The Food Lab: The Truth About Brining Turkey----Let the debate begin

[mvincent42]

I have only smoked one turkey and I brined it. It was the best turkey I've ever had. Not only was the smoky flavor amazing but the bird looked like a "tv bird" and was moist and delicious. I will never cook a turkey in an oven again!

 

[chef jimmyj]

No one here or in the article talked about the affect of Dry Brining an Enhanced Turkey. Considering that is the type of bird that many people get on sale, with coupons, free or from their employer. Does dry brining just add a butt load of salt to an already fairly salty bird?...

...I have had many years of success with my brine so this TG I will stick with what I know works. But hey there may be an experiment in my future...JJ

 

[diggingdogfarm]

I don't know, I don't buy enhanced birds.
I don't use much salt with poultry anyway, just 1%.

~Martin

 

[watermelonslim]

Rub all over the bird.
I don't rub under the skin, but there's nothing wrong with that.
Add whatever herbs and spices you want.
Allow a few days for the salt and sugar to distribute well.

These guys do it similar to the way I do......
http://www.food52.com/blog/2713_russ_parsons_drybrined_turkey_aka_the_judy_bird


~Martin

I just have a bird in the fridge right now after loosely following the recipe in that link, with salt, bay leaves, thyme, and I added some pepper.

I just thought about it though and realized there's no sugar in their recipe. What effect do you think the sugar would have? Should I pull that bird out of the fridge and add some sugar?

 

[diggingdogfarm]

I just have a bird in the fridge right now after loosely following the recipe in that link, with salt, bay leaves, thyme, and I added some pepper.
I just thought about it though and realized there's no sugar in their recipe. What effect do you think the sugar would have? Should I pull that bird out of the fridge and add some sugar?

I wouldn't worry about it now, I do them with or without. No big deal.



~Martin

 

[watermelonslim]

I switched to "dry brining" a long time ago, great flavor, no water-logged bird and no funky texture that sometimes comes with wet brining.
Takes some time, but the bird always comes out perfect.
About 1 % salt and 0.5% sugar.

Harold McGee also bad mouths wet brining.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/12/dining/12curi.html


~Martin

In this link it says
"Brining has plenty of advocates, and understandably so. It’s a flexible technique that makes a remarkable difference in the moistness of the meat, especially the breast. All you have to do is dissolve a few tablespoons of salt in a few quarts of water, keep the turkey covered with the solution for a few days, then let its surface dry out uncovered for a day or two before roasting."

Is this accurate? Should we really be brining (wet) for "a few days" and then letting it dry for "a day or two" before smoking the bird?

I've always only let it sit in the brine for 12 to 36 hours. Am I not doing it long enough? And I've only let it dry for an hour or 2 at the most. Usually it goes straight from the brine to getting rinsed off, then straight to the smoker. Should I be letting it dry out longer? I don't really care about the skin. Nobody in my family ever eats it anyway.

I started brining both birds last night (doing a wet and a dry). Was thinking I'd pull the wet bird out at like 4:00 am Thursday and put it in the smoker. Is this too long in the brine? And what is the disadvantage to not letting it dry out?

 

[daveomak]

Brining....  Some say penetration into the meat is approx 1/4" per day... give or take... so, a couple days will put the salt into the meat 1/2 to maybe 3/4".... Then resting in the refer for the skin to dry (makes for crispy skin and allows the salt in the skin to go into the meat) also allows for the salt in the meat to redistribute evenly in the meat... equilibrium continues forever... a more uniform salt/spice distribution will be in the meat... 

 

[watermelonslim]

Brining....  Some say penetration into the meat is approx 1/4" per day... give or take... so, a couple days will put the salt into the meat 1/2 to maybe 3/4".... Then resting in the refer for the skin to dry (makes for crispy skin and allows the salt in the skin to go into the meat) also allows for the salt in the meat to redistribute evenly in the meat... equilibrium continues forever... a more uniform salt/spice distribution will be in the meat... 

So I can't really put mine in the fridge, no room. It's currently brining in a bag, in a cooler with ice.

How should I dry it out? Will it work if I just put it in a bag in a cooler with ice but no water in the bag?

It's a 12 pound bird, and I'm thinking I'll leave it in the brine for somewhere around 28 to 36 hours, and then let it dry 16 to 24 hours before smoking it. Does this sound about right?

 

[diggingdogfarm]

When I wet brine, which I still do with poultry if I use cure and when I'm not doing a combination cure, I also pump the bird. Without pumping it does take a few days for the bird to brine properly, the way I like them anyway.
Brining for a short time doesn't ensure that the bird is seasoned throughout, which is the main reason I brine.
How long you brine is going to depend on your personal goals, whether you've pumped the bird or not and the strength of the brine.
Now, having said that, there are a lot of folks satisfied with a short brine, why, I don't know,but it suits many.
Drying out the skin before cooking is so the skin will crisp up better, if you don't care about the skin, then don't worry about it. Just pat the bird dry before frying. You did say that you're frying the birds, right?
I have a hair dryer that I use for that purpose only, drying out poultry skin, works like a charm.




~Martin

 

[daveomak]

When done brining, dry the skin and put in front of a fan on high speed for an hour or so.... then smoke or cook....  

 

[watermelonslim]

I'm frying 1 (dry brine) and smoking the other (wet brine). Both are 12 pounders.

The dry brine went on last night, and that bird is in a bag in my fridge. The other bird went into the wet brine about 5 minutes later, and it's in a cooler right now with ice. I'm not pumping and I don't even know how to add a cure, so not doing any of that. So maybe leave it in the brine for around 50 hours, then let it dry for an hour or 2, then into the smoker. Sound about right? It's okay for it to sit out in a warm room while our dries?

How about the dry brine one. Leave it in the fridge for about 60 hours, take it out and rinse it, let dry for a couple hours, then into the fryer? The previous link said to put it back in the fridge, uncovered, for some period of time (can't remember how long). Is this necessary or should I just take it out, rinse it, blow dry, then into the fryer?

 

[chef jimmyj]

Any time spent out of Refrigeration can lead to Bacteria growth. But because Bacteria need a little time to get their act together we can get away with a Blow Dryer or a Fan to dry the skin out of the refer but No More than 2 Hours, less is better. After this Lag Time the Bacteria will multiply unchecked at Room Temp. The Safest method to let the skin dry is 24+ hours in the Refer on a cooling rack above a drip pan but it is understandably difficult to do, this time of year, when the Refer is packed with all the Holiday Goodies. WatermellonSlim, you have not posted in you Profile where you live but if temps are below 40*F 24 hours a day, like it is in many Northern States, you can let the drying take place anywhere it stays cold and where animals will not get to the bird like in the Garage...JJ

 

[diggingdogfarm]

Takes no more than 15-20 minutes to dry the skin with a hair dryer set on high.



~Martin

 

[chiefp]

When I wet brine, which I still do with poultry if I use cure and when I'm not doing a combination cure, I also pump the bird. Without pumping it does take a few days for the bird to brine properly, the way I like them anyway.
Brining for a short time doesn't ensure that the bird is seasoned throughout, which is the main reason I brine.
How long you brine is going to depend on your personal goals, whether you've pumped the bird or not and the strength of the brine.
Now, having said that, there are a lot of folks satisfied with a short brine, why, I don't know,but it suits many.
Drying out the skin before cooking is so the skin will crisp up better, if you don't care about the skin, then don't worry about it. Just pat the bird dry before frying. You did say that you're frying the birds, right?
I have a hair dryer that I use for that purpose only, drying out poultry skin, works like a charm.
~Martin

what the heck is pumping?  

 

[diggingdogfarm]

Injecting.

In curing meats, injecting is often called pumping.

~Martin

 

[mvincent42]

I have brined in a mix of chicken stock, salt, pepper, granulated garlic, cider vinegar, lemon juice, and brown sugar for about 12 hours then pulled out, rinsed, and either pumped with sauce (chipotle maple, bbq, honey hot, buffalo, teriyaki, whatever I feel) or just rubbed above and below the skin with a compound butter (butter, garlic salt, pepper, herbs) and it seems like I can't screw it up. Always super moist and flavorful and crispy skin. I think brining even for only 12 hours makes smoking a turkey idiot proof.