Brined Turkey and Sausage Stuffing

Submitted by Angela Marie

"Since I gave a lecture or a class on brining, and since it is close to Thanksgiving, I thought I'd give a real Recipe for Brining a Turkey/Chicken along with a very good unusual Dressing. Easy, Fast Delicious. And Gormet all the way!!!"

 

• Ready In: 27hrs
• Ingredients: 15
• Serves: 8-12

ingredients

• brine

• 1 gallon apple cider
• 2 quarts water
• 1 cup kosher salt
• 3⁄4 cup sugar
• 2 whole cloves
• 1 tablespoon peppercorn
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 small dried hot red chili peppers
• 2 tablespoons thyme
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 turkey, Brined
• 12 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup sage, chopped
• salt, DO NOT ADD ANY
• pepper, to taste

directions

1. Combine first ten ingredients in a large pot and stir well until sugar and salt are dissolved. Set aside.
2. Double-line a very large (about 16-qt)bowl with two 13 gallon plastic bags. Opening one inside the other and draping excess plastic down around the sides of the bowl. May also use an ice chest with Ice in it.
3. Rinse your Turkey inside and out, then place Turkey in the prepared plastic-liined bowl.
4. Pour brine mixture over and around turkey.
5. Carefully draw up and gather tops of bags together, eliminationg air spaces above brining liquid. make sure to seal bags with twist-ties or clips.
6. Refrigerate turkey in brine for 18/24 hours.
7. ( You can cut the amount of brine and container and do the very same thing for a Chicken making sure the Brine covers the Bird fully. Yummy.).
8. Take the Brined Turkey/Chicken out of the Brine and throw away the Brine.
9. Take next ingredients and mix well and after, Washing and Patting the Bird Dry. iT IS BEST TO WASH AND PAT DRY TWO TIMES. Rub with the mix.
10. In a preheated 350 degree oven and setting rack at lowest position.
11. Tuck the wings of the Turkey.
12. I stuff mine with onions, Garlic, Oranges sometimes even sliced Lemons. etc. You can even put Fresh Rosemary or Fresh Sage into the cavity. Use your imagination.
13. Tie legs loosely with Butchers String to keep the Stuffing Items from falling out.
14. Put Turkey/Chicken on a shallow rack in a hotel pan or a roasting pan deep enough to hold drippings.
15. Begin Roasting.
16. Then: BASTE BASTE BASTE WITH THE SAUCE. Stop Basting the final 20 minutes of cooking.
17. If the Turkey/Chicken browns too quickly, cover loosely with aluminum foil.
18. Cook for only 2-2 and 1/2 hours.
19. PUT A MEAT THERMOMETER INTO THE THICK PART OF THE THIGH. NOT TOUCHING A BONE.
20. REMOVE TURKEY AT 160 DEGREES. DO NOT USE THE POP UP IN THE TURKEY.
21. Pull Turkey out of oven and tent with foil for 20, (twenty mihnutes) minutes before serving or even cutting.
22. Turkey will continue to cook and will achieve the level of 180 degrees in the next 20 minutes.
23. Pulling the Bird out of the oven when the Pop-Up that is supplied with the bird, it will be 180 degreees, and when finished cooking during the resting stage, the bird will go as high as 200 or 210 in temperature.
24. Bingo, DRY MEAT.
25. After Turkey has been removed from pan, pour off accumulated fat from the roasting pan, Deglaze with white wine and add those fortified drippings to the gravy for more flavor.
26. The Sausage Dressing for this meal is located under my "recipe #192126" Turkey/Chicken Sausage Dressing.