Should You Brine Your Turkey Before Roasting It?

How Brining Works

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, lets do a quick recap on brining basics. The basic process involves soaking meat (usually lean meats, like turkey, chicken, or pork chops) in a tub full of heavily salted water overnight. Most brines are in the range of 5 to 8% salt to water by weight. Over the course of the night, the meat absorbs some of that water. More importantly, that water stays put even after the meat is cooked. By brining meat, you can decrease the amount of total moisture loss by 30 to 40%.

To demonstrate, I cooked three identical turkey breasts in a 300°F (150°C) oven to an internal temperature of 145°F (63°C). One was brined, the other was soaked overnight in plain water, and the last was left alone. All three breasts came from non-kosher, non-enhanced birds (i.e., the birds were natural, having received no treatment after slaughter). I charted their weight straight from the package, after brining, and after cooking.

Both the bird soaked in brine and the bird soaked in water gained a significant amount of weight prior to roasting, but while the watered bird lost nearly all of that weight as it cooked, the brined bird retained a good deal more. This corresponded to a juicier texture on eating. So whats going on here?

Some publications attribute it all to osmosis—the tendency for water to move across a membrane from an area of low solute concentration to an area of high solute concentration. In this case, water moves from the brining vessel (low solute concentration) to the inside of the turkeys cells (where there are lots of proteins, minerals, and other fun biological goodies dissolved in the water).

This theory is, in fact, inaccurate. If it were true, then soaking a turkey in pure, unsalted water should be more effective than soaking it in a brine, and weve already seen that that is not the case. Moreover, if you soak a turkey in a ridiculously concentrated brine (I tested turkey in a 35% salt solution), according to the osmosis theory, it should dry out even more.

However, I found that despite turning the turkey inedibly salty, a highly concentrated 35% salt solution was just as effective at helping a turkey retain moisture as a more moderate 6% salt solution, indicating that the osmosis theory is entirely bunk.

To understand whats really happening, you have to look at the structure of turkey muscles. Muscles are made up of long, bundled fibers, each one housed in a tough protein sheath. As the turkey heats, the proteins that make up this sheath will contract. Just like when you squeeze a tube of toothpaste, this causes juices to be forced out of the bird. Heat them to much above 150°F (66°C) or so, and you end up with dry, stringy meat.

Salt helps mitigate this shrinkage by dissolving some of the muscle proteins (mainly myosin). The muscle fibers loosen up, allowing them to absorb more moisture, and, more importantly, they dont contract as much when they cook, ensuring that more of that moisture stays in place as the turkey cooks.

Sounds great, right? But theres a catch.

Brining Alternatives

By far the most common alternative is plain old salting. When you salt a turkey (or chicken) breast, meat juices are initially drawn out through the process of osmosis (yes, this time it really is osmosis at work). As the salt dissolves in these juices, it forms what amounts to a very concentrated brine, which then allows it to break down muscle proteins. The loosened muscle fibers allow the juices to get reabsorbed, this time taking the salt along for the ride.

Through this process—osmosis, dissolving, reabsorbing—the salt will slowly work its way into the meat.

Ive also heard people ask the very obvious question: If brining introduces bland, boring tap water into the bird, why not brine in a more flavorful solution?

Why not, indeed? I decided to find out.

With so many methods to test side by side, it became impractical to try to roast turkey breasts simultaneously. Instead, I roasted 24 chicken breasts in four different batches of six, averaging out the data across the batches. While chicken is not exactly turkey, the two are similar enough that results for one should correlate to results for the other.

Heres what I tried:

• Breast #1: plain (untreated)
• Breast #2: brined overnight in a 6% salt solution
• Breast #3: heavily salted overnight
• Breast #4: brined overnight in chicken broth with a 6% salt content
• Breast #5: brined overnight in cider with a 6% salt content
• Breast #6: soaked overnight in plain water

Breasts #1 and #6 were included as a control to ensure that the brine and salt solutions were behaving as expected, as well as a means of evaluating how closely the data would mirror that of the turkey breasts.

Heres what happened with breasts #1, #2, #3, and #6 (plain, brined, salted, and water-soaked).

As expected, the brined chicken breasts held on to significantly more moisture than either the plain chicken breasts or the water-soaked chicken breasts. Indeed, in this test, the water-soaked breasts actually ended up drier on average than the plain breasts. Take a look at the carnage:

Dry as the Gobi Desert (on an admittedly very-moist-for-a-desert day).

On the other hand, take a look at the brined breast:

As plump and juicy as a benevolent aunt in a Disney film. Tasting it, you definitely feel a case of wet-sponge syndrome. Water comes out of it as you chew, giving you the illusion of juiciness, but the texture is a little too loose, and the flavor a little bland.

Moving on to the salted breast, we find that its still significantly moister than the unsalted breast (though it was a couple of percentage points drier than the brined breast). Tasting it, youll find its undoubtedly juicier and better-seasoned, with a stronger chicken flavor. Texture-wise, its significantly different from both plain and brined turkey, with the smooth, dense-but-tender texture of lightly cured meat.

Visually, you can see clear signs of this curing with its decidedly pink hue:

With a small chicken breast, this pink, moist, cured section extends nearly to the center of the breast. On a turkey, youd see it only around the outer edges (which, serendipitously, happen to be the parts most prone to overcooking and drying out anyway).

While the brined breast was slightly juicier, flavor-wise and texture-wise, Id take the salted chicken over the brined any day.

Ree’s Flavorful Turkey Brine | The Pioneer Woman | Food Network

FAQ

Do you need to brine a turkey before roasting?

Brining is not a required step in cooking a Thanksgiving turkey, but it can take your bird from good to extraordinary. Why?

Does brining a turkey really make a difference?

• Moisture retention:

  The main benefit of brining is that it helps the turkey retain moisture throughout cooking, leading to a more succulent bird.
• Flavor enhancement:

  Brining also adds flavor to the turkey as the salt and any additional seasonings in the brine penetrate the meat more deeply than just surface salting.
• Protein breakdown:

  Salt in the brine breaks down some of the muscle proteins in the turkey, making the meat more tender. 

What is the best brine method?

What is the best way to brine? The best way to brine is to use a 5% salt solution (50 grams of salt per litre of water). You can also add other flavourings to the brine, such as herbs, spices, and sugar.

Should I rinse turkey after brining?

When you’re brining the bird, you’ll want to rinse off the brine before you roast the turkey. Check out How to Brine Turkey and also How to Dry Brine a Turkey.Nov 6, 2024

How do you brine a Turkey a day before roasting?

One day before you roast your turkey, bring 1 quart water, the salt, bay leaves, and spices to a simmer, stirring until the salt has dissolved. Let cool for 5 minutes. Use a large brining or oven-roasting bag to line the container you will brine the turkey in. This will help to minimize cleanup.

How do you brine a 20 pound turkey?

This recipe makes enough brine for one 18- to 20-pound turkey. One day before you roast your turkey, bring 1 quart water, the salt, bay leaves, and spices to a simmer, stirring until the salt has dissolved. Let cool for 5 minutes. Use a large brining or oven-roasting bag to line the container you will brine the turkey in.

Do turkeys need to be brined before cooking?

In this case, a well-salted turkey holds onto its own natural juices, leading to a moist, flavorful bird. To get effects similar to brining, the pre-salting needs to be done, much like brining, well in advance. The bird is big and needs to move the salt from the outside all the way through all of the cells.

How do you brine a Turkey in a crock pot?

Use a large brining or oven-roasting bag to line the container you will brine the turkey in. This will help to minimize cleanup. Line a 5-gallon container with a large brining or oven-roasting bag. Place the turkey in the bag. Add salt mixture, remaining 6 quarts (24 cups) water, and the other ingredients.

Does brining a turkey make it taste better?

In fact brining makes the roasting process faster and results in a juicy, moist turkey with a whole lot of flavor … not like the dry, bland turkey so many of us grew up eating at holidays. There are several ways to brine but the main thing is to use a big airtight container that maintains a cold temperature.

Can You brine a raw turkey?

Then, you need to cool the brine to room temperature before using it, since pouring hot or warm brine over a raw turkey can cause bacteria growth. When you begin the brining process, set a timer or reminder to remove the turkey from the salt solution. Brining for too long can result in meat that tastes overly salty and has a spongy texture.