Dry Brined Turkey W Herb Butter Food

DRY-BRINED HERBED TURKEY

Steps:

• The day before roasting the turkey, remove the neck and giblets and reserve for gravy (see below). Pat the turkey dry with paper towels and put on a rimmed baking sheet.
• Combine 1/4 cup salt, the sugar, 1 tablespoon each rosemary, sage and thyme, the celery seeds and 2 teaspoons pepper in a spice grinder. Pulse until the herbs are finely chopped and the salt is pale green. Rub the turkey inside and out with the salt mixture, rubbing some under the skin of the breasts. Refrigerate, uncovered, at least 8 hours or overnight.
• Position an oven rack in the lowest position (remove the other racks); preheat to 350 degrees F. Rinse the turkey well and pat dry with paper towels. Stuff the cavity of the turkey with the herb sprigs, carrot, celery and shallots. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine. Put the turkey breast-side up on a rack set in a large roasting pan and tuck the wings under the body. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Pour the wine over the turkey, then brush all over with the melted butter. Roast the turkey 1 hour, then baste with the pan drippings, adding up to 1/2 cup water to the pan if the drippings are getting too dark. Continue to roast the turkey, basting every 30 minutes and adding more water to the pan if needed, until the skin is golden brown and a thermometer inserted into the thigh registers 160 degrees F, 1 1/2 to 2 more hours. Transfer the turkey to a cutting board and let rest 30 minutes before carving; reserve the drippings for the gravy.

BRINED, HERB ROASTED TURKEY

Steps:

• For the Brine:
• To make the brining solution, dissolve the salt and sugar in 2 gallons of cold water in a nonreactive container (such as a clean bucket or large stockpot, or a clean, heavy-duty, food grade plastic storage bag). Add the oranges, lemons, thyme, and rosemary. Note: if you have a big turkey and need more brine than this, use 1/2 cup salt and 1/2 cup brown sugar for every gallon of water.
• Remove the neck, giblets, and liver from the cavity of the turkey and reserve for the gravy. Rinse the turkey inside and out under cold running water.
• Soak the turkey in the brine, covered and refrigerated, for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Remove the turkey from the brine and rinse well under cold running water. Pat dry with paper towels both inside and out. Place turkey, breast side up, in a large, heavy roasting pan. Rub breast side with orange segments and rub on all sides with the butter, stuffing some underneath the skin. Season lightly inside and out with salt and pepper. Stuff the turkey with the onion, remaining orange, celery, carrot, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, sage and parsley. Loosely tie the drumsticks together with kitchen string. Roast the turkey, uncovered, breast side down for 1 hour.
• Remove from the oven, turn, and baste with 1/2 cup stock. Continue roasting with the breast side up until an instant-read meat thermometer registers 165 degrees F when inserted into the largest section of thigh (avoiding the bone), about 2 3/4 to 3 hours total cooking time. Baste the turkey once every hour with 1/2 to 3/4 cup chicken or turkey stock.
• Remove from the oven and place on a platter. Tent with aluminum foil and let rest for 20 minutes before carving.
• For the turkey broth:
• Heat the oil in a large heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the turkey neck, heart, and gizzard to the pan and saute until just beginning to brown, about 1 minute. Add the chopped vegetables and bay leaf to the pan and saute until soft, about 2 minutes. Pour the stock and 3 cups of water into the pan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer until the stock is reduced to 4 cups, about 1 hour, adding the chopped liver to the pan during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Strain the stock into a clean pot or large measuring cup. Pull the meat off the neck, chop the neck meat and giblets, and set aside.
• For the pan gravy:
• Pour the reserved turkey pan juices into a glass-measuring cup and skim off the fat.
• Place the roasting pan on 2 stovetop burners over medium heat add the pan juice and 1 cup turkey broth and the white wine to the pan, and deglaze the pan, stirring to scrape any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the remaining 3 cup of broth and bring to a simmer, then transfer to a measuring cup. In a large heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium high heat. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, to make a light roux. Add the hot stock, whisking constantly, then simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes.
• Add the reserved neck meat and giblets to the pan and adjust seasoning, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Pour into a gravy boat and serve.
• Slice and serve guests with desired sides.

DRY-BRINED ROASTED TURKEY

Steps:

• The day before, remove the giblets from the turkey cavity and pat dry with paper towels.
• Combine the salt, sugar and pepper in a medium bowl. Sprinkle the mixture inside the turkey cavity and all over the outside skin, using all of it. Put the turkey on a large baking sheet or platter and refrigerate uncovered overnight.
• The next day, adjust a rack in the oven to the lowest position and remove the other racks. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Set a roasting rack in a roasting pan.
• Rinse the turkey very well and pat dry thoroughly. Stuff the cavity with the herbs, bay leaves, garlic and onion. Put the turkey on the roasting rack, breast-side up, and brush with half of the butter. Tent with aluminum foil.
• Roast the turkey for 2 hours, then remove the foil and brush with the remaining butter. Increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees F and continue to roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh registers 165 degrees F, about 45 minutes more. Let the turkey rest for 20 minutes, then remove and discard the herbs, bay leaves, garlic and onion before carving.

ROAST TURKEY WITH HERB BUTTER

Steps:

• Let the turkey sit out at room temperature for about 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Remove the packet of neck and giblets from the turkey and set aside. Cut away any fatty pieces near the cavity or neck and discard. Pat the turkey dry inside and out with paper towels and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper inside and out.
• Combine the butter, chives, lemon juice, parsley, cayenne and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper in a medium bowl with a rubber spatula. Loosen the skin over the turkey breast, push half of the butter mixture under the skin and spread over the breast meat. Rub the skin of the entire turkey with the rest of the butter mixture. Stuff the cavity with the lemon quarters and parsley sprigs. Tie the legs together with twine. Tuck the wings under the body and put the turkey breast-side up on a rack in a roasting pan.
• Roast until the turkey begins to turn golden, about 25 minutes. Loosely tent the breast with foil, then reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Continue roasting, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thigh joint reaches about 155 degrees F. Remove the foil and continue roasting until the thigh reaches 165 degrees F, about 30 minutes more. Transfer the turkey and rack to a cutting board and let rest about 30 minutes.
• When ready to serve, discard the lemons and parsley from the cavity before carving.

HERB-BRINED TURKEY

Steps:

• In a stockpot, combine the salt, brown sugar, sage, thyme, rosemary and 2 quarts water. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir until salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from the heat. Add the cold water to cool the brine to room temperature., Place a turkey-size oven roasting bag inside a second roasting bag; add turkey. Carefully pour cooled brine into bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible; seal bags and turn to coat. Place in a roasting pan. Refrigerate for 12-24 hours, turning occasionally., Drain and discard brine; rinse turkey and pat dry. Tie drumsticks together. Place the remaining ingredients in a food processor; cover and process until smooth. With fingers, carefully loosen skin from turkey breast; rub half of the butter mixture under skin. Secure skin to underside of breast with toothpicks. Rub remaining butter mixture over skin., Place turkey, breast side up, on a rack in a roasting pan. Bake at 450° for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 325°; bake 3-1/4 to 3-3/4 hours longer or until thermometer reads 180°, basting twice during the last 30 minutes of cooking. Cover loosely with foil if turkey browns too quickly., Remove turkey to a serving platter; cover and let stand for 20 minutes before carving.