Thanksgiving can be a stressful holiday if you are not familiar with the steps of preparing and cooking a turkey. There are so many recipes out there that it can be overwhelming to choose one. In this blog, I am sharing my Thanksgiving Turkey Brine Recipe at the bottom of this blog that we use to give incredible flavor to our turkey.
Before you can prep your turkey, it is important that it has thawed safely. If you are preparing your meal for Thanksgiving Day, look at the size of your turkey and use the chart below to determine when you need to take it out of the freezer.
When to Brine Your Turkey
You will want to brine your turkey on Wednesday night to allow it to soak up all the flavors overnight. In the morning, you will take it out of the brine and season it as desired. I use the same items that I used for the brine to stuff our turkey such as herbs, apples, and oranges. I make stuffing as a side dish and you can view my recipe on my blog.
Cooking Times
When it comes to cooking times, I follow Alton Brown’s recommendations and use a meat thermometer. This video is one of my favorites and even though it is 14 years old, I still watch it every year.
What to Do With Your Thanksgiving Leftovers
After you enjoy your delicious turkey with your family, it is so important that you use or freeze your Thanksgiving leftovers by Monday! You can cut up and freeze the turkey meat on its own or you can consider making something like pot pies or turkey noodle soup.
Another one of my favorite things to do with Thanksgiving leftovers is to make a turkey bone broth. Bone broth is a nutritious drink that can be consumed all year long. You make it by boiling the bones from your turkey and adding various herbs and spices.
You want to fully enjoy your turkey and everything from it, but you want to make sure that you are doing it safely. That means paying attention to how long you have the food in your refrigerator and using it in a timely manner.
Thanksgiving Turkey Brine
Equipment
- 5 Gallon Thermal Beverage Cooler
Ingredients
- 1 Gallon Apple Cider (not sparkling)
- ¼ c. Apple Cider Vinegar
- 2 Qts. Chicken Stock
- 1 c. Celtic Sea Salt
- 1 c. Brown Sugar (see my Monk Fruit Brown Sugar Recipe if you are watching your sugar intake)
- 2-3 Oranges
- 2 Lemons
- 1 Apple
- 2 c. Fresh Cranberries
- 3-4 Sprigs Rosemary, fresh
- 3-4 Sprigs Sage, fresh
- 3-4 Sprigs Thyme, fresh
- 2 T. Black Peppercorns
- 2 T. Star Anise
- 2 T. Whole Allspice
- 2 T. Whole Cloves
- 2 Ceylon Cinnamon Sticks
Instructions
- Add all liquid ingredients to a large pot.
- Cut Oranges in half and squeeze juice into the liquid. Place remaining orange and peel in the liquid.Add spices, salt, and sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes to dissolve the salt and sugar.
- Allow liquid to cool in the refrigerator or add ice to cool.
- Put the turkey in a cooler or 5 gallon cooler/bucket and pour in the brine.Add ½ a bag of ice.* see notes section below
- Let the turkey sit in the brine overnight.
- In the morning, remove the turkey from the brine. Prepare and cook your turkey according to weight and oven temperature.
Video
Notes
- Depending on the size of your turkey, you may need to add more chicken stock to your recipe.
- The turkey should be completely covered when you put it in the cooler or bucket.
- The Cross Legacy provides estimated nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is collected from the USDA database via Spoonacular, when available. If not available, nutrition information is pulled from other online calculators. Ingredients can vary and The Cross Legacy can make no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Nutrition
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