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How to brine a turkey for Christmas

Richard Cornish
Richard Cornish

A simple, effective brining method uses table salt.
A simple, effective brining method uses table salt.Steve Baccon

Chef Ian Curley lifts the large bird out of the large pot of brine. The room is filled with aroma of bay, peppercorns, garlic and allspice. The chef and co-owner of Kirk's Wine Bar in Melbourne's CBD is transforming a fulsome, fresh turkey into a beautifully moist, copper-coloured bird fit for the finest of Christmas tables. He has a foolproof method of preparing the bird that requires the simple art of brining.

"It's a salty and sweet solution that plumps the birds full of lightly spiced water that is retained through the roasting delivering a juicy golden bird to the table," explains Curley. The recipe is super simple but he has a few tips for beginners. It requires the bird to be soaked in the fridge for 24 hours prior to cooking, so he recommends clearing some room and having a large clean pot or bucket in which soak the bird. He recommends buying turkey from a poulterer or butcher, as most supermarket turkeys have been treated with water-retaining chemicals. As the juice that comes from the turkey during roasting will be quite sweet and salty, it will be most likely be unsuitable to make a gravy, so consider making a gravy from reduced chicken stock prior to cooking. A meat thermometer is ideal to check if the flesh is done inside.

Roasted garlic.
Roasted garlic.Marina Oliphant
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3.5kg turkey

1 lemon, quartered

oil, to season

Jamaica pepper.
Jamaica pepper.Eddie Jim

1 cup chicken stock

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black cherries

walnuts kernels

Perfect mix: Whole cloves are an essential ingredient.
Perfect mix: Whole cloves are an essential ingredient.Supplied

roast pumpkin

Brine

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350g table salt, plus extra to season

Coriander seeds.
Coriander seeds.iStock

100g sugar

1 heaped tbsp black peppercorns

4 bay leaves (fresh or dried)

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Chef Ian Curley has top tips for getting the best from your bird.
Chef Ian Curley has top tips for getting the best from your bird.Kristoffer Paulsen

1 whole head of garlic (crushed)

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tbsp mustard seed

1 tsp dried pimento or allspice berries

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½ tsp cloves

1. , For the brine, combine all the ingredients in a medium saucepan with two and a half litres of water. Bring to the boil over high heat until the salt has dissolved. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

2. Transfer the brine to a large stockpot. Add two and a half litres of iced water and mix. Refrigerate until cold. Rinse the turkey and immerse in the brine. Weight the bird with a heavy ceramic or glass dish, if necessary, so it is fully covered. Cover with a lid or clingfilm and refrigerate for 24 hours.

3. Preheat the oven to 180C. Drain the bird and pat dry before roasting. Insert the lemon into the cavity. Lighly oil the skin and rub in a little salt. Tie the legs together and place the bird in a large baking tray with the chicken stock to baste. Roast for two to two and a half hours until cooked through, basting every half hour. The flesh will be 76C when cooked. Allow to rest before carving.

4. Garnish with roasted black cherries, walnut kernels and roast pumpkin.

Serves 8-10

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Richard CornishRichard Cornish writes about food, drinks and producers for Good Food.

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