By Eric Eisenberg, KSL Studio 5 – Cooking Segment
You might want to reconsider your standard method for roasting a turkey this year. Chef Eric Eisenberg says one more step and some advance planning ensures a tender turkey like you’ve never tasted before.
Chef Eric Eisenberg shows us how – View Video
Ingredients:
- 1 Gallon Vegetable Broth
- 1 Cup Kosher Salt
- 1/2 Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 1 Tbsp black peppercorns
- Peel of 2Large Oranges
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 1 Cinnamon Stick
- 2 Cloves
- 4 Allspice Berries
- 1 Gallon (Heavilly Iced) Water
Method:
Bring all the ingredients ( except the Ice Water) to a boil in a large pot, stirring occasioanlly to ensure the salt and sugar I completely dissolved.
Remove from heat and allow to cool, cover and refrigerate overnight or up to three or four days.
Late the night before cooking put the brine in a CLEAN & SANITIZED bucket and add the gallon of heavilly iced water. Submerge the turkey breast first into the ice cold brine. Brine your turkey for at least 30 minutes but no more than 1 hour per pound. After removing your turkey from the brine , rinse it under plenty of running cold water and dry it well before preparing it for cooking.
Storage – Refrigerator sapce is hard to come by when Thanksgiving is approacing but if you have a cold basement or its cold outside and you have and enclosed screened in porch you can safely keep your turkey brining a 5 gallon bucket. The ice will keep it cold and bacteria hates salt! But if you’re at all concerned about keeping it out of the fridge you can keep the whole turkey brining in a cooler.
For Crispier Skin – Brine your Turkey a day head so that it can dry in the fridge uncovered for a day. The drying of the skin will lead to a wonderfully crisp result.