The Best White Wine Turkey Brine Recipe for Some Delicious Thanksgiving Magic
Is it just me, or is anyone else constantly on the lookout for new and exciting ways to spruce up their holiday meals?
I mean, there is part of me that is a traditionalist and wants the same things like Grandpa's Simple Stuffing, Spiced Rum Candied Yams, Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Creamed Corn, Cranberry Relish and Turkey Gravy, made the same way every year but, then there is that little adventurist who is looking to go bigger and better, new and exciting, and top the previous year’s meal by leaps and bounds.
For years I have cooked my turkey the same way. I was even bold enough to post it as The Perfect Roast Turkey, and I will tell you that it was, and still is, one of the best dang turkey recipes I have ever tasted.
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However, I had a few ideas rambling around in my little head. Ever since we started smoking everything this summer (in the smoker that is!), I have been tinkering around with brine ideas, rubs, sauces, etc.
We smoked some chicken using this brine and OhhEmmmGeeee we thought our taste buds had died and gone to heaven!
So immediately, we started toying with the idea of smoking turkey this year. We ended up nixing that idea because:
A) We would have to butterfly the turkey to fit it in out smoker (which is how we do our chickens, but for some reason, we didn't want to do a turkey that way).
B) One of the things we love about roasted turkey is that crispy skin... I mean hellooooooo, don't we all? But the skin just doesn't get crispy in the smoker (major foodie pout).
So roasting it was going to be and, once we pulled the finished bird out of the oven and were happily nibbling on crispy turkey skin, we knew we had made the right choice.
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Bobbi Burleson
To help get the crispiest skin possible, make sure to take the bird out of the brine the night before you are going to cook it. Pat it dry, sprinkle with some salt and pepper, and leave it uncovered in the fridge. That will dry it out and make it much crispier once it's roasted.
The kids all went on and on about the food. I made a savory bread pudding with bacon, leeks, and artichokes, creamy mashed sweet potatoes, homemade dinner rolls, and of course homemade make-ahead turkey gravy.
But it was the turkey that everyone kept coming back to. They didn't want dessert, they wanted more turkey!
My son finally announced that this recipe must become the official holiday turkey recipe and the rest of the family wholeheartedly agreed!
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White Wine Turkey Brine Recipe
Ingredients
1 qt vegetable stock
1½ cups kosher salt
6 bay leaves
2 Tbsp whole black peppercorns
1 Tbsp mustard seeds
1 bottle dry white wine
2 large shallots, thinly sliced
8 cloves garlic, crushed but left in the skins
1 bunch (a good handful) fresh thyme
2 lemons, sliced
Cold water (enough to cover turkey)
1 (16-lb) turkey, giblet package and neck removed
Bring the vegetable stock, salt, bay leaves, peppercorns and mustard seeds to a boil. Stir until salt is dissolved. Cool to room temperature.
Pour the brine into a 5-gallon stock pot or container. Pour in the bottle of wine, then add the shallots, garlic, thyme, and lemons. Slowly lower the turkey.
Pour enough cool water into the pot to cover the turkey. Place lid on the pot and refrigerate for at least 24 hours.
For a crispier crust: Remove the turkey from the brine the night before, pat it dry, and place on a baking sheet in the refrigerator uncovered overnight.
