If you're looking for an easy way to add flavor and moisture to your Thanksgiving turkey, look no further than this easy turkey brine recipe. There are two options: a dry brine and a wet brine. Both methods are simple and produce delicious results. So choose the option that fits your schedule and get ready to enjoy a juicy, flavorful turkey on Thanksgiving Day!
Table of Contents
Why I Love This Recipe
Here's the deal, if you've never used a brined turkey for your Thanksgiving feast... you're missing out. Here's a step by step guide for an easy turkey brine recipe to get the most delicious juicy turkey you'll ever eat!
Who here has brined a turkey before?! If you haven’t, prepare for your life to change. It’s everything and this year’s recipe is beyond. It’s loaded with all sorts of aromatics that will infuse the bird with even more flavor.
Ingredients & Substitutions
For the Wet Brine
- Water divided
- Kosher Salt
- Dark Brown Sugar
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Dried Sage
- Fresh Thyme
- Garlic
- Turkey cleaned, innards removed
For the Dry Brine
- Kosher Salt
- Black Peppercorns freshly cracked
- Dried Oregano
- Garlic Powder
- Dried Basil
- Dried Thyme
- Paprika
*For a full list of ingredients and instructions please see recipe card below.
How to Brine a Turkey
For the Dry Brine:
Step 1: Combine all the seasonings together. Set a wire cooling rack on a baking sheet and place the turkey on the rack.
Step 2: Rub ½ cup of the dry brine on the back side of the turkey
Step 3: Rub ½ cup on the legs and 1 cup on the breast.
Step 4: Transfer the turkey, uncovered to the fridge and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, and up to 72 hours.
For the Wet Brine:
During the brining process, you soak the turkey in a salt and water mixture (with other aromatics if you want to get jazzy) and the turkey absorbs that extra moisture from the liquid. (note: you'll need a large vessel to store the turkey and liquid in) This process helps it stay moist and juicy during cooking! Which then means it's still moist and juicy once you carve it and serve.
Brining also helps season the turkey from the inside out so no matter what piece you get, it'll be delicious! If you don’t have room for the large vessel as mentioned above, a dry brine is the easier way to go.
How to Store Brined Turkey
I recommend that you should let the turkey brine for roughly 24-72 hours in the fridge. Trust me, its worth it. The mixture gets slathered on the bird and then permeates the turkey for about 24 hours. Then pat it dry and proceed with my favorite turkey recipe!
You don't want to brine a bird for more than 3 days in my opinion. 72 hours is just the right amount of time for the turkey to soak up those flavors without getting too salty.
Tips & Tricks
Choose your preferred method and get ready to enjoy the most delicious turkey ever. Whether you go with a wet or dry brine, the key is to give yourself plenty of time for the flavors to penetrate deep into the meat. And don’t forget to let your bird rest after roasting for the juiciest, most succulent results.
FAQs
Why should you brine a turkey and is it worth it?
Good question. Brining your turkey is a key step to keeping it moist once it's cooked. Turkeys are mostly lean meat, which means there isn't a lot of fat to help it from drying out. And really there's nothing more disappointing than a dry piece of turkey at the Thanksgiving table.
What is a turkey brine and what does it do to a turkey?
It's basically just salt and different aromatics and maybe some water. I like to add brown sugar to give it a little hint of sweetness, some red pepper flakes, sage and lots of garlic. The whole mixture will just give the bird that extra subtle flavor everyone is looking for on Thanksgiving. And it helps the bird make incredible drippings for gravy.
What kind of bird should you use for this turkey brine recipe?
This is super important!! You basically just want a plain old turkey. Don't get one with any other “enhanced” or “self-basting" descriptors on the package. Those mean that the turkey has already been brined or treated and I'd rather do it myself so I have full control over what is going into my bird and brine.
Can you brine a frozen turkey / should you brine a turkey before roasting?
Absolutely! I do almost every year. This process will also help thaw the bird out before cooking.
What do you do after you brine the turkey?
Treat it like you could a normal bird. Most of the dry brine will fall off and you can remove a lot of that excess spice/salt from the bottom of the baking dish. Pat it dry, season it accordingly and then roast! This is my favorite recipe for a cooked bird! The herb butter makes for the best drippings which make the gravy out of this world!
What should I brine my turkey in?
For the wet brine you should use any container just large enough to hold the turkey comfortably. For the dry brine you can use a wire cooling rack on a baking sheet.
Do I need to rinse a brined turkey before cooking?
No. In fact you really shouldn't rinse any meat before cooking. According to the Center for Disease Control, you should never wash raw meat or poultry before cooking it! Washing it can spread bacteria to surfaces like your kitchen countertop, all over the sink, utensils, and nearby foods. The USDA agrees.
So all that's left is to decide if you're going wet or dry turkey brine. If wet: grab a large vessel that will fit 1: the liquid brine mixture 2: and the bird and 3: will fit into your fridge. If you have an extra fridge in your garage, that's the perfect place to store this as it won't be in your way when you're stocking your fridge with the rest of the Thanksgiving ingredients.
If you choose the dry brine: combine all the seasonings and slather the bird with the herbs. Then let it take a chill in the fridge for 24-72 hours.
Get ready guys… THANKSGIVING this year is going to be mega delish.
PS – Check out the full What’s Gaby Cooking menu here along with the master prep schedule to keep things organized and on track!
And if you need more Thanksgiving Ideas check out this roundup of 80+ Thanksgiving Recipes and Ideas
Related Recipes
If you tried this recipe, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting today
Easy Turkey Brine Recipe (dry brine or wet brine directions) + step by step pics
Ingredients
For the Wet Brine
- 16 cups water divided
- ½ cup kosher salt
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon dried red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon dried sage
- 1 bunch fresh thyme
- 2 heads garlic sliced in half
- 14 to 18- pound turkey cleaned, innards removed
For the Dry Brine
- 8 tablespoons kosher salt
- 4-8 tablespoons freshly cracked black peppercorns
- 4 tablespoons dried oregano
- 4 tablespoons garlic powder
- 3 tablespoons dried basil
- 2 tablespoons dried thyme
- 2 tablespoons paprika
Instructions
For the Wet Brine
- Combine 8 cups of the water, salt, dark brown sugar, red pepper flakes, sage, thyme and garlic in a large pot and place over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes until everything is evenly combined and the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Stir in remaining water and cool completely.
- Pour the brine into a container just large enough to hold the turkey comfortably. Add the turkey; adding more water if needed to cover the bird entirely. Turn bird a few times and then leave breast-side down in the water. Chill for at least 8 hours, and up to 72 hours. Remove bird from brine, discard brine and roast as needed.
For the Dry Brine
- Combine all the seasonings together. Set a wire cooling rack on a baking sheet and place the turkey on the rack. Rub ½ cup of the dry brine on the back side of the turkey, ½ cup on the legs and 1 cup on the breast. Transfer the turkey, uncovered to the fridge and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, and up to 72 hours.
- After the brine period, brush off all the dry brine and discard. Let the bird sit naked in the fridge for 4 hours if possible to dry out or pat the bird dry and proceed with my Herb Roasted Turkey recipe. Remove any excess dry brine that is in the bottom of the roasting pan so your gravy isnt too salty before roasting.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Photo by Matt Armendariz / Food Styling by Adam Pearson / Recipe from What’s Gaby Cooking
Thank you for your awesome help with cooking! I wondered what range of turkey lbs this is suitable for.
And, after brining and drying, can I add your Herb Roasted Turkey butter to top it off!? I imagine these spices complement each other.
YES absolutely you can do the herb roasted turkey recipe!!
Brine works for anything 16-22ish lbs
I have used your dry brine recipe for the last 2 years and it makes the most tasty turkey! Thank you!,
Want to try the dry brine this year for our smoked turkey. Do you recommended rubbing off the brine before smoking or use with the dry brine intact?
Thanks!
if you're doing the dry brine and then smoking, rub it off
I’m going to spatchcock my Turkey? Spatchcock before or after brining?
before is probably easiest
I only have 15 hours to brine our turkey due to travel. Is something better than nothing? I know the recommendations is 24 hours.
do dry brine for 15 hours - golden
We usually dry our turkey and are thinking of doing a dry brine. Do we take off excess brine before frying?
Most of it will fall off and if you're doing my compound butter, almost all of it will fall off when adding that! If you're going a different route, yes I'd wipe most of it off
Hi Gaby,
First time making a Thanksgiving Turkey here and I'm excited to try your recipe! Do I need to thaw the turkey before starting the dry-brine process? And, do you recommend one method of brining (wet vs dry) over the other? Thank you!
Yes - it needs to be mostly thawed and I prefer dry brine
I always do a wet brine for my turkey (24 hours), but I also add quartered orange and lemon. If I leave it for more than 24 hours to brine will this "ruin" the turkey?
nope, totally allowed!
Would you doing anything different with brine if you’re using a kosher turkey? Dial back the salt?
ya - hard to say since I don't know how much salt they are treated with but I'd def still do the brine and just 1/2 the salt to be safe. You still get all the benefits from the herbs etc
The BEST brine recipe!! I started brining meats several years ago. Experimenting and creating brines for various meats. Recently I decided to put on a "Smoked Meats" event at home (14 lbs Beef Brisket, 12 lbs Pork Shoulder, and a 16 lbs Turkey). Over the years I have perfected dry rubs for a brisket, and for a pork shoulder. I have been playing around with brines for a turkey for smoking. I used the turkey brining recipe from "What's Gaby Cooking" and my smoked turkey came out of the smoker ...... BEST Smoked Turkey EVER!! Thank you "What's Gaby Cooking"
love to hear it!!!!
did you do the dry brine or wet brine for the smoked turkey?
Can’t wait to try this brine recipe. I’m curious… For the smoked turkey, did you do a dry brine or wet brine? Thanks and happy holidays!
I'm partial to a dry brine these days! Less messy and takes up way less room!
If all I have is normal table salt and normal cracked black pepper, how much should I use for the dry brine? Happy holidays and thanks in advance! 🙂
Now that I have the Brine figured out, how long and at what temperature do I bake it?
Perhaps 250 degrees for How long per pound?
Bird is 12 LBS
check my herb roasted turkey recipe for all the details on how to do the bird once brined
Hello,
Any recommendations for seasoning or coating the turkey after a wet brine? I will be smoking the turkey on a traeger. Or is it not needed?
pat it dry - very very dry! then do a seasoning blend on top for sure! Depending on the size of your bird I'd do a combo of some sorts of pepper, garlic powder, paprika. oregano and thyme
We used the dry brine recipe this year! Hands down, the best turkey I have ever eaten for Thanksgiving!! So good!!
We smoked our Thanksgiving bird on a grill with various flavored woods and this was, hands down the best recipe ever! Caused a few sneezes as the mixture is quite strong but it was worth it! Will use every year moving forward.