Buttermilk-Brined Roast Turkey
Updated Dec. 16, 2024
- Total Time
- 2 hours, plus 48 hours’ brining
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 1(10- to 14-pound) turkey
- 3quarts buttermilk
- 128grams fine sea salt (about 7 tablespoons)
Nutritional analysis per serving (12 servings)
562 calories; 21 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 12 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 13 grams sugars; 78 grams protein; 1625 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Two to three days before you plan to cook, spatchcock the turkey: Put the turkey on a stable cutting board, breast-side down, and use heavy-duty kitchen shears to snip along both sides of the backbone to release it. You can start from the tail or neck end, whichever you prefer; just keep the blades of the scissors as close to the spine as possible. It helps to work incrementally, snipping a little on one side, then a little on the other, rather than completing one side entirely and then doing the second side without the advantage of the opposing pressure.
- Step 2
After removing the backbone, remove wingtips, neck and giblets, setting them all aside for stock and gravy.
- Step 3
Turn turkey over so breast faces up. Splay out its legs and press hard on breastbone until you hear the cartilage pop and the bird lies completely flat.
- Step 4
Place a 2-gallon resealable bag in a large bowl, stock pot or sink. Pour buttermilk and salt in bag and stir to dissolve salt. Place turkey in bag and seal carefully, expelling out air. Double-bag the turkey as needed to prevent leakage, then squish the inner bag to distribute buttermilk all around the turkey. Place it on a rimmed baking sheet and refrigerate for 48 hours. Turn the bag every 12 hours so that every part of the turkey gets marinated.
- Step 5
Three hours before you plan to start cooking, remove the turkey from the plastic bag and scrape off as much buttermilk as you can without being obsessive, discarding buttermilk. Set the turkey on a rimmed baking sheet and bring it to room temperature.
- Step 6
Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and heat to 400 degrees. Transfer turkey, breast-side up, to another rimmed baking sheet lined with a wire rack or parchment paper. Tuck thighs inward.
- Step 7
Place baking sheet on the prepared oven rack and roast the turkey, occasionally rotating the pan 180 degrees, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the deepest part of the breast registers 150 degrees and the thickest part of the thigh without touching bone registers 165 degrees, about 80 to 100 minutes, depending on size. (You may want to tent the breast or other hot spots with aluminum foil, if darkening too quickly.)
- Step 8
Transfer turkey to a cutting board or platter and allow to rest at least 20 minutes before carving.
Private Notes
Comments
Does this method still produce plenty of drippings for gravy?
I also wondered about gravy. Could you still use the drippings for gravy or would the buttermilk and salt brine affect the taste?
Could you still use this recipe without spatchcocking the turkey? I always brine my turkey whole by putting it in a large plastic garbage bag with the brine & ice & putting it in a cooler. I like having the stuffing in the turkey. Do you think this would still work that way?
Buttermilk brined for about 24 hours. The only difference from the instructions above is that my store only had lowfat buttermilk. Turkey had a kind of pasty, chalky consistency in the mouth. It wasn't terrible, but wasn't good either. I will not make it this way again.
Since we found this recipe 6 years ago, I insist that we host because it is hands down the best turkey I’ve ever had. If cooking in the oven, depending on the size, be prepared for the turkey to take only 1 hour, which means putting many sides in a double oven right when you start the turkey. We’ve also done this recipe on our wood pellet grill in the spring. Our daughter loves that version even more, but for Thanksgiving, I prefer it not smoked. Oh, darn - we just have to buy a cheap turkey after Thanksgiving and freeze it and have this recipe twice a year: once smoked and once not. Our local bakery was giving away food-safe buckets that seal, and we used that for brining this year. So easy if you have the space in your fridge.
This was the best turkey we've ever made, hands down. Made per the recipe through step 5 and then smoked instead of roasting - absolutely amazing, everyone raved about the moist meat and smokey flavor!