solution reach equilibrium, the flavorings that you add to the brine can migrate into the bird. So I wonder why you couldn't take an injected bird, and even if it is "brined", give a last brine with flavorings to get those flavorings into the bird.

I wonder about that.... :-) I'd run a test but I'm already doing a 3-way turkey breast test for Tgiving and I'll be damned if I'm gonna cook 4 breasts, lol!

stike

i don't think the solution added is simply brine.

pork has solution added, as do scallops. sometimes that solution is phosphates (in scallops i know it is sodium tripolphoshate)... this helps them retain moisture. it also increases the weight of the bird (or pork, or scalops). "5% solution added" means you're paying for an additional 5% of weight that wasn't there to begin with, too.

the reason it is added is to help guarantee a moisture result when food is overcooked. it is a direct response to the public's clamor for lower fat meat, taken together with their propensity to vastly overcook foods.

i would NOT buy anything that had "solution added" unless it was clear that it was only a true brine.

Big'un

At least with 4 you'd have an even amount of breasts. I can only imagine what that turkey's bra must'ave looked like with three breasts! :blink: