This brined turkey recipe from Alton Brown has you completely covered—starting with a frozen 14-18-pound bird and ending with a golden brown, succulent, and flavorful turkey, plus a rich gravy.
Brown uses the wet-brine method here but frees you from the hassle of fitting a large stockpot in your fridge—tucking the bird into a cooler saves precious space. A bonus: You can thaw your turkey in the same cooler before introducing the brine. Like all recipes for roasted whole turkey, this one requires some planning, so schedule accordingly.
A few crucial things to keep in mind: First, drying the bird well after brining is key to crispy skin. Brown also starts his turkey on high heat (500°), which helps dry out the skin and get it well on its way to golden. After the initial blast of heat, you’ll tent the breast with foil, turn down the oven, and then totally ignore it for the next hour and a half. That’s right: There’s no basting during the cooking time, leaving your hands free to focus on sweet potatoes, apple pie, and all those other Thanksgiving classics.
The turkey will be a hit (seriously, check the reviews), but if you and your guests haven’t finished the whole bird by the night’s end, put it to work in these Thanksgiving turkey leftover recipes.
If your idea of the best turkey brine recipe involves brown sugar and sprigs of fresh rosemary, try this dry-brine turkey. If you’re tight on time, Chris Morocco has a genius recipe for a crispy, juicy turkey in parts that can be ready in under two hours.
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What you’ll need
5-Gallon Cooler
$40 $37 At Amazon
ThermoWorks DOT Thermometer
$45 At Thermoworks
Roasting Pan With Rack
$100 At Amazon
Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt, 3 Pounds
$15 At Amazon
Recipe information
Total Time
26 hours
Yield
12 servings
Ingredients
Turkey and Brine
1
1
⅔
8
4
2
2
1
2
Gravy
1
1
Preparation
Turkey and Brine
Step 1
Place wrapped 1 frozen turkey (up to 18-lb.) in a 5-gallon cooler with a drain spout. Place cooler in a bathtub and cover turkey with cold water. Drain and replace water every 2–3 hours, keeping water temperature below 40°, until turkey has thawed, 8–10 hours.
Step 2
Clean cooler with soap and water, then pour in 1 lb. kosher salt, ⅔ cup sugar, and ½ gallon hot tap water. Stir thoroughly to dissolve salt and sugar. Add 8 lb. ice (which is a gallon of water) and 4 qt. vegetable broth.
Step 3
Unwrap thawed turkey and remove giblets and any other parts (such as neck, etc.) that may be inside cavity; these may be saved for gravy if desired. Place turkey in brine breast side up. If turkey floats, fill a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag with ice water and place it on top of turkey. Set cooler, lid closed, in a cool place, turning turkey over once if possible, 8–12 hours. Check brining liquid periodically with probe thermometer; if temperature is above 40°, add a few freezer packs that have been enclosed in resealable plastic bags.
Step 4
Remove all oven racks except for one set in the next-to-the-lowest position; preheat oven to 500°.
Step 5
Remove turkey from brine and pat dry (inside and out) with paper towels. Fill turkey cavity with aromatics including fresh herbs (such as fresh thyme, rosemary, and sage), 2 large carrots, coarsely chopped, 2 celery stalks, coarsely chopped, and 1 onion, coarsely chopped. Keep packing loose.
Step 6
Place turkey, breast side up, on a V-shaped rack set inside a large roasting pan. Cut a piece of foil big enough to cover the turkey’s breast. Mold piece to breast. Remove foil, then grease with nonstick vegetable oil spray and set aside.
Step 7
Rub 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter between your hands until liberally greased (you may use disposable gloves if desired). Rub butter all over turkey. You may need to re-butter your hands a couple times in order to get a nice, even coating.
Step 8
Place turkey in oven, neck end first and breast up. Roast turkey until nicely browned, 30–40 minutes. Apply greased foil to turkey breast. Insert a probe-style thermometer through foil into the thickest part of breast. Reduce oven temperature to 350° and return turkey to oven, foil securely in place. Do not open oven to baste turkey. Roast until probe registers internal temperature of 161° for breast and 181° for thigh, 2–2½ hours.
Step 9
Transfer turkey to carving board and let rest 30 minutes. Reserve drippings for gravy.
Gravy
Step 10
Set roasting pan across two burners over medium heat. Add 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth and whisk to scrape up pan drippings. Whisk 1 Tbsp. cornstarch into 1 cup cold water. Add cornstarch mixture to pan and whisk until glossy and thickened. Taste before seasoning with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Editor’s note: This recipe was first printed in November 2011. Head this way for more of our best Thanksgiving recipes →