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Brining a Turkey

Teefus
Teefus Posts: 1,203
We'll be picking up a fresh bird for Thanksgiving and I want to brine it prior to roasting it on my BGE. What do y'all think as far as timing for the brining? Four to six hours or overnight?
Michiana, South of the border.
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Comments

  • Legume
    Legume Posts: 14,602
    We brine at least 24h
  • Teefus said:
    We'll be picking up a fresh bird for Thanksgiving and I want to brine it prior to roasting it on my BGE. What do y'all think as far as timing for the brining? Four to six hours or overnight?
    24 hours is perfect 
  • RichH
    RichH Posts: 41
    I'm planning on a 24hr brine.
    Large Egg with adjustable rig, Smokeware Chimney, Kick Ash basket, Rutland Gasket and BBQ Guru DigiQ

    St. Petersburg, FL
  • Last one I did was 24 hrs. Used apple and sage brine, was very good.
    Tampa Bay, Florida
  • SonVolt
    SonVolt Posts: 3,314
    edited November 2018
    I gave up wet brining long ago for everything except pork. For Turkey and Chicken I dry brine up to 3 days ahead, overnight minimum. 

    https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/dining/the-rise-and-fall-of-turkey-brining.html
    South of Nashville  -  BGE XL  -  Alfresco 42" ALXE  -  Alfresco Versa Burner  - Sunbeam Microwave 
  • 1voyager
    1voyager Posts: 1,157
    Another vote for 24  hours.
    Large Egg, PGS A40 gasser.
  • If you are using a "pre-brined" turkey like a Butterball or Honeysuckle, you don't want to brine it again. WIll make it too salty.  I only brined the cheap generic brand turkeys (usually on sale for $.69/lb).
  • SonVolt
    SonVolt Posts: 3,314
    If the "cheap generic brand" turkeys are not brined they're already a better product than the more expensive Butterballs and Honeysuckles. 
    South of Nashville  -  BGE XL  -  Alfresco 42" ALXE  -  Alfresco Versa Burner  - Sunbeam Microwave 
  • Teefus
    Teefus Posts: 1,203
    My turkey is not “pre brined”. It’s a fresh bird from a snooty organic left wing Birkenstock wearing free range doesn’t have a red pop up thermometer poultry store. You order in advance and when you pick it up it’s still twitching and bleeding a little. OK, not really twitching but they’re healthy local birds that are never frozen. The one we got there last year was freaking amazing. 

    Thanks to all for the tips. 24 hours it is.
    Michiana, South of the border.
  • dmchicago
    dmchicago Posts: 4,516
    Philly - Kansas City - Houston - Cincinnati - Dallas - Houston - Memphis - Austin - Chicago - Austin

    Large BGE. OONI 16, TOTO Washlet S550e (Now with enhanced Motherly Hugs!)

    "If I wanted my balls washed, I'd go to the golf course!"
    Dennis - Austin,TX
  • Teefus
    Teefus Posts: 1,203
    @dmchicago - That looks like a good plan. I'll give it a try.
    Michiana, South of the border.
  • Plus 1 on the 24 hour brine.

    A bit OT but...Have you done a turkey before? Don't mean to insult if you have. Just giving my input based on my first attempt last year. I'm sure the experts around here will chime in. I did mine last year and wasn't able to time the finish temps for the breast and thighs (breast meat done and the thigh meat not so much). I ended up trying to foil the breast and leave it on to finish the thighs. This lead to a pretty dried out breast. The flavor was great but I wasn't happy. I cooked with breast meat up the whole cook with the legs/thighs pointed to the front of my egg. I have since learned that the back of the grill (toward the hinge) cooks hotter than the front and I should have had the legs/thighs toward the back. I have not done another one to verify this method so others might chime in
  • Teefus
    Teefus Posts: 1,203
    @Atl_Buckeye Yup. 25 years on the grille (Weber) and the last two on the LBGE. I orient just as you suggest. The hinge side runs hot. Never not yummy. 
    Michiana, South of the border.
  • if brining is out then why are so many companies doing it to there Turkeys? Jus asking for a friend :)
  • xfire_ATX
    xfire_ATX Posts: 1,110
    XLBGE, LBGECharbroil Gas Grill, Weber Q2000, Old Weber Kettle, Yeti 65, Yeti Hopper 20, RTIC 20, RTIC 20 Soft Side - Too many drinkware vessels to mention.

    Not quite in Austin, TX City Limits
    Just Vote- What if you could choose "none of the above" on an election ballot? Millions of Americans do just that, in effect, by not voting.  The result in 2016: "Nobody" won more counties, more states, and more electoral votes than either candidate for president. 
  • SonVolt
    SonVolt Posts: 3,314
    edited November 2018
    if brining is out then why are so many companies doing it to there Turkeys? Jus asking for a friend :)

    Brining's not out, just "wet brining". Dry brining is 1000x easier, tastes better and doesn't sog up the skin.  But to answer your question, producers wet brine because water weight is a good cheap way to drive up the sell price/profits. 
    South of Nashville  -  BGE XL  -  Alfresco 42" ALXE  -  Alfresco Versa Burner  - Sunbeam Microwave 
  • i found a that is so simple that was used for chicken 
    INGREDIENTS

    3 cans Miller Lite use your own preference
    ⅓ cup sugar
    ⅓ cup plus 1½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
    4½ cups ice water
    4 pounds chicken pieces, bone-in

    double up on the beer 1/2 cup on the salt and sugar dissolve the solids add ice to cool it down and once cool to touch insert bird with giblets and neck removed.then continue to add ice until the bird is covered.set in fridge covered for at least 24 hours.

  • Eastern Shore Virginia 

    Medium & Mini Max
  • Sea2Ski
    Sea2Ski Posts: 4,088
    Thank you for this post. I just looked and saw the turkey my wife got is/was not pre-brined.  Starting making that now....

    --------------------------------------------------
    Burning lump in Downingtown, PA or diesel in Cape May, NJ.
    ....just look for the smoke!
    Large and MiniMax
    --------------------------------------------------

    Caliking said:   Meat in bung is my favorite. 
  • Teefus
    Teefus Posts: 1,203
    I made the Keller brine last night. It smells like ass. I poured it out this morning. No way am I risking it for Thanksgiving. Falling back on my standard Kosher salt/brown sugar brine with a dose of cider vinegar for acidity.
    Michiana, South of the border.
  • billt01
    billt01 Posts: 1,523
    edited November 2018

    Brine

    1 Gallon of water
    1/2 cup of Garlic Powder
    1/2 cup of Onion Powder
    1/3 cup of pepper
    1 cup of salt
    1 cup of Brown sugar
    A few bay leaves (your preference)
    2 cans of bluebird apple juice from concentrate
    1 can of bluebird cranberry juice from concentrate


    Bring the Brine to a boil string frequently, and let cool on stove top

    Break up a bag of ice and put about 5 lbs. in the cooler 

    Combine Brine with the Ice

    Drop the turkey in and brine for 48 hrs.......

    Now for the compound butter.....

    2 tbsp. of garlic powder
    2 tbsp. of onion powder
    Fresh thyme, sage, rosemary (yes I know Simon and Garfunkel) to taste... your preference on amounts
    I usually put thin in a coffee grinder for a few seconds and get it really fine.
    2 stick of salted butter

    Use a potato masher to incorporate the spices and herbs
    (careful not to overdo it or you will melt the butter)

    Once everything is incorporated well, put the butter in a one gallon freezer bag and roll the bag up so you have a "roll" of butter at the bottom of the bag and freeze for a day.......

    At the end of the 48 hour brine, pull the bird and place on the table breast side up

    cut slits on the bottom of the breast closest to the legs, and use your fingers to separate the skin from the breast but be careful not to tear the skin..........

    Take your compound butter and cut into 1/4 inch "wafers" to place into the slits that you created in between the skin and breast meat....
    Make sure you get the wafers all the way to the top of the breast meat

    Take the remainder of the butter and rub all over the bird and s
    tuff the big chicken with apples and onions...


    Bring the ol EGG up to 275 and cook for a couple of hours then cover with a wet cheese cloth and drop the temp down to 225 for the remainder of the cook

    Check the bird every hour to hour and a half to make the cheese cloth stays wet.....I just use water to do so

    Pull off once the bird reaches an internal temp of 165

    let rest and eat 


    Have:
     XLBGE / Stumps Baby XL / Couple of Stokers (Gen 1 and Gen 3) / Blackstone 36 / Maxey 3x5 water pan hog cooker
    Had:
    LBGE / Lang 60D / Cookshack SM150 / Stumps Stretch / Stumps Baby

    Fat Willies BBQ
    Ola, Ga

  • Sea2Ski
    Sea2Ski Posts: 4,088
    Dunked mine this morning for a 24 hr soak. 

    1.5 gallons water
    1.5 cups kosher salt
    1.5 cup brown sugar
    5-6 cloves of garlic sliced
    4 squeezed clementines (since  no lemons or oranges)
    Maybe a tablespoon black peppercorns which I pulsed twice through the spice grinder to crack them. 
    And 2 cups “tea” made from about 1/3 cup each of dried rosemary and thyme which I let steep for 10 mins then strained. (That stuff was strong straight.)
    A few bay leaves. 
    Got the water to about boiling, removed from heat.
    Added all but clementines and “tea”
    Let cool.
    Added juice from clementines and the “tea”.

    Totally made it up - we will see what happens.  


    --------------------------------------------------
    Burning lump in Downingtown, PA or diesel in Cape May, NJ.
    ....just look for the smoke!
    Large and MiniMax
    --------------------------------------------------

    Caliking said:   Meat in bung is my favorite. 
  • GoooDawgs
    GoooDawgs Posts: 1,060
    I went with a dry brine for the trial turkeys today.   59 cents turkeys from Kroger.     For family on Thursday we'll do a more natural bird,  but this group Im going for tonight (church kids)   couldn't appreciate a quality bird if they tried!  
    Milton, GA 
    XL BGE & FB300
  • My brine:  some o’ dis, some o’ dat. 

    Gallon of apple cider
    Cup of kosher salt
    Cup of brown sugar
    Lots of peppercorns
    Couple of quartered oranges
    Onion, quartered
    Bay leafs
    Thyme sprigs
    Secret ingredient:  ginger, squeezed from the ginger tube
    Water — in both solid form to cool then boiled brine and liquid to ensure the 18 lb bird is covered 

    Turkey soaked last night, and flipped over this morning. Gets rinsed tonight, patted dry, and will sit in the fridge uncovered for the day tomorrow.  Compound butter all around (need to make it tonight), douse with white wine, and onto the egg, indirect at 325/350 til done. 
     
    Easy peasy!  And not political at all!  (But those Ivanka emails — WTF?!?!?)
    It's a 302 thing . . .
  • 500
    500 Posts: 3,177
    I'm picking up a 12# organic bird today from Whole Foods.  I'm dry brining roughly following this method;
    https://www.epicurious.com/archive/howtocook/primers/brining-dry
    then using this recipe just for the seasoning rub;
    https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/salted-roast-turkey-with-herbs-and-shallot-dijon-gravy-350432
    I have my turkey stock made and in the freezer, using this recipe but with turkey legs instead of wings;
    https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/make-ahead-turkey-stock
    in order to make this gravy'
    https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/turkey-gravy?intcid=inline_amp

    I like my butt rubbed and my pork pulled.
    Member since 2009
  • GoooDawgs
    GoooDawgs Posts: 1,060
    So for the folks in the dry brine camp, do you rinse off the salt before you put the rub on, or do you just keep it.  I've seen most sites say to rinse, but the site above says don't rinse it off...  Definitely don't want too salty of a bird... 
    Milton, GA 
    XL BGE & FB300
  • One year I used that world market brine mix. Turkey was like a salt lick. 

    2 LBGE, Blackstone 36, Jumbo Joe

    Egging in Southern Illinois (Marion)

  • SonVolt
    SonVolt Posts: 3,314
    Teefus said:
    I made the Keller brine last night. It smells like ass. I poured it out this morning. No way am I risking it for Thanksgiving. Falling back on my standard Kosher salt/brown sugar brine with a dose of cider vinegar for acidity.

    Keller's brine is deceivingly pungent and smells a bit tart, but it's delicious with poultry and game birds. 
    South of Nashville  -  BGE XL  -  Alfresco 42" ALXE  -  Alfresco Versa Burner  - Sunbeam Microwave