Herb-Brined Turkey with Make-Ahead Gravy

Brined turkey first made a splash a few years ago in the pages of Cook’s Illustrated, thanks to a recipe in Jean Anderson ‘s The Food of Portugal (with a few tips from kosher butchers along the way).  The brining concept fooled many cooks into thinking that their turkey was juicier, and a new favorite turkey method was born.  I am not a fan of the added flavors (your turkey may taste more like a ham than poultry) and the logistics can be daunting. For my money, if you want a brined turkey, buy a kosher or “self-basting” one, as both have already been treated with salt.  And, as anyone who has brined turkey knows, finding room in the refrigerator can be a hassle, although I have a solution for that one.  But, for those of you who want to try it and shape your own opinion, here’s a recipe that I have taught often in my classes with great success.  And I has another interesting aspect–make-ahead gravy.

• I fibbed about the recipe’s success in my classes, as it is not universally loved. The public has become salt-conscious, if not salt-phobic. Some people don’t like the extra seasoning, and find the turkey meat too salty. And the brine firms the meat to give it a texture that some find odd. Don’t kid yourself–brining does not make a juicier bird. You are tasting salted water, not turkey juices. Critics of the brining method argue that you might as well buy a frozen (or as I said above, kosher or self-basting) bird, which has also been treated with salted water. Admittedly, brining is insurance against a dry bird.
• This method only works with fresh turkeys. I repeat–self-basting, frozen, or kosher turkeys have already been salted, so don’t use them for this method. If you are spending the money on a beautiful, organically-raised turkey, I would think twice about brining, as it changes the natural flavor of the bird. I like this method best for commercially-raised fresh turkeys, especially generic supermarket brand birds.
• You’ll need a container big enough to hold your turkey. You will see recipes that require a huge (minimum 5-gallon) stockpot, but few home cooks have such a utensil. Also, the combined weights of the turkey, brine, and pot could challenge the stability of your refrigerator shelf, especially if it is plastic. I now contain the turkey and brine in jumbo oven-roasting bags, then keep the brined turkey chilled in an ice chest.
• To estimate the amount of brine, place the turkey in the bags in the ice chest, pour cold water into the bags to completely cover the bird, then measure the water. The proportions in the recipe are for 2 gallons water, but the amount of brine can be adjusted as needed. For each 2 quarts water, use 1/4 cup plain salt, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons each rosemary, thyme, and sage, 3/4 teaspoon each marjoram, celery seed, and peppercorns.
• Use plain, noniodized table salt for the brine. Kosher salt is problematic, because the crystal size changes from brand to brand. If you wish, use twice as much kosher salt by volume, or 2 cups kosher salt for 1 cup plain salt. Fine sea salt often has a fine grain than iodized, so you need slightly less (about 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons), if substituting for plain salt. I know that many cooks have their favorite salt, but in this case, I find that for consistency’s sake, plain salt is the best choice, and that a particular salt’s subtleties are muddled with the flavors of the turkey and herbs.
• The turkey must be well-chilled during brining. Surround the brined turkey in its bag with lots of ice cubes (buy bags of ice if you don’t want to deplete your freezer’s supply), or use frozen blue-ice packs.
• Salt Alerts: Don’t run the risk of the risk of stuffing the turkey, as the salty juices could ruin it. Instead, loosely fill the cavities with seasoning vegetables and bake the stuffing on the side. As the pan drippings will be seasoned by the brine, as well, they could be too salty to guarantee palatable gravy. For this recipe, gradually add the drippings to the gravy as a coloring/seasoning agent.