Perfecting the Christmas Turkey

Best ever Turkey brine recipe

With Christmas approaching all attention is on the food for the day. If you are a traditionalist like me turkey will feature somewhere. The trick I have found to cooking all poultry is to brine it first.  Even if you are cooking a boned bird or a breast some time in brine will add a really wonderful flavour and I find it really plumps up the meat. As a caterer I am always working to bring out the most flavor in our product and this really pays off.

Whether you are cooking a Turkey for the Christmas main or making mini turkey pies for hand arounds it is well worth the effort to brine the bird before cooking it.

Very seldom do you come across a recipe that requires no changes but this is simply perfect. It is the recipe of Thomas Keller’s from the French Laundry.

Ingredients for Thomas Keller’s Chicken Brine:
5 lemons, halved
12 bay leaves
1 bunch (4 ounces) flat-leaf parsley
1 bunch (1 ounce) thyme
½ cup clover honey
1 head garlic, halved through the equator
¼ cup black peppercorns
2 cups (10 ounces) Diamond Crystal kosher salt (in New Zealand use Maldon or Marlborough salt)
7.5 litres water

The key ingredient here is the lemon, which goes wonderfully with chicken, as do the herbs: bay leaf, parsley, and thyme. This amount of brine will be enough for4.5 kilos.

Directions: Combine all the ingredients in a large pot, cover, and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute, stirring to dissolve the salt. Remove from the heat and cool completely, then chill before using. The brine can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. Makes7.5 litres.

The important things to remember when brining your chicken are firstly store it in the fridge! And also don’t brine it for more than 12 hours or it will become too salty. The gravy made from a brined bird is just delicious.

One of our family favorite January meals is rotisserie chicken on the BBQ served simply with new potatoes and a garden salad. We will brine them in the morning and put them on the BBQ rotisserie late in the afternoon before heading to the beach. The smell of it cooking as we walk back down the driveway is just so amazing, it makes my mouth water just thinking about it! Such a simple meal but done well is loved by everyone.

Merry Christmas and Enjoy!