I am a huge fan of this now! Kudos to Christine for bringing it up. My
turkey seemed to take longer to cook than I expected, but it was so
moist and flavorful that it was worth the little extra work. Very
little extra work. I started roasting it at 10 this morning and it
finished by 2.

I cooked the meal all by myself for just my mom and me but it was enough
to feed probably our whole family that usually gets together for holiday
meals. Turkey, mashed potatoes, spinach with onions and garlic, broccoli
with cauliflower, gravy (a little thin but good), rolls and stuffing,
which REALLY turned out good cooked in the turkey. No cranberry, and no
pies. The star this year was the moist turkey. Even my mom who is
sensitive to too much salt said it wasn't salty.

Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Americans on this group, and HTTR!!

On 11/22/2012 7:25 PM, Sqwertz wrote:
> On Thu, 22 Nov 2012 19:05:57 -0500, Cheryl wrote:
>
>> I am a huge fan of this now! Kudos to Christine for bringing it up. My
>> turkey seemed to take longer to cook than I expected, but it was so
>> moist and flavorful that it was worth the little extra work. Very
>> little extra work.
>
> I salted mine 18 hours beforehand AND cooked it upside down and this
> is the most moist turkey breast I've ever had. I don't attribute it
> so much to the salting (most turkeys nowadays are already injected
> with salt), but to the right-side-down method. I turned it breast
> side up last 15 minutes to broil and get the skin crisp.
>
> Photoworthy, no. But it would win any test and tenderness test.
>

I roasted mine "upside down" too. But then, that's how my mom has
always done it, so I thought that was normal. I used one of those
disposable roasting pans from the grocery store, Hefty I think, and
wouldn't you know it, it sprung a leak near the end of cooking. I took
it out to flip the bird to get the breast side browned for the last half
hour or so, and when I went to put it back in the oven I noticed a pool
of turkey grease on the counter. So I lost a lot of the drippings, and
had to put the roaster on a cookie sheet to finish up. It was plenty
drippy, so I had enough for a good amount of gravy.

"Cheryl" > wrote in message
. com...
> I am a huge fan of this now! Kudos to Christine for bringing it up. My
> turkey seemed to take longer to cook than I expected, but it was so moist
> and flavorful that it was worth the little extra work. Very little extra
> work. I started roasting it at 10 this morning and it finished by 2.
>
> I cooked the meal all by myself for just my mom and me but it was enough
> to feed probably our whole family that usually gets together for holiday
> meals. Turkey, mashed potatoes, spinach with onions and garlic, broccoli
> with cauliflower, gravy (a little thin but good), rolls and stuffing,
> which REALLY turned out good cooked in the turkey. No cranberry, and no
> pies. The star this year was the moist turkey. Even my mom who is
> sensitive to too much salt said it wasn't salty.
>
> Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Americans on this group, and HTTR!!

I have never brined a turkey, does the salt not draw out the moisture and
make it dry?

--
--
http://www.shop.helpforheroes.org.uk/

"Sqwertz" > wrote in message
...
> On Thu, 22 Nov 2012 19:05:57 -0500, Cheryl wrote:
>
>> I am a huge fan of this now! Kudos to Christine for bringing it up. My
>> turkey seemed to take longer to cook than I expected, but it was so
>> moist and flavorful that it was worth the little extra work. Very
>> little extra work.
>
> I salted mine 18 hours beforehand AND cooked it upside down and this
> is the most moist turkey breast I've ever had. I don't attribute it
> so much to the salting (most turkeys nowadays are already injected
> with salt), but to the right-side-down method. I turned it breast
> side up last 15 minutes to broil and get the skin crisp.

That is now I cook my turkey and chickens too. No brining though.
--
--
http://www.shop.helpforheroes.org.uk/

On 11/23/2012 4:34 AM, Ophelia wrote:
>
>
> "Cheryl" > wrote in message
> . com...
>> I am a huge fan of this now! Kudos to Christine for bringing it up.
>> My turkey seemed to take longer to cook than I expected, but it was so
>> moist and flavorful that it was worth the little extra work. Very
>> little extra work. I started roasting it at 10 this morning and it
>> finished by 2.
>>
>> I cooked the meal all by myself for just my mom and me but it was
>> enough to feed probably our whole family that usually gets together
>> for holiday meals. Turkey, mashed potatoes, spinach with onions and
>> garlic, broccoli with cauliflower, gravy (a little thin but good),
>> rolls and stuffing, which REALLY turned out good cooked in the
>> turkey. No cranberry, and no pies. The star this year was the moist
>> turkey. Even my mom who is sensitive to too much salt said it wasn't
>> salty.
>>
>> Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Americans on this group, and HTTR!!
>
> I have never brined a turkey, does the salt not draw out the moisture
> and make it dry?
>
I don't really know what contributed to this moist turkey and can't say
it was the brining, but it sure turned out nicely. I haven't roasted
enough turkeys in my life to have anything to compare it to.

Sqwertz wrote:
>
> On Thu, 22 Nov 2012 19:05:57 -0500, Cheryl wrote:
>
> > I am a huge fan of this now! Kudos to Christine for bringing it up. My
> > turkey seemed to take longer to cook than I expected, but it was so
> > moist and flavorful that it was worth the little extra work. Very
> > little extra work.
>
> I salted mine 18 hours beforehand AND cooked it upside down and this
> is the most moist turkey breast I've ever had. I don't attribute it
> so much to the salting (most turkeys nowadays are already injected
> with salt), but to the right-side-down method. I turned it breast
> side up last 15 minutes to broil and get the skin crisp.
>
> Photoworthy, no. But it would win any test and tenderness test.
>
> -sw

I'm not sure brining or right side up (breast down) cooking have that
much to do with the moistness of the end product. I don't brine, roast
upside down, don't foil and I nearly always have a moist, tender result.
On the rare occasion I get a dry result, nothing has changed except for
the bird. I think sometimes you just get a dud.

On Fri, 23 Nov 2012 19:55:48 -0500, Cheryl >
wrote:

> I don't really know what contributed to this moist turkey and can't say
> it was the brining, but it sure turned out nicely. I haven't roasted
> enough turkeys in my life to have anything to compare it to.

The most turkeys I roast per year is one, so I do it very carefully to
not dry out the white meat. The turkey I had this T-day (not made by
me) had been brined. You couldn't tell it had been brined, except it
was the most tender and moist white meat of turkey that I've had in my
entire life. I need to ask her what her brine was because it tasted
just like turkey, not any other flavors (including salt or sugar).

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On Fri, 23 Nov 2012 18:16:57 -0700, Christine Dabney
> wrote:

> On Fri, 23 Nov 2012 19:55:48 -0500, Cheryl >
> wrote:
>
> >On 11/23/2012 4:34 AM, Ophelia wrote:
>
> >> I have never brined a turkey, does the salt not draw out the moisture
> >> and make it dry?
> >>
> >I don't really know what contributed to this moist turkey and can't say
> >it was the brining, but it sure turned out nicely. I haven't roasted
> >enough turkeys in my life to have anything to compare it to.
>
> Ophelia, read the article I posted.
> http://www.seriouseats.com/2012/11/t...nksgiving.html
>
I brined some almost one inch pork chops (from Trader Joe's) tonight
following a normal to less than normal amount of salt recipe and they
were too salty for me even after being rinsed off... so this is an
interesting article for me. Thanks!


--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On 11/23/2012 3:41 PM, Pete C. wrote:
>
> Sqwertz wrote:
>>
>> On Thu, 22 Nov 2012 19:05:57 -0500, Cheryl wrote:
>>
>>> I am a huge fan of this now! Kudos to Christine for bringing it up. My
>>> turkey seemed to take longer to cook than I expected, but it was so
>>> moist and flavorful that it was worth the little extra work. Very
>>> little extra work.
>>
>> I salted mine 18 hours beforehand AND cooked it upside down and this
>> is the most moist turkey breast I've ever had. I don't attribute it
>> so much to the salting (most turkeys nowadays are already injected
>> with salt), but to the right-side-down method. I turned it breast
>> side up last 15 minutes to broil and get the skin crisp.
>>
>> Photoworthy, no. But it would win any test and tenderness test.
>>
>> -sw
>
> I'm not sure brining or right side up (breast down) cooking have that
> much to do with the moistness of the end product. I don't brine, roast
> upside down, don't foil and I nearly always have a moist, tender result.
> On the rare occasion I get a dry result, nothing has changed except for
> the bird. I think sometimes you just get a dud.
>

I think the most important factor is simply using a thermometer and not
over-cooking the turkey.

On 11/23/2012 7:45 PM, sf wrote:
> On Fri, 23 Nov 2012 19:55:48 -0500, Cheryl >
> wrote:
>
>> I don't really know what contributed to this moist turkey and can't say
>> it was the brining, but it sure turned out nicely. I haven't roasted
>> enough turkeys in my life to have anything to compare it to.
>
> The most turkeys I roast per year is one, so I do it very carefully to
> not dry out the white meat. The turkey I had this T-day (not made by
> me) had been brined. You couldn't tell it had been brined, except it
> was the most tender and moist white meat of turkey that I've had in my
> entire life. I need to ask her what her brine was because it tasted
> just like turkey, not any other flavors (including salt or sugar).
>

I've been brining my turkeys for years but it's likely that the practice
might not be possible these days since it seems that most turkeys are
injected with a salt solution. I used to be simple, the cheapest birds
would not be injected but that's changed. The reality is that you can't
brine one of these birds. My son's girlfriend's parents brined their
bird yesterday. My son said that was one salty bird. That's the breaks.

dsi1 wrote:
>
> I've been brining my turkeys for years but it's likely that the practice
> might not be possible these days since it seems that most turkeys are
> injected with a salt solution. It used to be simple, the cheapest birds
> would not be injected but that's changed. The reality is that you can't
> brine one of these birds.

Since brining does help a turkey, I'm sure that's why they inject even the
cheap turkeys now. I just looked on the package of mine and they used:
turkey broth, salt, sodium phosphate, sugar, and flavoring.

G.

dsi1 > wrote:
-snip-
>I think the most important factor is simply using a thermometer and not
>over-cooking the turkey.


I agree. Though I will say I [dry] brined for the first time this
year. I don't think it affected the turkey meat at all. but it
sure kicked the gravy up a notch. [or was that the saute'd criminis?]

I cook to 175 in the thigh- the plastic doody popped up about 20
minutes before I pulled it. It rested for 2 hours, tented, on top of
the stove while I cooked the bread and casseroles. Temp went up to
180- then was 135 when I started carving.

Jim

Jim Elbrecht wrote:
>
> dsi1 > wrote:
> -snip-
> >I think the most important factor is simply using a thermometer and not
> >over-cooking the turkey.
>
> I agree. Though I will say I [dry] brined for the first time this
> year. I don't think it affected the turkey meat at all. but it
> sure kicked the gravy up a notch. [or was that the saute'd criminis?]
>
> I cook to 175 in the thigh- the plastic doody popped up about 20
> minutes before I pulled it. It rested for 2 hours, tented, on top of
> the stove while I cooked the bread and casseroles. Temp went up to
> 180- then was 135 when I started carving.
>
> Jim

I rub a butter and seasoning mixture under the skin, and since it
contains salt, presumably that's giving a little "dry brine" effect
initially. I "baste" the exterior periodically with a stick of butter
just letting that melt and coat. It always seems to produce good
results.

sf wrote:
>
> On Fri, 23 Nov 2012 18:16:57 -0700, Christine Dabney
> > wrote:
>
> > On Fri, 23 Nov 2012 19:55:48 -0500, Cheryl >
> > wrote:
> >
> > >On 11/23/2012 4:34 AM, Ophelia wrote:
> >
> > >> I have never brined a turkey, does the salt not draw out the moisture
> > >> and make it dry?
> > >>
> > >I don't really know what contributed to this moist turkey and can't say
> > >it was the brining, but it sure turned out nicely. I haven't roasted
> > >enough turkeys in my life to have anything to compare it to.
> >
> > Ophelia, read the article I posted.
> > http://www.seriouseats.com/2012/11/t...nksgiving.html
> >
> I brined some almost one inch pork chops (from Trader Joe's) tonight
> following a normal to less than normal amount of salt recipe and they
> were too salty for me even after being rinsed off... so this is an
> interesting article for me. Thanks!

If you normally eat a low(er) sodium diet it doesn't take that much to
make the food taste like a salt lick. I use plenty of seasoning in my
cooking, but little salt, so sometimes eating out the salt content is
rather shocking.

sf > wrote:

>I brined some almost one inch pork chops (from Trader Joe's) tonight
>following a normal to less than normal amount of salt recipe and they
>were too salty for me even after being rinsed off...

I like brining pork chops, and the resulting salt level can be
a little high, especially if you're intending to eat a large
amount of pork chop.

In any case, I use a brine that's between 12:1 and 16:1 water:salt
by volume, and then I rinse them for several solid minutes under cold
running water. (A quick rinse will not do.)

So long as I cut back on salt in everything else on the same day,
and eat six or fewer ounces of pork chop, I do not feel over-salted.

Steve

On Sat, 24 Nov 2012 18:08:24 +0000 (UTC),
(Steve Pope) wrote:

> In any case, I use a brine that's between 12:1 and 16:1 water:salt
> by volume, and then I rinse them for several solid minutes under cold
> running water. (A quick rinse will not do.)

The recipes I looked at were a lot saltier than your solution, so I
guess that's part of the problem 12-16:1 is okay? I thought the
brine had to be salty or it wouldn't brine quickly. I only soaked
them for an hour+.

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On 11/23/2012 11:50 PM, Gary wrote:
> dsi1 wrote:
>>
>> I've been brining my turkeys for years but it's likely that the practice
>> might not be possible these days since it seems that most turkeys are
>> injected with a salt solution. It used to be simple, the cheapest birds
>> would not be injected but that's changed. The reality is that you can't
>> brine one of these birds.
>
> Since brining does help a turkey, I'm sure that's why they inject even the
> cheap turkeys now. I just looked on the package of mine and they used:
> turkey broth, salt, sodium phosphate, sugar, and flavoring.
>
> G.
>

I think they should use pumpkin pie spices for the flavoring.
Unfortunatelly, now that everybody's coming around to the idea of
brining, they're making it so you can't brine a turkey. That's the breaks.

On 11/24/2012 2:46 AM, Jim Elbrecht wrote:
> dsi1 > wrote:
> -snip-
>> I think the most important factor is simply using a thermometer and not
>> over-cooking the turkey.
>
>
> I agree. Though I will say I [dry] brined for the first time this
> year. I don't think it affected the turkey meat at all. but it
> sure kicked the gravy up a notch. [or was that the saute'd criminis?]
>
> I cook to 175 in the thigh- the plastic doody popped up about 20
> minutes before I pulled it. It rested for 2 hours, tented, on top of
> the stove while I cooked the bread and casseroles. Temp went up to
> 180- then was 135 when I started carving.
>

I over-cooked my turkey because I couldn't find my thermometer. Too bad!
I had to wing it used my guts to tell me when to remove it. A
thermometer will beat guts most times.

No matter, the bird was still good and we had a non-stressful
thanksgiving. I couldn't ask for more.

> Jim
>

On Sat, 24 Nov 2012 10:44:02 -0800, sf > wrote:

>On Sat, 24 Nov 2012 18:08:24 +0000 (UTC),
>(Steve Pope) wrote:
>
>> In any case, I use a brine that's between 12:1 and 16:1 water:salt
>> by volume, and then I rinse them for several solid minutes under cold
>> running water. (A quick rinse will not do.)
>
>The recipes I looked at were a lot saltier than your solution, so I
>guess that's part of the problem 12-16:1 is okay? I thought the
>brine had to be salty or it wouldn't brine quickly. I only soaked
>them for an hour+.
I wonder how long it takes for the exchange to take place? Maybe one
hour isn't enough.
I've never brined pork chops, so I don't know.
Janet US

sf > wrote:

>On Sat, 24 Nov 2012 18:08:24 +0000 (UTC),

>> In any case, I use a brine that's between 12:1 and 16:1 water:salt
>> by volume, and then I rinse them for several solid minutes under cold
>> running water. (A quick rinse will not do.)

>The recipes I looked at were a lot saltier than your solution, so I
>guess that's part of the problem 12-16:1 is okay? I thought the
>brine had to be salty or it wouldn't brine quickly. I only soaked
>them for an hour+.

I brine them for four hours.

12:1 by volume is pretty standard, but a recipe from Acme Chophouse
(San Francisco) states 16:1 by volume (which I think is a tad too dilute).

If you're doing it by weight, the same ratios are I think lower
numbers, which can confuse things.


Steve

On 11/24/2012 1:08 PM, Steve Pope wrote:
> sf > wrote:
>
>> I brined some almost one inch pork chops (from Trader Joe's) tonight
>> following a normal to less than normal amount of salt recipe and they
>> were too salty for me even after being rinsed off...
>
> I like brining pork chops, and the resulting salt level can be
> a little high, especially if you're intending to eat a large
> amount of pork chop.
>
> In any case, I use a brine that's between 12:1 and 16:1 water:salt
> by volume, and then I rinse them for several solid minutes under cold
> running water. (A quick rinse will not do.)
>
> So long as I cut back on salt in everything else on the same day,
> and eat six or fewer ounces of pork chop, I do not feel over-salted.

In the case of dry brine, does the water content you speak of include
what's inside the bird? The dry brine didn't produce neither overly
salted turkey nor overly salted drippings.

Cheryl > wrote:

>On 11/24/2012 1:08 PM, Steve Pope wrote:

>> I like brining pork chops, and the resulting salt level can be
>> a little high, especially if you're intending to eat a large
>> amount of pork chop.
>>
>> In any case, I use a brine that's between 12:1 and 16:1 water:salt
>> by volume, and then I rinse them for several solid minutes under cold
>> running water. (A quick rinse will not do.)
>>
>> So long as I cut back on salt in everything else on the same day,
>> and eat six or fewer ounces of pork chop, I do not feel over-salted.

>In the case of dry brine, does the water content you speak of include
>what's inside the bird?

My above statements apply to wet brining. I don't know jill about
dry brining. Until recently, I thought "dry brining" was an oxymoron.

In wet brining, the meat, fish or fowl is small enough compared to the
volume of brine that its own moisture does not materially dilute
the brine.

>The dry brine didn't produce neither overly
>salted turkey nor overly salted drippings.

Good to know.

Steve