Turkey Lurkey :)

So while we were dealing (it is still not completely resolved) with the water issue Sunday night we were trying to cook a turkey. I can understand how frustrated the Swedish Chef is feeling in this clip:




Anyway, we were trying to make Alton Brown's Roast Turkey Recipe. It was very good. VERY VERY juicy but very good. We do need to play with the spices but this is definitely a keeper. It takes a while but it is easy

Ingredients:

1 14 to 16lb frozen young turkey

For the Brine:

1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 gallon vegetable stock
1 tablespoon  black peppercorns
1 1/2 teaspoons allspice berries
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped candied ginger
1 gallon heavily iced water

For the Aromatics:

1 red apple, sliced
1/2 onion sliced
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup water
4 sprigs rosemary
6 leaves sage
Canola Oil

Directions:

1) 2 to 3 days before roasting begin thawing the turkey in the refrigerator or in a cooler kept at 38F
2) Combine the vegetable stock, salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, allspice berries, and candied ginger in a large stock pot over medium high heat
3) Stir occasionally to dissolve solids and bring to a boil
4) Then remove the brine from the heat, cool to room temperature and refrigerate, this can be done a few days in advance. We did this portion the night before
5) Early on the day or the night before you would like to eat combine the brine, water and ice in a 5 gallon bucket.
6) Place the thawed turkey (with innards removed) breast side down in bring
7) If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure it is fully immersed, cover and refrigerate or set in a cool area for 8 to 16 hours turning the bird once halfway through brining. Brian did this early Sunday morning
8) Preheat the oven to 500F degrees
9) Remove the bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water
10) Discard the brine
11) Place the bird on roasting rack inside a half sheet pan and pat dry with towels
12) Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick, and 1 cup of water in a microwaveable dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes
13) Add steeped aromatics to the turkeys cavity along with the rosemary and sage
14) Tuck the wings underneath the bird and coat the skin liberally with canola oil
15) Roast the turkey on lowest level of the oven at 500F for 30 minutes
16) Insert a prove thermometer into thickest part of the breast and reduce the oven temperature to 350F.
17) Set the thermometer alarm (if available)  to 161F
18) A 14 to 16 lb bird should require a total of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of roasting
19) Let the turkey rest, loosely covered with foil or a large mixing bowl for 15 minutes before carving

** Alton put a piece of foil, folded into a square that covered the body after he lowered the temp. That allowed the breast to not over cook but the dark meat to fully cook.

** This is VERY VERY juicy. I cannot stress that enough. I would let the juice pour out into the roasting pan before transferring it to the counter to carve. There should be no shortage of gravy

**If you tivo it the title is Good Eats: Romancing the Bird. It is an hour long show but at the end it shows a great way to carve a turkey. I carved it this time and I think I did a great job and it was really easy. I would use gloves rather then just a paper towel.

** If you do tivo the show and make the cranberry sauce, leave out the orange zest. It was VERY orangey when we made it, so much we couldnt taste the cranberries. Otherwise very good.

Let me know what you think :)