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Sugar and spice brined turkey recipe

Sugar and spice brined turkey recipe

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Created by The Tesco Real Food team

This delicious brined turkey recipe uses a dry brine that’s brushed off before smothering a herby brown butter under the turkey skin for a juicy, flavourful meat. Despite being a new skill to learn, it’s not too tricky to achieve. If you're looking for an impressive new turkey recipe this year, this is one to try! See method

  • Serves 10-12, or 8 with leftovers
  • Takes 4 hrs 40 mins plus at least 24 hrs
  • 480 calories / serving
  • Freezable

Ingredients

  • 5kg whole turkey, giblets removed
  • 120g butter
  • 2 large garlic cloves, skin-on, roughly crushed with the flat side of a knife
  • 15g fresh rosemary, needles picked and finely chopped from 2 sprigs
  • 15g fresh sage, half the leaves picked and finely chopped
  • 15g fresh thyme, half the leaves picked
  • 2 onions, skin on and quartered
  • 3 large celery sticks, chopped
  • 2 large carrots, chopped
  • 150ml marsala or sweet sherry
  • 400-500ml Tesco Finest fresh chicken stock
  • 4 tbsp plain flour

For the dry brine

  • 3 tbsp coarse sea salt
  • 2 tbsp light brown soft sugar
  • 2 fresh rosemary sprigs, needles picked and finely chopped
  • 3 fresh thyme sprigs, leaves picked
  • 1 bay leaf, crunched up
  • 2 whole cloves
  • ½ star anise
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 orange, zested, saving the remaining orange for cooking the turkey

Each serving contains

  • Energy

    2005kj
    480kcal     24%

  • Fat

    21g 30%

  • Saturates

    10g 48%

  • Sugars

    6g 7%

  • Salt

    3.9g 66%

of the reference intake
Carbohydrate 11.9g Protein 59.3g Fibre 4g

Method

  1. In a food processor or using a pestle and mortar, blitz all the brine ingredients with a grind of black pepper together until it resembles sand. Place the turkey in a deep roasting tray, slightly larger than the bird. With the back of a dessertspoon, carefully loosen the skin away from the breast, thigh and leg meat, taking care not to tear the skin. Rub the brine all over and under the skin and in the cavity until evenly coated. Leave loosely covered with clingfilm in the fridge for 24-48 hrs. Once brined, pat the outside dry with kitchen paper, wiping away any patches of excess brine. 
  2. Melt the butter with the garlic in a saucepan over a medium heat. Continue to cook for 1-2 mins until the white milk solids sink to the bottom of the pan and start to turn golden. Remove from the heat, pour into a bowl, discarding the garlic, and chill in the fridge covered with clingfilm for 3-4 hrs until a firm, but spreadable consistency. Mix the finely chopped rosemary, sage and thyme leaves into the butter until evenly combined. 
  3. Remove the turkey from the fridge 1 hr before you’re ready to roast. Preheat the oven to gas 5, 190°C, fan 170°C. Smooth the set herb butter under the turkey skin, directly onto the brined turkey meat. Quarter the zested orange (from the brine) and add to the turkey’s cavity with 1 quartered onion and half the remaining herbs. Place the remaining herbs and the veg around the turkey, then pour over the marsala wine and 500ml water. Tie the legs together using butcher’s string at the top of the drumstick. Cover the tray with a tent of foil and roast for 20 mins per kg, plus 105 mins (for 5-9kg turkeys; for an unstuffed 5kg turkey, roast for around 3 hrs 25 mins). Uncover for the final 40 mins of cooking, and cook until the juices run clear when a skewer is inserted into the thickest part of the thigh (if they have a pink hue, roast for a further 10 mins before re-testing), or it reaches 75°C on a meat thermometer. Re-cover with foil if the turkey starts to colour too much. 
  4. Once cooked, re-cover the turkey with foil and rest for 30-45 mins to tenderise the meat and allow it to retain its juices. Transfer to a platter.
  5. While the bird is resting, scrape the contents of the roasting tray into a pan. Drain the cooking juices into a jug and top up with enough stock to make 900ml liquid. Sprinkle the flour into the pan and whisk over a medium heat until the flour has been incorporated. Gradually, whisk in the stock and simmer for 10 mins until you have a glossy gravy. Strain through a sieve into a serving jug and serve with the turkey.

Freezing and defrosting guidelines

In order to enjoy optimum flavour and quality, frozen items are best used within 3 months of their freezing date. For more tips on freezing and defrosting food, read our article Love Your Freezer.

Tip: To make this alcohol-free, simply swap the marsala wine for 150ml water.

See more Christmas turkey recipes

For top tips on protecting you and your family when preparing raw meat and poultry, visit Food Safety in the Home.

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