# If I brine my turkey will it be too salty? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 16, 2002, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155 "2002-12-16T20:27:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/21 "2002-12-17T08:33:56Z")
Hmmm, “brine my turkey”… Is that what the kids are calling it these days? ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/22 "2002-12-17T11:43:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mars Horizon \* > \*\*I’m roasting a turkey for Christmas dinner, and I’d like to do something special - a little more than the run of the mill roast turkey with gravy. So I was watching Alton Brown on the Food Network, and he recommends brining the turkey first to make it juicy. > > Here is the suggested brine: > > 1 cup kosher salt > 1/2 cup light brown sugar > 1 gallon vegetable stock > 1 tablespoon black peppercorns > 1/2 tablespoon allspice berries > 1/2 tablespoon candied ginger > 1 gallon iced water > \*\* I saw this same show, and tried this brine with a turkey breast after Thanksgiving (minus the allspice berries and ginger, since I couldn’t find any). I let it soak overnight in the fridge, in a big steamer pot. No, not salty at all, but I felt no need to sprinkle any salt on the turkey after it had cooked. The brine gives the turkey a lot more flavor. My first reaction eating it was, “this tastes funny”; it’s good, but it’s not the taste you expect from regular roast turkey. ---
**Author:** ![li\_l\_Dickie\_Dirtz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/2bfe46/32.png) [@li\_l\_Dickie\_Dirtz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/li_l_Dickie_Dirtz)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/23 "2002-12-17T13:19:45Z")
**Enkidu** , I believe you’re supposed to inject a turkey to be fried with some sort of liquid flavoring. I would think brining would serve the same purpose, but I’m not sure. ---
**Author:** ![li\_l\_Dickie\_Dirtz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/2bfe46/32.png) [@li\_l\_Dickie\_Dirtz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/li_l_Dickie_Dirtz)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/24 "2002-12-17T13:24:08Z")
That wasn’t much help, was it? ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/25 "2002-12-17T15:24:27Z")
New Orleans food critic/radio host Tom Fitzmorris [recommends a simple solution of salt and water in which to brine a turkey](http://www.insideneworleans.com/restaurants/content/restaurants/food/recipes/sugarcane_turkey.html): > [@](#): > > **The first step is to marinate the turkey in salt water overnight. This is a trick I learned when I was frying chicken at the Time Saver in my youth, and it really works. Its effect is that it keeps the bird very moist during cooking, completely avoiding the dryness for which turkey is celebrated. Also, despite all the salt, it does not come out tasting even a little salty. I put the turkey (two turkeys, actually) into an ice chest with about five gallons of water with a full round box of salt dissolved in it. I also put in about half a bag of ice to keep everything safely refrigerated.** This recipe seems better for folks short on time – it doesn’t require the 24-48 hour drying period that some recipes call for. ---
**Author:** ![Mars\_Horizon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mars_horizon/32/2804_2.png) [@Mars\_Horizon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mars_Horizon)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/26 "2002-12-17T15:49:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Miss Mapp \* > \*\*My first reaction eating it was, “this tastes funny”; it’s good, but it’s not the taste you expect from regular roast turkey. \*\* See this is my concern - will my family find it “funny” and dislike it because it is not a traditional taste. Part of me hates to experiment with a Major Holiday. Maybe I’ll try it out some other time, like when we all gather round for our traditional Arbor Day feast 😃 ---
**Author:** ![fizgig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f04885/32.png) [@fizgig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fizgig)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/27 "2002-12-17T16:31:56Z")
I brined my Thanksgiving turkey for just a couple hours to draw out the icky bloody bits, BUT then rinsed it thoroughly, and caked it with a salt crust. I thought this worked really well, because the concentrated salt draws the moisture out of the very outer part of the bird, and sort of seals it. I threw some orange slices (you could add Granny Smith apples to that, too) in the cavity to keep it from drying out, then roasted it breast down on a rack. It got rave reviews, including “this is THE best turkey I’ve ever had, I’m giving my dad this recipe.” Very moist and juicy, and no ‘weird’ flavor. If you do get complaints, the inner part of the bird will taste more traditional, so you can serve that to the naysayers. And yes, the leftovers were excellent. P.S. Yes, use Kosher or sea salt, not Morton’s. It’s got a much better texture, and doesn’t have the weird taste from the YPS or whatever they add to it. I get mine at an Asian food store for pretty cheap. ---
**Author:** ![NicePete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee7513/32.png) [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/28 "2002-12-17T16:48:23Z")
I started soaking my whole chickens in brine before I roasted them a while ago. Terrific results – the chicken’s juicier and more flavorful. Now I don’t do it any other way. Can’t see why it shouldn’t work for a turkey. Or turkety. Turkety. I like that. Turkety, turkety, turkety. ---
**Author:** ![BurnMeUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/29 "2002-12-17T22:03:12Z")
i used Alton’s recipe and smoked my turkeys and they were phenominal ---
**Author:** ![JavaMaven1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/cab0a1/32.png) [@JavaMaven1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JavaMaven1)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/30 "2002-12-17T22:31:20Z")
I brined my turkey for the first time this year. I modified Alton’s recipe to my own personal tastes and it came out fantastic. I had a 20 lb. turkey to contend with (Alton’s recipe calls for a 14-16 lb. bird), and this is what I brined it in: 2 cups kosher salt 8 cups chicken stock 1 cup red wine vinegar 2 tablespoons black peppercorns 12 bay leaves 1 cinnamon stick 1 tablespoon whole coriander seed 1 long branch of fresh rosemary 6 springs fresh thyme I packed that turkey into a food-grade bucket I bought from Smart & Final, poured the brine on top, then topped it off with plenty of ice and water to cover. I was worried that my family might not have liked it, as they are awfully picky eaters (I had several freak out when I put sauteed mushrooms & garlic into the green bean casserole last year), but it went over very well. Everyone said it was the best turkey they had ever had. ---
**Author:** ![Enkidu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8c91f0/32.png) [@Enkidu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enkidu)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/31 "2002-12-18T04:44:50Z")
Hmm . . . Tur-ke-ty . . . Come on, your making me over nostalgic. Turkety is a family tradition. I remember the first time my dad took me on a turkety hunt. It was the middle of the night, when the turketies come out to feed. Dad drove me into the woods, which is fine turkety hunting territory, then drove of to set up the traps into which I was to drive the turketies . . . Oh, what a thrill to hear those turketies growl in the underbrush. I found a good stout stick with which to beat the underbrush and turn them towards our turkety snares . . . ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/32 "2002-12-18T04:55:49Z")
Guess I’m kind of late jumping on the band wagon, but I too used Alton’s method for brining for Thanksgiving, and it couldn’t have been better. I just did a breast, and grilled it with some Hickory smoke, but did the brining, and used the areomatics that he suggested, and it was great… not salty at all. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/33 "2002-12-18T12:27:29Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by li’l Dickie Dirtz \* > \*\*Kosher salt _is_ less salty than regular salt, whatever other differences there may be. Check the nutrition label on the box. \*\* I just checked mine, and apparently Kosher salt has less salt per teaspoon than Mortons. For a 1/4tsp serving, Kosher salt was 0.7g, and Mortons 1.5g. They’re both pretty much pure salt, but the Kosher grind gives you less per unit volume. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/34 "2002-12-18T13:00:07Z")
Picking a nit… Some of you are making a difference between “kosher” and “Morton’s.” I use Kosher salt at home, both for brining and for cooking and on the table, rather than regular table salt. It’s **Morton’s Coarse Kosher Salt**. It comes in a big square blue box, not that round container. ---
**Author:** ![mcms\_cricket](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@mcms\_cricket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcms_cricket)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155/35 "2002-12-18T14:22:59Z")
_Mars Horizon said:_ [QUOTE] Is this the process you all have followed? And since I’m at it - any other suggestions from the Teemings on how to make a Wonderful Roast Turkey? QUOTE] I brine everything - never tried it with anything other than kosher salt and water - I’m looking forward to trying some of the other brining recipes here. I always roast my birds (chicken, turkey, cornish game hens) breast side down. It looks a bit weird but it really helps to keep the white breast meat moist and juicy. I usually hate white meat as it seems dry and tasteless- but brining and cooking breast-side down make all the difference… Michelle [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-brine-my-turkey-will-it-be-too-salty/143155.md?page=1)