How-To: Dry Brine Turkey
Have you learned how to try dry brine a turkey yet? You only need a few dry brine ingredients for a simple roast turkey recipe that will stun everyone.
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Servings: 10 to 12
Calories: 542kcal
Equipment
- Roasting pan with rack
Ingredients
- 12–14 pound turkey (thawed; neck and giblets reserved for gravy)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (per pound of turkey; for a 13-pound turkey, use 13 teaspoons salt or just over 4 tablespoons total)
- 3 tablespoons maple sugar (or light brown sugar)
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 sprigs sage
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 4 sprigs thyme
Instructions
Prepare the dry brine:
- Combine the salt, pepper, and maple sugar in a bowl. Set them aside.
Prepare the turkey:
- Remove the turkey from the packaging. If there is a plastic hock lock inside the turkey, you can remove it and discard it. Remove the neck and giblets and save them for gravy. Pat the whole bird dry–do not wash it–and place it on the raised rack inside a roasting pan.
Dry brine the turkey:
- Right before seasoning the bird, pat it dry completely once more. Loosen the breast skin with your hands, being careful not to tear it. Carefully pat the salt mixture all over the bird and inside the cavity. Ensure the entire bird is coated in the brine ingredients. Transfer the whole roasting pan–uncovered–to the refrigerator. Refrigerate for 24–72 hours.
Roast the turkey:
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
- After the turkey has brined, remove it from the refrigerator.
- Remove the whole rack from the roasting pan and discard any of the excess liquid that dripped into the pan as the bird brined. Return the rack with the turkey to the roasting pan.
- Truss the legs with butcher's twine, tuck the wings under the bird, and stuff it with fresh sage, rosemary, and thyme. Drizzle the whole turkey with 2–3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and use your hands to massage it into the skin. Be sure the bird is well-coated with oil.
- Transfer the bird to the preheated oven and then roast for 2½–3 hours for a 12-pound turkey. See note for additional cooking times.
To serve:
- Rest the turkey, loosely covered with foil, for 20–30 minutes before carving. Enjoy!
Notes
Additional turkey cooking times at 375ºF:
- 8–10 pound turkey: 1 hour 45 mins to 2 hours 15 minutes
- 10–12 pound turkey: 2 hours 15 mins to 2 hours 30 minutes
- 12–14 pound turkey: 2 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours
- 14–16 pound turkey: 3 hours to 3 hours 30 minutes
- 16–18 pound turkey: 3 hours 30 mins to 4 hours
- 18–20 pound turkey: 4 hours to 4 hours 15 minutes
Nutrition
Calories: 542kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 103g | Fat: 11g | Sodium: 730mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin C: 1mg
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