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Brining a Turkey
Brining a Turkey is a process that uses osmosis to draw water into the Turkey, to plump it out, while seasoning the meat all the way through. Turkeys that have been brined turn out very juicy and flavourful. Don't do this with "self-basting" Turkeys bought from the store, as they have already been injected with a solution and so probably won't absorb any more, and don't do it with a Kosher Turkey, as it has already been salted to draw the blood out.
This is dead easy to do, and is a lot easier than stressing over basting a Turkey while it is cooking (which doesn't actually help to moisten it, anyway.)
Start with a fresh or thawed Turkey. Get a very large clean pot that will hold your Turkey, or a very pail whose cleanness you trust. Have handy the salt and the Turkey, be near a sink, have the largest measuring jug or cup that you have, and have your sleeves rolled up.
Remove the Turkey from any plastic, and take out any giblets, etc (put those in the fridge to make gravy with later). Rinse the Turkey with cold water, and place it in your pot or pail. Using your measuring jug, cover the Turkey with enough water to cover it by an inch (2.5 cm) -- keep track of the amount of water as you are putting it in (this is the hardest part, if someone is talking to you.) Now, per 1 gallon / 8 pints / 4 litres of water that you used, add 1 cup / 13 oz / 370g of fine sea salt, or uniodized table salt. Put your hands in, mix the salt around to dissolve it, and rub the salt into the Turkey skin.
Now comes the catch: set the pot or pail into the fridge overnight or for 10 to 12 hours. This is going to be a challenge for anyone, at a time of year when fridges are already bursting. North American fridges should be able to cope, especially considering that you would have had the Turkey in the fridge, anyway. Don't even try to get it into a UK fridge: UK fridges are about 1/4 the size of North American fridges on a good day (though as the early 2000s, larger fridges are starting to become somewhat more popular.)
Not a problem, though, either way: you can put frozen ice packs in the pail with the Turkey, and then place it in a covered picnic cooler. The important thing is that the Turkey must stay at refrigerated temperatures the whole time for food safety reasons. If you're not certain, you could also pack ice in around the pot or pail. "Refrigerated temperatures" are between 33 and 40 F (1 C and 4 C).
If you don't have a pot or pail, you can buy one of those disposable picnic coolers made out of polystyrene/Styrofoam, and do the brining right in there, chilling the water down with ice or ice packs. You probably should plan to dispose of the disposable picnic cooler afterward, as you may never get it sterile ever again after having raw meat soaking in it. If it's cold outside, you can also set it outside in the garage or on your porch or balcony (provided there are no racoons or marauding cats where you live).
Some people swear by doing their brining in a large, sealed oven roasting bag, with the bird then taking up just one rack in the fridge.
You can also do the brining faster. Double the amount of salt you use per gallon of water, and do the soak for four hours. But keep it just as chilled during that time.
After your brining, some people recommend letting the turkey sit on its own overnight in the fridge to dry it out.
To roast, start heating your oven. Take the Turkey out of the brine (discard the brine), and give the Turkey a good wash under running cold water, rinsing away all traces of salt (take a couple of minutes to do this, to give it a really good wash). Make sure you earmark that pail or pot for a good sanitizing clean when you have a spare moment. And, needless to say, there's no need to salt the Turkey before cooking.
Some people do say that the juices from a brined Turkey are too salty for their taste to make gravy from, but it may be that they have usually been in a rush at the final stage and haven't given the birds a really thorough rinse off before roasting. Others say that no matter how much rinsing they've done, it's too salty, so they always make sure they have chicken or gravy stock from another source.
Many people don't like brining for this reason -- they feel that it makes the drippings useless.
Harold McGee, the food scientist, spoke out against it in an online interview in December 2005. While he agreed that it did result in a turkey that was moister and more tender, he felt that brining basically resulted in diluting the meat's natural flavour and juices with saltwater. (Retrieved April 2007 from http://www.cheftalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=15744.)
Acknowlegements
Moskin, Julia. Isaac Newton in the Kitchen. New York Times: New York. 24 Nov 2004.
See Also
Harold McGee, Turkeys
Other entries for Meat Cooking Techniques
Basting, Brining a Turkey, Dress, Meat Cooking Techniques, Meat Tenderization Techniques, Roasting Meat, Safe Cooking Temperatures, Searing Meat, Self-Basting
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