Brining has been very popular for some years in recipes for meats that tend to get dried out. According to Fine Cooking, turkey, pork and shrimp are in the most need of moisturizing.
A mild salt solution enters the meat (which weighs more after brining), and also starts to denature the meat proteins, which makes it more tender. Small cuts and shrimp should only be brined for 1/2 hour or so. Turkeys require 12-14 hours. In the refrigerator.
My previous brining experience has been when I have bought 5-10 pounds of shrimp from my friend Connie. After I clean them, I put 6-8 shrimp into a sandwich bag, and then cover them with salt water and seal them. I put the baggies on a tray in the freezer, and later remove the tray and thaw the shrimp when I am ready to eat them. They are plump and juicy.
This Thanksgiving, I made a 7.5 lb. turkey breast for my folks and me. This is the breast meat of one turkey, cleverly fashioned around the rib bones to look like a little turkey. The thawed breast fit perfectly in a stock pot, and on Thanksgiving Day, I soaked it in a gallon of water to which I had added one cup of salt and one cup of sugar. I found space in the refrigerator and let it sit for 5 hours, after which I rinsed it, drained it and patted it dry. I put some salt and pepper on the skin, and rubbed it down with butter, then put it rib side down in a roasting pan, put about 1/2 cup of canned chicken broth in the bottom to keep the pan juices from burning.
You can also add spices to the brine if you desire, but I wanted to try it plain.
The recipe I used said to put the breast in a 450 degree oven for 15 minutes, then rotate the pan and cook it for another 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 325 degrees and continueto roast it until a meat thermometer register 170 degrees, 30-45 more minutes.
Well, my folks were late, and I wanted the skin a little darker than it was at 170 degrees, so it cooked for about 2 1/2 hours, and came out a golden brown. It was 185 or 190 degrees on the thermometer. I was a bit worried.
If the proof is in the eating, then this was proof that brining works. Everyone raved about the turkey, even my Mom, who is no big turkey fan. The brining did not noticeably affect the turkey taste or texture, but the meat was very moist and delicious. And it was just the right size for three people to eat. There were leftovers, but not so many that we'll run out of ways to cook them.
It's a bit more of a challenge for those brining a 24 pound turkey. But if you have room in your fridge to begin with, you can buy a brining bag (available from Williams-Sonoma, 2 for $10). You can put the turkey in the bag, slip it back into its slot in the refrigerator, and add your brine. When it's time to remove it, you can drain the brine out into a bucket, rather than throwing your back out trying to carry an unwieldy turkey/brine combo to the sink.
[Illustration from the Calor BBQ Club. Accompanied by a recipe for brined turkey breast. I didn't use hot water, nor did I add the spices. You know...I did what I described up top.)
Sugar too? That was a surprise.
Posted by: Joan | November 27, 2006 at 06:55 PM