How to Brine a Turkey
This is my first year to brine a turkey. I used the largest pot I have – it probably holds at least 3 gallons of water. You can buy the brining bags at the grocery during the holiday season. Since I think it’s ridiculous to pay the price Kroger was asking for theirs, I simply let my turkey soak in that huge pot that I used to make the brine.
In huge pot add: 
- 2 gallons water (I filtered mine – but I’m an O/C type)
- Zest of one orange + slices of remaining orange
- Zest of one lemon + slices of remaining lemon
- 1 package fresh rosemary (from Kroger produce section)
- 1 package fresh thyme (from Kroger produce section)
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 apple cut and diced
- 1 ½ – 2 cups of salt
- Toss in a few peppercorns if you have them
- 4-5 bay leaves
Combine all ingredients in a large pot and bring to a boil. Turn off heat immediately, cover, and allow mixture to come to room temperature. Cool mixture in the fridge until you’re ready to brine (I’m always in a hurry and added some ice to the brine).
To brine the turkey, remove turkey from wrapper, remove gross bags, and rinse thoroughly under cool water. Place the turkey into a plastic brining bag OR a very large pot. Pour cool brine mixture over the top, adding extra cold water if you need more to cover. Seal bag or cover pot and allow turkey to brine in refrigerator for 8 to 18 hours before roasting.
Before roasting, remove turkey from brine and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Pat dry. Discard brine.
When you brine your turkey, the drippings are quite salty. For this reason, it is VERY important that you use a no-sodium (or low-sodium) chicken broth when you make the turkey gravy.
Many frozen turkeys are injected with a sodium solution—it’s best NOT to brine these turkeys! Brining fresh turkeys for best results
Tara Cooks 