To make Thanksgiving stress-free, just grab your MEATER and follow this recipe from Rhonda and Glen’s (aka MacDogMac) delicious kitchen! You can find more of their tasty work over at https://www.instagram.com/macdogmac/. This turkey recipe they provided isn’t just for a regular turkey. This herbs and citrus infused turkey will be the juiciest, tastiest, and most tender turkey you’ll EVER have!
Equipment:
- MEATER Block or MEATER Plus
- Large stock pot
- Large bucket or bowl
- Cutting board
- Knife
- Roasting pan and rack
- Turkey baster
- Foil
Time:
- Prep – 25 minutes
- Brine bath – 2 days
- Cook – 3 hours
Doneness:
- 170 °F – Juicy and tender 😉
Ingredients:
Turkey
- Whole turkey (11-15 lbs.)
- Low sodium chicken broth (30 fl. oz.)
- Softened butter (1/4 cup)
Brine
- Frozen orange juice from concentrate (10 fl. oz.)
- Large oranges (2)
- Lemons (2)
- Lime (1)
- Garlic cloves (6)
- Fresh thyme sprigs (2)
- Fresh sage sprig (1)
- Bay leaves (3)
- Kosher salt (1 cup)
- Yellow sugar (1 cup)
- Black peppercorns (1 tbsp.)
- Water (1 1/2 gallons if your pot allows)
Instructions:
1. Time to get your hands a little dirty! Remove the innards from the turkey, or leave them as is if you want to boil them down for your gravy stock. Next, pat the turkey dry with paper towel and set aside.
2. Brine time! Peel and crush the garlic, then add to a large stockpot along with all the herbs, salt, sugar, peppercorns, and orange juice.
3. Turn the stove top to medium high and bring the brine to a low boil. Once it’s boiling, stir until all the salt and sugar is dissolved. Then remove the pot from heat and let it cool down to a warm temperature. (RUSH TIP: Add 3 cups of ice cubes to cool the brine faster, if needed)
4. Pour the cooled brine into a bucket or bowl (large enough to cover the turkey). Add the turkey into the bowl/bucket, breast side down. If the entire turkey is not covered by the brine, add as much water as needed. Cover and place in the fridge for 48 hours.
5. TWO DAYS LATER – Preheat your oven or smoker to 375°F. While that’s heating up, pour out the brine and refill the bucket/bowl with enough fresh cold water to cover the turkey, and let it sit for 10 minutes.
6. TEN MINUTES LATER – Remove the turkey from the water, then pat it dry. Once it’s all dry, add chicken broth to a roasting pan, place the rack into the roasting pan, and place the turkey on top of the rack. If you are stuffing your turkey, now is a good time to go stuff that bird! Then, rub the top of the turkey with butter to your liking.
7. MEATER time! Grab your MEATER Block or MEATER Plus, and insert the probe(s) into the center of the thickest part of the breast. Then open the MEATER app and set up the cook with a target internal temperature of 170 °F. Finally, cover the entire roasting pan with foil and poke a small hole through the foil to avoid the probe(s) from losing connection.
8. Place the turkey in the preheated oven, then set up an alert for 1 hour in the app so you can begin basting the turkey. Continue basting every half hour until MEATER alerts you to remove the bird from heat. Set up another alert in the app for 20 minutes before the cook is complete, so you can remove the foil and ensure the turkey gets dark and juicy.
10. Once you get an alert to remove the turkey from heat, let the turkey rest until MEATER says resting is complete. Then you can carve and enjoy!
