• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Lemon Blossoms

Restaurant Quality Recipes, Quick and Delicious Meals Made at Home

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Recipes
    • All Food
    • Appetizers & Snacks
    • Main Course
    • Side Dishes
    • Slow Cooker and Pressure Cooker
    • Soups and Stews
    • Salads and Sandwiches
    • Breakfast and Brunch
    • Vegetarian
    • Beverages
    • Desserts and Baked Goods
    • Basics
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimers and Privacy Policy
You are here: Home / Chicken and Poultry / Brined and Roasted Turkey ~ Perfect Every Time!

Brined and Roasted Turkey ~ Perfect Every Time!

November 16, 2016 by Kathy 6 Comments

Jump to RecipePrint Recipe

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Last updated on November 3rd, 2017 at 09:10 pm

This Brined and Roasted Turkey is the answer to your turkey/holiday anxiety! Perfectly juicy, tender, delicious and golden to perfection turkey every single time! Easy to find ingredients and a simple brining technique is all you need. If you can dunk a turkey in flavored water, you got this!

Overhead look at a whole golden roasted turkey on a white platter garnished with orange slices, rosemaries and fresh cranberries. The platter is sitting on a wooden table.

The task of cooking a turkey for Thanksgiving is daunting. There are too many expectations and if you ever attended culinary school the expectations get even higher. But seriously, do you think professional chefs cook Thanksgiving turkeys all the time? Ah… no!

For years, I stressed over the perfect turkey. Every time someone else in the family offered to cook the bird I sighed in relief! I would offer to make all the sides and do all the dishes as long as the responsibility rested with someone else.

Some years no one would offer, so I would try different recipes and techniques. I particularly remember the year I set a paper bag on fire while putting the turkey in the oven (good times!)

About 5 years ago, I decided to brine my turkey and my life changed forever ~ all the “thanksgiving-turkey-anxiety” flew away!

Close up view of the side, leg and thigh of a roasted and golden turkey. Lemon slices, fresh cranberries, fresh sage and rosemary surround the turkey.

Brined and Roasted Turkey

No matter how you want to season your turkey – with herbs, butter, Cajun spices, fruits or with your great great great grandma’s secret recipe; one thing that always delivers a moist turkey is a brine.

  • What’s a brine?
    Well imagine giving your turkey a beauty & relaxation bath. Brining is a way to ensure the reduction of moisture loss in lean meats. Brining enhances juiciness and flavor.
  • What’s in the brine?
    The main brine ingredients are water and salt. Really, that’s all that is needed! Now if you add a few aromatics into the mix you ensure deeper and more complex flavors, in other words more deliciousness! (that’s the proper term by the way).
    I learned from a Chef I deeply admire to also add sugar to the brine. Does it work better than just salt and water? well ~ did I tell you the person who told me this is a very famous and well known chef I deeply admire? If Rocky Balboa tells you how to throw a punch, you will probably just follow his lead! Wouldn’t you?

A sheet pan holds a raw whole turkey. There are also oranges, lemons and fresh rosemary surrounding the turkey. The sheet pan is sitting on a wooden table. There are also a measuring cup filled with brown sugar, a container of salt, a measuring pitcher with water and a roll of kitchen twine.

  • How long do you brine your turkey? I will say overnight will guarantee the best results but 4 hours works too! You will need a big container to keep your whole bird submerged at all times. Think big soup pots, plastic storage containers and buckets. No lid? No worries! You can always use aluminum foil or sticky plastic wrap.
  • Brine Ratio? 1/2 cup of salt + 1/2 cup of sugar per gallon of water. If you know me, you know that unless I’m baking I’m not stressing about measurements. So relax, no need to get all worked up about exactness (is that even a word?)

Do you want incredibly moist, delicious, perfectly roasted and golden turkey every time? Look no further! This Brined and Roasted Turkey turns out perfect every time!

Are we ready for the Brined and Roasted Turkey recipe?

Side view of a whole golden roasted turkey on a white platter garnished with orange slices, fresh rosemary and fresh cranberries. The platter is sitting on a wooden table.

Kathy’s Notes

  • Here’s a link of my favorite Basic Chicken Stock!!
  • My Sweet Potato Casserole with Crunchy Topping is seasoned with Bourbon Brown Butter and topped with a sweet, salty, nutty and crunchy topping. The perfect side dish for this Brined and Roasted Turkey!
  • Every year my kids ask me to make Mac and Cheese as part of the Thanksgiving feast. This Mac and Cheese Carbonara is easy and elegant enough to serve during the holidays!
  • If you are having a smaller holiday gathering, or want to have turkey breast ready for sandwiches, salads, lunches, etc this Slow Cooker Turkey Breast with Gravy is juicy, delicious and easy to make – and yes! we even crisp up the skin for a picture-perfect bird!

WANT TO TRY THIS  BRINED AND ROASTED TURKEY?

PIN IT TO YOUR DINNER OR HOLIDAY BOARD!!

FIND ME ON PINTEREST FOR MORE DELICIOUS RECIPES!

Overhead look at a whole golden roasted turkey on a white platter garnished with orange slices, rosemaries and fresh cranberries. The platter is sitting on a wooden table.
Print Recipe
4.75 from 12 votes

Brined and Roasted Turkey ~ Perfect Every Time!

Incredibly moist, delicious, golden and perfectly roasted turkey. The secret is in the brine!! Inactive Cooking Time: 4 to 24 hours Prep Time: 30 minutes Cooking Time: About 3 hours
Prep Time4 hrs
Cook Time2 hrs 30 mins
Total Time6 hrs 30 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 434kcal
Author: Kathy

Ingredients

For the Brine

  • 1 cup salt
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 2 oranges quartered
  • 2 lemons quartered
  • 1 apple quartered
  • 5 thyme sprigs
  • 3 rosemary sprigs
  • 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 gallons of water

For the Turkey

  • 1 10 to 12 pound turkey
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 2 teaspoons soy sauce
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 lemon quartered
  • 1 large onion quartered
  • 2 carrots cut into 1 inch chunks
  • 2 stalks celery cut into 1 inch chunks
  • 2 sprigs of thyme
  • 2 sprigs of rosemary
  • a few sage leaves optional
  • 1 to 1 ½ cup turkey or chicken stock

Turkey Broth (optional)

  • Reserved turkey neck and giblets
  • 1 small onion chopped
  • 1 large carrot chopped
  • 1 celery stalk chopped
  • 1 small bay leaf
  • 3 cups of water
  • 3 cups low salt chicken stock or canned low sodium chicken broth

For The Gravy

  • ½ cup white wine
  • 3 cups turkey broth or chicken broth plus more if needed
  • ¼ cup flour
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • Freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • Reserved cooked turkey neck meat and giblets if desired

Instructions

For the Brine

  • In a non-reactive container (like a clean bucket, big stock pot or a food grade plastic container) dissolve the salt and the sugar in 2 gallons of water. Add the rest of the brine ingredients.
  • Remove the neck and bag of giblets from the turkey cavity. Rinse your turkey under cold running water. Submerge and soak the turkey into the brine. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours and up to 24 hours.
  • If you have a very large turkey and need more brining solution, use ½ cup of salt + ½ brown sugar per gallon of water.

For the Turkey Broth

  • In a heavy saucepan place the turkey neck, giblets and heart. Add the chopped onion, carrots, celery and bay leaf. Pour water and broth and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to medium low and simmer for about 45 minutes to 1 hour or until reduced to about 4 cups. You can add the turkey liver during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Strain the stock and reserve.
  • NOTE: If you like to add turkey neck meat and giblets into your gravy, pull the meat from the turkey neck and chop finely. Do the same with the giblets. Reserve.
  • Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Remove the turkey from the brine and rinse well under cold running water. Pat dry with paper towels both inside and out.
  • In a small saucepan melt the butter over low heat. Add the garlic cloves and soy sauce. Mix to combine.
  • Place the turkey breast side up in a roasting pan. Season inside the cavity lightly with salt and pepper. Stuff the turkey cavity with the onion, carrots, celery, lemon, thyme, rosemary and a few sage leaves. If you cannot fit all of it inside the cavity, it's ok to place some of the ingredients around the bird.
  • Pour some of the melted butter mix under the turkey skin trying to get some on the breast and around the legs and thighs. You can discard the garlic cloves or make sure they end up inside the cavity or under the turkey skin. If you leave them on the baking pan, they could potentially burn Pour or brush on the rest of the melted butter mix over the turkey (trying to get it everywhere). Season very lightly with salt and pepper to taste.
  • Loosely tie the drumsticks together with kitchen string. Roast the turkey uncovered, breast side down for 1 hour.
  • Remove from the oven, turn and baste with turkey or chicken stock. Continue roasting breast side up for about 2 hours to 3 hours or until an instant-read thermometer registers 165 degrees Fahrenheit when inserted into the largest section of thigh meat (avoid the bone).
  • Baste the turkey with about ½ cup of turkey or chicken stock every hour during the cooking time.
  • Remove from the oven and place on a serving platter. Tent with aluminum foil and let the turkey rest for 15 minutes before carving.

For the Gravy

  • Discard any vegetables or herbs from the roasting pan and pour the turkey pan juices into a glass measuring cup. Skim off the fat.
  • Place the roasting pan on 2 stovetop burners over medium heat. Return the turkey pan juices into the roasting pan. Add the wine. Deglaze, stirring to scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the 3 cups of broth and bring to a simmer. Reserve.
  • In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium high heat. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, to make a roux. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Add the hot stock from the roasting pan into the saucepan whisking constantly. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened stirring as needed.
  • At this point, you can add the reserved neck meat and giblets, if desired. Adjust seasoning and pour into a gravy boat.
  • Serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 434kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 19556mg | Potassium: 688mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 47g | Vitamin A: 114.4% | Vitamin C: 83.8% | Calcium: 17.5% | Iron: 12.8%

NEVER MISS A RECIPE!

PINTEREST / FACEBOOK / INSTAGRAM / TWITTER

If you’ve tried this or any other of my recipes, don’t forget to rate the recipe and to leave me a comment. I love hearing from you!


Things You May Need

Classic Nonstick Roaster
Bucket & Lid – Food Grade
Natural Cooking Twine

 

Related Posts

  • Slow Cooker Turkey Breast with GravySlow Cooker Turkey Breast with Gravy
  • Slow Cooker Beef Bone BrothSlow Cooker Beef Bone Broth
  • Basic Chicken Stock – White StockBasic Chicken Stock – White Stock

Filed Under: All Food, Basics, Chicken and Poultry, Entertaining, Main Course

Previous Post: « Pomegranate Margarita ~ The Best Margarita Ever!
Next Post: Potato and Chorizo Hash ~ One-Pan, Easy & Delicious! »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Michele says

    September 18, 2017 at 5:16 pm

    This recipe turned out even better than it looks in your photos! It was so juicy and the skin perfectly browned… Definitely going to make this again!

    Reply
    • Kathy says

      September 18, 2017 at 5:18 pm

      Thank you so much!

      Reply
  2. Jessica V says

    November 3, 2017 at 9:16 pm

    This turkey looks amazing. This is what we will be eating on thanksgiving this year. Brining sounds like the perfect solution to my dried up turkeys. I am excited to try this. Lots of details in your post. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Kathy says

      November 3, 2017 at 9:17 pm

      Glad you found the recipe. I can guarantee success with the brine! Let me know how it turns out!! Thank you

      Reply
  3. Katey Connor says

    November 24, 2017 at 12:44 am

    We made this turkey recipe for our Thanksgiving dinner. It was the BEST turkey we’ve ever had. The only recipe we’ll use from now on. It was moist and perfectly seasoned. Everyone loved it! Thank you so much!

    Reply
    • Kathy says

      November 24, 2017 at 1:03 am

      Thank you for sharing! I am so happy to hear that! We love brining our turkey! It makes such a difference!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

About Me

Hi I'm Kathy!
I'm a culinary school graduate and have worked for The Food Network and for Chefs Wolfgang Puck and Bobby Flay. I cook restaurant quality recipes at home daily. Here you will find a great selection of quick and easy recipes for busy days as well as amazing recipes for entertaining. My recipes range from simple and healthy to scrumptious and decadent. About Lemon Blossoms →

SEARCH FOR RECIPES

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

TRENDING NOW

Oven Baked Pork Chops with roasted potatoes and green beanson a white plate
Honey Soy Baked Chicken Drumstick on a white plate.

SLOW COOKER & PRESSURE COOKER

Top view of Buffalo Chicken Wings in a white bowl
A white plate filled with instant pot shredded chicken.
Overhead view of a bowl filled with corn dip.
Bacon dip served with crackers.
Instant Pot Chicken breast shredded served in a bowl.

Footer

As Seen On

As Seen On

Copyright © 2016-2019 LemonBlossoms.com