David Dyer-Bennet wrote: > >Erik Dahl <eriktdahl at yahoo.com> writes: > >> David Dyer-Bennet (>) and I (>>) wrote: >> >> >> This year I'm brining the turkey again, because osmosis is a wonderful >> >> thing. If you've never soaked the bird in such a solution, I heartily >> >> recommend it. It keeps it moist throughout the long cooking time and >> >> adds incredible flavor. >> >> > Is this the politically correct alternative to injecting it with >> > broth? >> >> I don't know about "politically correct," and I've never injected a turkey with >> broth, but my instinct is that injection wouldn't work as well, because it >> would puncture the skin, allowing juices to seep out during cooking, and it >> would be very hit-and-miss between the parts that were flavored and those that >> weren't. > >I'm thinking of the fuss people make about commercial frozen turkeys >being brine-injected. One of the articles I read said that if you can't find the time to brine a turkey, one of those pre-injected things might actually work better than one that isn't. I don't remember where I saw that, though. > >> Basically, by immersing the turkey in a salty solution for many hours, the >> water in the meat and the water in the bucket want to reach equilibrium, so the >> salty water gets sucked into the turkey, bringing all the flavors in with it. >> Then they get trapped there. > >Yep. Pretty clearly the same idea. (Mind you, I'm not using this to >diss brining the turkey; more to diss whinging about broth injection.) > >> Here's the brine I'm using (taken directly from Alton Brown's Good Eats): >> >> 1 cup kosher salt (has more flavor, but regular salt will work) WARNING: Kosher salt and regular salt are very different and you can't substitute them one-for-one. Kosher salt is preferred by a lot of chefs because it dissolves more readily and doesn't have any additives. I believe that regular salt is "saltier" than kosher salt and therefore you'd want to use less of it, but unfortunately my books are all at home and I can't find anything useful on-line. >> 1/2 cup light brown sugar >> 1 gallon vegetable stock >> 1 tablespoon black peppercorns >> 1/2 tablespoon allspice berries >> 1/2 tablespoon candied ginger >> >> Combine all these in a stockpot and bring to a boil. That's interesting. I've brined chickens before using kosher salt and white sugar dissolved in water, and I never had to boil the mixture ahead of time. As I said above, kosher salt dissolves really quickly. There are lots of recipes that call for many spices besides salt and sugar, but I've also seen articles saying that the additions don't really do much more for the flavor. What I've noticed after brining poultry is that it ends up being moister and a little saltier all through. The brined turkey had the most tender white meat I've ever experienced. [rest of brine recipe snipped] > >All looks very reasonable and hopeful. > >> The recipe goes on to talk about roasting it with aromatics (an apple, an >> onion, and cinnamon) in the cavity instead of stuffing, since the stuffing can >> dry out the bird and doesn't contribute as much to the flavor. Basting is also >> discouraged, since opening the oven a lot lengthens the cooking time and all >> the flavor should already be inside the skin. You can find the recipe at >> http://www.foodtv.com/foodtv/recipe/0,6255,8865,00.html. > >Ooh. Lost me on the stuffing bit. The purpose of the turkey is >largely to provide flavor to the stuffing, which is the centerpiece of >the meal. It's mere coincidence that I actually like the turkey. I'm with David on this one. Also, my mother's traditional stuffing has large quantities of chopped carrot, onion, and celery, so that probably does contribute to the bird's flavor. You might be interested in a book called _The Perfect Recipe_. It doesn't have a lot of recipes, but each one is accompanied by a long article discussing all of the alternatives that the author tried before deciding that she'd found the perfect way of making roast turkey (or meatloaf, or chicken soup). Everything from there that I've tried has been superb. -- Adina