Brined Thanksgiving Turkey

Ingredients

• Servings: 1
• 4 (32 ounce) containers chicken broth
• 1 cup apple juice (optional)
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons dried sage
• 4 peppercorns
• 4 red apples, halved
• 5 cloves garlic, crushed
• 10 pounds ice cubes, or as needed
• 1 (20 pound) turkey whole turkey - thawed, neck and giblets removed
• 3 apples, cored and quartered
• 1 onion, cut into 8 wedges
• 3 cloves garlic
• 6 fresh sage leaves
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, or as needed

Recipe

Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 6 hrs 30 mins

Ready Time: 7 hrs


• stir chicken broth, apple juice, brown sugar, salt, dried sage, and peppercorns together in a large stock pot; add apple halves and crushed garlic cloves. bring the mixture just to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar and salt. remove from heat immediately.
• pour enough ice into a large food-safe container to be about half full. pour chicken broth mixture over the ice; stir to cool liquid completely and evenly.
• gently lower turkey into the liquid with the breast facing down.
• brine turkey 24 to 36 hours, adding ice as needed to keep the brine and turkey cold.
• preheat oven to 500 degrees f (260 degrees c).
• remove turkey from the brine and rinse well with cold water. pat turkey dry with paper towels.
• mix apple quarters, onion wedges, whole garlic cloves, and fresh sage leaves in a bowl; loosely stuff into cavity of turkey. move the turkey to a shallow roasting pan. lightly coat the turkey's skin with olive oil.
• bake the turkey in the preheated oven until the skin on the breast of the turkey is golden brown, about 30 minutes.
• reduce heat to 350 degrees f (175 degrees c), cover turkey with aluminum foil, and continue roasting the turkey until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 6 hours. an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh should read 180 degrees f (85 degrees c). remove the turkey from the oven, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.