Your Thanksgiving Turkey: To Brine or Not to Brine?
By Stacy Adimando
We know what you’re thinking. Everything from which type of potato to make to whether or not to serve your pie à la mode (Yes. Always yes.) is a hotly debated Thanksgiving topic. But few are as polarizing and flat-out confusing as the question of whether to brine or not brine the bird. For us, it comes down to this: Who wants to deal with storing a 20-pound bird submerged in a vat of liquid days before hosting a huge holiday?
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We don’t, but we also want a well-seasoned bird, which is why we (and a number of chefs we know) are all about the happy-medium technique known as dry brining—also known, simply, as salting your turkey. Barely a technique at all, it means generously seasoning the outside of your turkey in advance to draw out excess moisture from the skin and gradually season the bird from the outside in. While the salt doesn’t penetrate and tenderize the inner flesh quite as deeply as it does in a wet brine, dry brining guarantees a deep-brown, crispy-not-rubbery skin. Plus, you’ll get plenty of salty flavor when you carve through the bird.
How to do it: You can start this process 2 to 3 days in advance, says Ryan Farr, chef-owner of 4505 Meats butcher shop and restaurant in San Francisco. Not only do those few days give the salt ample time to pull out natural moisture from the skin, but they save you the trouble of wrestling with the turkey last-minute.
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Liberally season the bird with kosher salt and pepper, then leave it uncovered in the fridge (pat dry any beads of liquid that form on the outside of the skin with a dry paper towel). Then, says Farr, rub the bird with a bit more more salt and pepper just before roasting. I'm a classicist, but if you wanted to get more adventurous with seasoning, try mixing some toasted ground coriander and thyme leaves, or a paste of fresh garlic, into the salt.
Want more guidance? Here are three great salt rubs to try for Thanksgiving turkey:
Salt-Roasted Turkey with Lemon and Oregano
Clementine-Salted Turkey with Redeye Gravy
Salted Roast Turkey with Herbs and Shallot-Dijon Gravy
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photo: Charles Masters
