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This was my first time dry-brining a turkey and I don’t think I’ll ever look back. It’s so much easier than a traditional wet brine and quite possibly even more delicious. Here’s how to make my Dry-Brine Thanksgiving Turkey!
As we all know, Thanksgiving turkey can often get a bad rep. Flavorless, overcooked, dry…it can really go bad pretty quickly. Enter: dry-brining! This technique not only helps inject the turkey with flavor, but also helps it to stay super moist.
To do it, you’ll rub a salt and dry spice mixture all over the turkey, then let it sit for 24 to 48 hours in the fridge. As it rests, the salt helps to draw out the meat’s juices, then the salt dissolves into the juices, creating a brine without adding any liquid. From there, the brine soaks into the meat resulting into a flavorful, moist turkey.
There’s a few important things to keep in mind as you prep your bird. If you buy a frozen turkey, make sure you give it plenty of time to defrost. I’d allocate 3 to 4 days for your turkey to thaw in the fridge, depending on the size. Once your turkey is thawed, let it dry brine for 1 to 2 days before Thanksgiving. On Thanksgiving Day, remove it from the fridge for 1 to 2 hours prior to roasting so that it roasts more evenly and has a better chance at developing perfectly crispy skin, which everyone loves.
ingredients:
- Kosher Salt
- Fresh Sage
- Fresh Rosemary
- Fresh Thyme
- Garlic Cloves
- Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Light Brown Sugar
- Cayenne Pepper
- Lemon Zest
- Turkey
- Low-Sodium Chicken Broth
- Unsalted Butter
step-by-step:
step one: make the dry rub
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the salt, brown sugar, sage, rosemary, thyme, garlic, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and lemon zest.
step two: prep the turkey
Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Arrange a roasting rack on a large sheet pan and place the turkey on top of the rack.
step three: dry brine the turkey
Rub the dry brine all over the turkey, especially on the breasts. Refrigerate, uncovered, for 24 to 48 hours.
step four: get ready to roast
Remove the turkey from the fridge to let stand for 1 hour at room temperature before roasting. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425°F.
step five: butter the turkey
Working from the neck end of the turkey, gently loosen the skin from breasts and rub the softened butter under skin of the bird. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine.
Fill a roasting pan with the broth and place the turkey and rack in the roasting pan. Transfer to the oven and roast until the skin starts to brown, about 20 minutes.
step six: roast the turkey
Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F and continue roasting, basting the turkey every 20 to 30 minutes with the broth/juices from the turkey.
When the turkey is starting to look golden brown all over, tent with foil. Continue to roast the turkey until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh (without touching bone) registers 160°F. It will continue to cook once you remove it from the oven.
step seven: carve and serve
Let the turkey rest for 20 to 30 minutes before carving and reserve any pan juices for my Herby Turkey Gravy.
No! That’s the beauty of a dry brine. It’s way less messy than a wet brine. For a dry-brined turkey, you don’t need to rinse the brine off since it will retain great flavor as it roasts. Instead, simply brush off any excess salt before cooking.
You should account for about 1½ pounds per person, which will be enough to feed a crowd and offer leftovers. If you’re hosting 10 people, you’ll want to buy a turkey that is about 15 pounds.
Follow these tips and and you will have a perfectly cooked Dry-Brined Thanksgiving Turkey that you’ll want to make for years to come! Oh, and don’t forget to pair it with my Herby Turkey Gravy!
looking for more Thanksgiving recipes? try these!
Dry-Brine Thanksgiving Turkey
Ingredients
For the Dry Rub:
- 1/4 cup kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh sage leaves
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest (from 2 small lemons)
For the Turkey:
- 1 (12- to 18-pound) turkey
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth, plus more as needed
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the salt, brown sugar, sage, rosemary, thyme, garlic, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and lemon zest.
- Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Arrange a roasting rack on a large sheet pan and place the turkey on top of the rack.
- Rub the dry brine all over the turkey, especially on the breasts. Refrigerate, uncovered, for 24 to 48 hours.
- Remove the turkey from the fridge to let stand for 1 hour at room temperature before roasting. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Working from the neck end of the turkey, gently loosen the skin from breasts and rub the softened butter under skin of the bird. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine.Fill a roasting pan with the broth and place the turkey and rack in the roasting pan. Transfer to the oven and roast until the skin starts to brown, about 20 minutes.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F and continue roasting, basting the turkey every 20 to 30 minutes with the broth/juices from the turkey.When the turkey is starting to look golden brown all over, tent with foil. Continue to roast the turkey until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh (without touching bone) registers 160°F. It will continue to cook once you remove it from the oven.
- Let the turkey rest for 20 to 30 minutes before carving and reserve any pan juices for my Herby Turkey Gravy.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Just made the dry brine turkey for my annual Friendsgiving and wow!! So tasty, so flavorful, and so less intimating than I imagined! I usually chicken out and buy a smoked bird but tried my hand for the first time cooking the turkey with this recipe. And it restored some confidence! Another winner from Alex for sure.
Just did the dry brine turkey for our annual Friendsgiving and WOW. So tasty, so flavorful and honestly so less intimidating than I thought! My first time actually making the turkey (I usually chicken out and buy a smoked), and this recipe gave me all the confidence. Kudos to Alex on another winner!!
Alex, your plan is my plan this Thanksgiving! How many people did your 16lb turkey feed?
I’d say (with all the sides, etc) it could easily feed 16 people. The general rule of thumb (since most of the turkey is a lot of bone) is 1 to 1.5 lbs per person at your gathering.
Would you cook at the same temperature if you are using a roaster instead of the oven?
Hi Amber,
I’ve honestly never cooked with a Roaster before so I am not positive how they work/cook and if there would be a difference. So sorry for the lack of help onthis one.
Can I still dry-brine a grocery store turkey that has been injected with a sodium solution? or will it be too salty?
ohhh i worry it could be too salty.
Got the turkey all prepped for our Friendsgiving! Question; I’ve never dry brined before. Do you leave the salty herb mix on the turkey when you roast it?
I do!! some folks rinse theirs off.
Can you use this dry brine on a spatchcocked turkey? We loved your recipe last year cannot imagine going back to the traditional roasting method!!!!
absolutely. The two combined will be fantastic.
Will this work with a boneless turkey breast?
So excited to make this! It will be my first attempt at making a Turkey 😜 2 quick questions, would you adjust the salt for an 8lb Turkey? And when you place the Turkey back onto the roasting pan once the broth is added, is the Turkey still going to be on the rack? So not placing it into the broth. Thank you so much!
Yes, keep the turkey on the rack the entire time.
and yes– for 8 lbs I’d cut the salt to 2 tbsp.
Okay Thank you! Last question- if I had to remove the brown sugar from this recipe for a family member that eat Keto, would that totally ruin the crispy skin factor? also wondering if that amount of sugar would even make a big deal?
Will a dry brine work out ok when turkey is cooked on a charcoal grill, you think? Hubs insists on grilling every year. We usually do a wet brine on the bird but interested in trying this!
Yes, I think a dry brine would work fine; however, I am not a grill master and have certainly never grilled a turkey– so I defer to your hubs on this one.
Just did the dry brine turkey for our annual Friendsgiving and WOW. So tasty, so flavorful and honestly so less intimidating than I thought! My first time actually making the turkey (I usually chicken out and buy a smoked), and this recipe gave me all the confidence. Kudos to Alex on another winner!!
Hi there, is there any way to make this hours before serving to save oven space? I have heard of making the turkey then putting a heavy blanket on top to keep it moist and warm?
I’ve never tried that so I am not certain!