This past weekend I decided to test dry brining my turkey. It turned out wonderful and I think I’m a fan of this new brining method. At least, it’s new for me. If you’ve never attempted a dry brine, here’s my experience along with a video below.
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Recipe Summary
The dry brining process is quite simple. After cleaning the turkey and patting it down with paper towels, you coat it with the kosher salt and let it sit in the fridge for a minimum of 8 hours and a max of 18 hours.
I recommend 12 hours personally for the turkey.
Ingredients
- Kosher or Coarse salt
- the turkey
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1. First start by cleaning your turkey. I rub regular table salt over it and then rinse off all the salt. Make sure to remove all the gizzards etc.
Step 2. Using paper towels, pat dry the entire bird – inside and outside.
Step 3. Next, sprinkle 1 tsp of the coarse salt on the inside of the bird and rub it around.
Step 4. Then use the remaining coarse salt and rub it all around on the outside of the turkey, making sure to get the legs, thighs, etc.
Step 5. Once done, place the turkey on a baking sheet or pan and place in the refrigerator uncovered or at least loosely covered with parchment.
Step 6. After 8-12 hours (some say 18 hours, but I think 12 is a good max point), remove turkey from the fridge and season as usual. Do NOT rinse the bird.
Your turkey is now brined!
PRO TIP: You’ll notice that the salt is absorbed into the turkey and is no longer visible. This is normal. You’ll see a close up of it in my video.
PRO TIP #2: Let the turkey sit for an hour before cooking. This allows the colder parts of the turkey to even out in temperature before placing in the oven.
You can also check out my post for how I cook my turkey with an olive oil rub.
Dry Brine Video
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Recipe Card for Dry Brining a Turkey
Dry Brining a Turkey
Ingredients
- 1 tsp kosher or coarse salt for the inside of turkey
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons kosher or coarse salt for the outside of turkey
- 12 lb turkey
Instructions
- First start by cleaning your turkey. I rub regular table salt over it and then rinse off all the salt. Make sure to remove all the gizzards etc.
- Using paper towels, pat dry the entire bird – inside and outside.
- Next, sprinkle 1 tsp of the coarse salt on the inside of the bird and rub it around.
- Then use the remaining coarse salt and rub it all around on the outside of the turkey, making sure to get the legs, thighs, etc.
- Once done, place the turkey on a baking sheet or pan and place in the refrigerator uncovered or at least loosely covered with parchment.
- After 8-12 hours (some say 18 hours, but I think 12 is a good max point), remove turkey from the fridge and season as usual. Do NOT rinse the bird.
- Your turkey is now brined!
Video
Notes
- For my traditional simple recipe for roasting a turkey using olive oil instead of butter, check out my roast turkey recipe here.
Nutrition
I hope you’ve enjoyed this recipe! If you’ve tried and made any changes to make it your own (or kept it all the same), let me know in the comments below!
Liz
dry brining is the bomb. i wanted to share the one i found years ago and have been doing it since.
1/2 cup kosher salt, 2 T black peppercorns, 2 tsp coriander seeds, 2 T rosemary, 6 fresh sage leaves, 2 T fresh thyme, 2 T light brown sugar, 1/2 cup lemon zest, 2 T orange zest, 1 cup butter at room temp, 2 from https://www.keyingredient.com/recipes/2694405032/dry-brined-turkey/. 3 full days before pulse all ingred in processor several times and rub all over turkey and put in refrig uncovered. full recipe on above mentioned website.
Thanks Diana! I agree, I doubt I’ll ever go back to a water brine! Your recipe sounds delicious. 3 days seems like a long time for the brine – do you ever cut the time short? I’d be concerned the turkey would get too salty?
Liz
I have never brined a turkey before, so this was an experiment. The dry brine was so easy to do. The turkey turned out so tender and the skin was a perfect browned. I’ll definitely brine my turkeys from now on, even though I usually cook just one a year.
I’m so happy that the brine was so successful! I am a fan of dry-brines now too!
Liz