Kittencal's Best Brown Sugar Turkey Brine

Kittencalskitchen's Note:

This brine is enough for up to a 20-pound whole turkey and will produce the most juiciest and delicious bird you will ever have, with this brine you will taste only the turkey not any extra herbs or flavorings that are added in to some brines --- I use my food-safe picnic cooler to brine my turkey in it works quite well, you might want to purchase one if you plan on brining your turkey on a regular basis, and you will once you have tried this method just make certain to purchase one that is food-safe --- you may omit the garlic but I strongly suggest to add it --- you must use only kosher salt not regular table salt --- if desired after brining continue with my recipe#199612

• Total Time: 24 hrs
• Prep Time: 24 hrs
• Cook Time: 0 mins

Ingredients:

Yield: 32 cups (a ...

• 32 cups warm water (2 gallons)
• 1 cup kosher salt (must use kosher salt ONLY)
• 1 ½ cups light brown sugar (well-packed)
• 2 tablespoons black peppercorns (can use 1 tablespoon coarse ground black pepper)
• 3 -4 tablespoons fresh coarsely chopped garlic (or slice the cloves into thirds)
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (optional)
• 1 whole turkey (up to 20 pounds)

Directions:

1. In a large bucket or container mix together the warm water with brown sugar and salt; stir until NO kosher salt and sugar granules remain in the water (make certain to use very warm water so that the salt and suagr will dissolve easily and completely).
2. Add in Worcestershire sauce, peppercorns, and garlic; stir until the Worcestershire sauce is combined.
3. Cool the water until almost room temperature.
4. Wash the turkey inside and out with cold water, then place in the brine (if the brine does not quite cover the turkey, then place it breast-side up to start, then turn it over after a couple of hours later).
5. Place in refrigerator for 24 hours,.
6. Remove the turkey from the brine and rinse the turkey THOROUGHLY under cold running water.
7. Pat dry with paper towels then cover and refrigerate if not preparing right away or continue with my turkey recipe (#199612).

Reviews

[Jenya G]

We used this brine on a 7 pound bone in turkey breast for Thanksgiving. We rubbed the turkey with butter, stuffed the cavity with fresh thyme, onion, and celery, and brushed it with pure maple syrup during the last hour.The skin cas crisp and golden, and the meat was moist and tender. The maple really highlighted the brown sugar in the brine. Thank you for such a delicious start for our holiday dinner!

[Potatohead]

Wow, this is great. We cut the recipe in half, and used it on a turkey breast rather than a whole turkey. We also did it on the rotissere on the gas grill. Browned up nice; and the 7-8 pound breast took about 1 1/2 hours with medium heat. So juicy! Thanks

[Denise!]

This worked out very well for us. I liked that I had all the brine ingredients in the house as I decided to brine at the last hour and didn't have such things as apple juice or maple in the house. I didn't have a large container, so I just used one of my crisper drawers and then flipped the turkey. Our turkey was moist and delicious, thanks for the recipe.