Thanksgiving in April
Stuck at home - why not roast a whole turkey? Turkey stock, turkey pot pie, turkey chili, list goes on..
Sharing my Citrus Black Tea Turkey Brine
Turkey Brine:
14# turkey - thawed over 2 days in fridge
2 quarts water (divided)
2 quarts black tea (divided)
Peel of 2 oranges
Peel of 2 lemons
4 bay leaves
2 tablespoons black peppercorns
1 cup kosher salt
Citrus Butter:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
zest of 1 orange
3 tablespoons mixture of orange and lemon juice
Unwrap turkey, remove giblets (save for stock) and place into pot you will brine in overnight. In this case, I used 2 trash bags in a cooler with ice.
Heat 1 quart water, 1 quart black tea, orange and lemon peel, bay leaves, peppercorns, and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, or until salt is dissolved, then cool.
Pour mixture over turkey. Add 1 quart cold water and 1 quart cold black tea. Make sure turkey is completely submerged - if not, add a little more water. Birds float - you can brine breast down, or add weights like a plate or casserole dish to keep in solution. Brine 12-24 hours.
Remove turkey, pat dry with paper towels.
To make the citrus butter, I just whipped in the orange zest and juice of lemon and orange that I used for the brine. I stuffed the turkey with onions, apples, and oranges and filled the roasting pan with 3 cups water.