I’ve been brining turkey for Thanksgiving each year for the past six years.  It makes a delicious, tender, juicy bird. And its not difficult to do! Here are instructions and some brine recipes for you to use this year.

To brine a turkey you will need a large pot that will hold the whole bird in the brine and a space in the frig large enough to store it for a day. You can improvise if your frig isn’t big enough.

Here are two ideas for containing the turkey while it brines:

1) I have used a large wash pan of ice and placed another bucket full of turkey and brine in it.

2) For the last three years I have used a large, new trash bag to put the bird and brine in. First I place a large clean trash bag in a large cooler. I put the defrosted turkey in the bag along with the brine liquid. Next I fill the cooler with ice all around the outside of the bag.  When the ice melts, I take the cooler to the back steps and let it drain, then fill it up with ice again.  You want to make sure the bird stays at or below 40*F.

You’ll want to keep the turkey in the brine for at least 24 hours so plan to defrost your turkey ahead of time. It takes about 3-4 days to defrost a frozen turkey. I usually keep it in the brine for 48 hours instead of 24.  That means I start a frozen turkey defrosting on Friday. By Monday the turkey is defrosted and I brine it until Wednesday.

I roast my turkey on Wednesday evening, cut it up and place it in a pan with extra broth. I seal the pan well and refrigerate it til Thursday. On Thursday while I’m baking other foods, I heat up the turkey meat.

Brining is simply soaking the turkey in a salt solution that has spices and flavors added to it. Brining a turkey imparts delicious flavor and moisture to the meat, it’s the best way to roast a turkey I think. More than that though, if the turkey gets left in the oven for an extra 10-15 minutes, the brining keeps it moist and flavorful. You can leave a turkey in the brine for up to 2 days, but usually just 24 hours will be sufficient to lend those delicious flavors to the meat.

I’ll walk you through brining, it’s not hard but you need to think about what your family likes before you start. Brines can be tailored to your taste. These are just a few brine flavors, there are hundreds out there. Check the internet for more.

The rule of thumb is: Use the basic brine and add the flavors your family likes!

First Make The Basic Brine:
Dissolve 1 cup table salt or 2 cups kosher salt in 2 gallons cold water in a large stockpot or clean bucket. Your pot or bucket must hold 6-8 gallons so that you can immerse the turkey. After you add the flavors, brine the turkey for 12-24 hours.

Now add the flavors you like. Here are some suggestions:

Honey Brine
1 ounce tender quick
1 cup honey
3 bay leaves
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp pickling spices

Traditional Turkey
1 -2 Tablespoons of each:
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Celery seed, ground
Sage
Thyme
Fresh ground black pepper

Spicy Brine
1/2 cup molasses
1-1/2 T crushed or minced garlic (or garlic powder)
1/2 T onion powder
1/4 cup pepper
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 oz maple flavoring

Another Spicy One
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup molasses
2 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp thyme
1 tbsp oregano

Apple Cider Brine
4 gal. apple cider INSTEAD OF WATER
1/2 cup kosher salt INSTEAD OF THE SALT IN THE BASIC BRINE
1 onion, diced
2 heads of garlic divided
1/2 cup fresh ginger, chopped
3 pcs. star anise
4 bay leaves
4 oranges quartered

Roasting The Brined Turkey

To roast the brined turkey, it is important to rinse the turkey well and to pat it dry with a clean cloth or paper towel before roasting.

Preheat the oven to 400* F. Paint the breast portion with soft butter, add some herbs if desired. cover the breast with a foil tent. Roast the turkey at 400* for 35 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 and roast the remaining time indicated on the packaging of the turkey. Uncover the breast the last 1 1/2 hours. The USDA recommends that you let the turkey breast come to 170* and the legs to 180* before removing the turkey from the oven. Remember however that the turkey will continue to cook after you take it out of the oven. Especially if you cover it with foil and allow it to rest for 20 minutes.  The resting period will also allow the juices to settle in the meat, making for a better tasting turkey.

Happy Thanksgiving!

This is the ketchup recipe I hope to use this year. Mark has planted lots of Roma tomatoes in addition to a few other varieties so if we can get them to produce, we’ll make ketchup! 

Slice, drizzle with olive oil and roast in a 400* oven until the vegetables are sort of pasty, very done.
10 pounds tomatoes
3-4 sweet bell peppers chopped
4 onions
2-3 heads of garlic, peeled

• Peel the roasted peppers.
• You don’t need to peel the tomatoes, but if you don’t, the end product will have a little more texture than regular ketchup.
• Place all roasted veggies and all the other ingredients in a heavy bottomed stock pot and simmer for 20 minutes.

Other Ingredients:
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup white sugar or organic raw sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar or rapidura
2 teaspoons kosher or sea salt
2 teaspoons ground pepper
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon celery seeds
1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger
1 teaspoon of ground cloves
1 tablespoon mustard powder
dash or two of Worcestershire sauce

Watch the pot! It will scorch if the temperature is too high. Stir frequently.
After simmering for 20 minutes, remove the pan from the heat and let it cool for about 30 minutes.
Use an immersion blender on the veggies and blend them up to a paste.
If the ketchup isn’t as thick as you’d like, return it to the heat and simmer longer.
After its blended up, bring it slowly back to a simmer, be careful not to burn it. Its ready to can.
Pour into hot pint jars, add lids and rings.
This will make about 8 pints. You’ll need to water bath the pints for 15 minutes. This ketchup also freezes very well.

My Grandmother used grape leaves in her dill pickles. She said it kept the pickles from getting soft. What I know now is that grape leaves contain a substance that inhibits an enzyme in the pickle from forming and making the pickles soft.

If you are sure to cut off the stem end of the cucumbers, which is where the enzyme is formed, you won’t need to add grape leaves, but leaving on the stem and adding grape leaves is kind of nostalgic for me.

Grape leaves are also good for making a Middle Eastern dish called Dolmas.  A dolma is simply a rice mixture wrapped up in the grape leaf and then cooked. Kind of like cabbage rolls. Greek-style dolmas don’t usually contain meat.  Not being Greek myself, or of any other ethnic background that would have even thought of making dolmas, I put whatever I want to put in them. And I want meat in them.

I like to make dolmas. Its a recipe that the whole family can get involved in.  I like the texture and taste of the grape leaf.  Preserved grape leaves can be found in stores, but I figured why not make them myself? I have a seemingly inexhaustible supply of grape leaves.

Grape leaves can be frozen or canned. I prefer to can them, but I will give instructions for both methods.

Choosing The Leaves
Choose grape leaves that are about the size of your hand and that are bright green and smooth if possible. Depending on the time of year you’re gathering the leaves, you may only be able to find dark green, fuzzy ones. They are OK, but the smooth leaves are the best for this.

Its important that you choose leaves that have not been sprayed with pesticides.

Rinse your leaves well and pat dry.
Bring 1 part salt to 4 parts water to a boil.
Blanch leaves in small batches. Place the leaves in boiling water and gently push them under the water using a wooden spoon. Blanch for 2-3 minutes.
Gently remove leaves from the boiling water and place them in ice water until they are completely cooled.
Use a slotted spoon and remove the cooled leaves from the ice water.
Lay them on a clean towel and at dry with another clean towel.

Now the leaves are ready to freeze.
Stack similar-sized leaves in groups of 5-15 leaves.
Place stacks of leaves in freezer bags. Label and freeze.
These keep well for up to 6 months.
To use, thaw in a colander over a plate. Use as soon as they are defrosted.

 

How To Brine Grape Leaves

You will use your blanched grape leaves for this.
Stack up 5-10 similarly sized leaves.
Roll the stack up and gently tie them into bundles using kitchen string.

I use pint jars for this, but if your grape leaves are very large, you may rather use quarts. Just find a size that fits.

Go ahead and heat your clean jars in boiling water. Heat rings and lids in simmering water, don’t boil, then remove from heat and keep lids and rings in the hot water.

Fill a large pot half-way with water and bring to a boil. Also put a kettle or pot on with extra water and bring that to a boil as well.

Make The Brine:
For every 4 cups of water you use, add 1/4 cup kosher salt and 3 teaspoon citric acid powder.
Boil this mixture for 5-6 minutes.

Gently push bundles into jars with a wooden spoon. You can put the bundles in snugly but don’t force too many bundles in each jar.
Leave 1 1/2 to 2 inches of head space in each jar.

Pour the hot brine into each jar, covering the leaves by 1 inch but leaving that 1 1/2 – 2 inch head space.
Remove any air bubbles by running a clean plastic knife inside the rim of each jar.

Carefully put the jar lids and rings on each jar. Don’t force the rings or tighten them too tightly
Place the jars in the pot of boiling water.
If the water doesn’t cover the jars by about 1 inch, add some of the biooing water from your other pot or kettle.
Cover the pot with a lid and boil on high for 15 minutes.

Take jars out and allow to cool on a towel. Listen for the “Ping” of the lid sealing. If they don’t seal, store them in the refrigerator. Sealed jars can be kept for 1 year on the shelf.

Dolmas

I bake dolmas instead of boiling them like some do. Its easier, you don’t have to watch the pot and add water as it evaporates.

4 cups brown rice,  washed, drained, rinsed and cooked
1 to 2 pounds finely minced meat – I use beef, you could use lamb or other meat
1/2 onion, very finely diced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2-1/2 teaspoons kosher or sea salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Some recipes call for more cinnamon. You can add another 1/2 teaspoon to this recipe. We just prefer it with a little cinnamon.

I cook the rice before making the dolmas. Yes its a short-cut. Yes I am like that. You can boil them if you want, just use uncooked rice, place the dolmas in a stock pot, cover with salted water and cook about 1 hour.

Mix all the ingredients.

Spread a blanched grape leaf out on your cutting board with the stem end facing you and the rough side up.

Spread 1 teaspoon of meat and rice mixture on the center of the leaf.

Fold the bottom of the leaf up over the filling, fold the sides of the leaf in toward the middle, and then roll the leaf up into a small cigar shape.

Place all the dolmas in one layer on a large baking sheet or cookie sheet. Drizzle the dolmas with olive oil and lemon juice. Cover tightly with foil.

Bake in a 350* oven for 45 minutes or until the meat is done.

Once they are cooked you must be gently with the rolls until they cool. They will firm up considerably as they cool.  Move the rolls to a plate to cool.

These are delicious as they are but even better dipped in thick, cold, plain Greek yogurt. Ok, a little fresh dill weed never hurt.