How to Dry Brine a Turkey

How to Dry Brine a Turkey

Learn how to dry brine a turkey with this straightforward tutorial. Dry brine turkey comes out so moist and juicy all thanks to the salting and resting course of action of a dry brine.

turkey on baking sheet.

What is a dry brine?

A dry brine refers to the salting and resting of meat.

Salting: including salt to the outdoors of a piece of meat, usually specifically on to the meat by itself.

Resting: letting the meat to sit and soak in the salt for a extensive period of time

When it arrives to turkey/poultry, salting the outside the house of the fowl is critical since it will essentially attract out humidity and absorb again into the flesh so that the meat comes out tender and juicy.

Why ought to I dry brine my Thanksgiving turkey?

Dry brining is an excellent way to make certain your Thanksgiving turkey arrives out both equally moist and flavorful. By making it possible for your turkey to rest with salt on it, it basically attracts out dampness and permits it to soak back again in, leaving your turkey tender and mouth watering.

Dry Brine vs. Soaked Brine

A soaked brine is very similar, but you in fact soak the piece of meat in salted h2o for a long interval of time to reach a similar influence of tender and juicy meat.

When it will come to dry brining vs. wet brining, it’s all about preference. We individually think dry brining is easier!

spices in small bowl.

What You Need to have to Dry Brine a Turkey

  • Kosher salt: we favor to use kosher salt for dry brining, but other salts can be used as very well.
  • Other spices: we like to add extra taste to our turkey dry brine with salt, black pepper, dried thyme, and dried rosemary.

Why we want kosher salt

The cause we like to use kosher salt is since it has greater crystals and does not clump! If you have at any time gotten your hands soaked/moist and touched usual desk salt, you’ll discover it clumps genuinely effortlessly.

Storage Container

Make sure to have an airtight container or plastic bag big enough to in good shape your turkey. We typically continue to keep items basic and just use a grocery bag.

uncooked turkey on baking sheet.

How to Dry Brine a Turkey

Wondering how to dry brine turkey? Below is a rapid tutorial on how to do so. For the complete recipe, scroll all the way down to the recipe card.

  1. Prep Turkey: first points initially, take out the turkey from its packaging and pat it dry. Then eliminate any innards.
  2. Combine spices: incorporate salt and spices in a compact bowl.
  3. Brine turkey: raise up the skin from the turkey and rub the salt mixture on to the flesh. Make guaranteed to get all sections of the turkey — breast, legs, wings, etcetera.
  4. Allow relaxation for at the very least 12 hrs: transfer the dry brined turkey into a large plastic bag and enable it sit for at the very least 12 several hours or right away.

How lengthy really should I let my dry brine turkey rest?

We endorse allowing your dry brine turkey rest for at least 12 several hours, but it can remain in the fridge for up to 72.

Most up-to-date Thanksgiving Recipes

dry brine turkey on baking sheet.

You have Dry Brined, Now What?

Now that your turkey has rested for at least 12 hours, it is time to prep and bake as preferred! We have a lot of excellent Thanksgiving turkey recipes on Suit Foodie Finds and dry brine performs for all of them.

Roasted Turkey: test out our vintage Roasted Thanksgiving turkey recipe. When it calls for a wet brine, simply just switch that move out for this turkey dry brine.

Smoked Turkey: our smoked turkey is a reader favored! It does contact for a moist brine, but simply just swap it out for this dry brine.

Spatchcock Turkey: spatchcocking a turkey is 1 of our most loved cooking procedures simply because it cooks tremendous rapidly. Our spatchcock turkey really makes use of this precise dry brine.

Smoked Turkey Legs: though turkey legs are already made with juicy darkish meat, a dry brine would do wonders for taste!

Versions

A dry brine is truly all about the salt, so you can add other flavors and spices to the blend to seriously make it your own. In this article are some spice thoughts to taste factors your way:

Brining a turkey in pot.

How to Soaked Brine a Turkey

Learn how to soaked brine a turkey making use of drinking water, salt, and other herbs and spices!

Get Recipe

thanksgiving plate on counter.

Pictures: shots taken in this article are by Ashley McGlaughlin from The Edible Standpoint.

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