Turkey Breast- Brine? inject?

boatnut

is Blowin Smoke!
Joined
Mar 22, 2005
Messages
1,882
Reaction score
580
Points
0
Location
Ohio
Have a turkey breast thawing right now. Been awhile since I did one. Does anyone have a preference for brining vs injecting? I'll probably smoke it at higher temps...300 or so. Any suggestions welcome.
Thanks
Mike
 
If it's a commercial breast that's already "enhanced with a solution of......" I don't bother with adding any additional moisture.

I'm a big fan of Phil's butter injection. Just inject a stick of melted (but cool) butter into the breast. If you pull the breast just as soon as it's done it's mega juicy that way.

You can do more for flavor, but with birds, I like the flavor of just the meat and smoke.
 
Here's a pretty good brine recipe...

Apple Brine for Turkey
2 quarts apple juice
1 pound brown sugar (light or dark)
1 cup Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt
3 quarts cold water
3 oranges, quartered
4 ounces fresh ginger, unpeeled and thinly sliced
15 whole cloves
6 bay leaves
6 large garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
Substitute 3/4 cup Morton Kosher Salt or 1/2 cup table salt for Diamond Crystal.

Combine apple juice, brown sugar, and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve. Boil for one minute, remove from heat, let mixture come to room temperature, then refrigerate to 40°F.

In a large non-reactive container, combine the apple juice mixture with the remaining ingredients. When adding the oranges, squeeze each piece to release the juice into the container, and then drop in the peel.
 
I've had great success injecting with strained Italian Dressing. I think it was Noah who suggested that on the board once. It's great.
 
boatnut,

I also like both brining and injecting. 70% of the time I brine them, usually 24 hours.

If you want to spend a little extra prep time, check this out. It will make the breast cook a little more even and make it super easy when slicing.



turkey7.jpg


First, the breasts need some trimming to make slicing easy and also for presentation. You will need some kitchen shears and a butcher knife.

turkey1.jpg


Lay the breast down on your cutting board and cut along the ribs and lay the backbone forward.

turkey2.jpg


With a knife, trim out the wish bone and cut the backbone off.

turkey3.jpg


With the shears, cut down the edges of the breast plate and remove a V section of the plate along with the wishbone. Trim up any other loose areas of meat or skin.

turkey5.jpg


Turn the breast over and tie with some butchers twine. All that is left is adding some rub and on to the cooker.

turkey6.jpg
 
Wow! Great picture tutorial, Thirdeye! I'm saving that!
 
wow..that looks like an awesome idea. what do you usually use to inject with?
 
boatnut said:
wow..that looks like an awesome idea. what do you usually use to inject with?

Some home-made chicken stock or low sodium canned stock is a good place to start. I will always add some of the rub I'm using on the outside (finely ground). After that, It is up to you. Wine, beer, flavored vinegars etc. can be added along with onion, garlic or other powders. Melted butter is good too. You have to be careful with dark liquids like wooster or soy sauce, they can leave dark streaks in the meat.

There are a bunch of store-bought ones injections, and watered down Italian dressing is good too.
 
wow..that looks like an awesome idea. what do you usually use to inject with?

Boatnut. Injectors are available most anywhere kitchen gadgets are sold, I've even seen them in grocery stores where they have a few thermometers and other utensils.
You do get what you pay for however and most cheaper injetors have a rather short life span.
http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catalog.TextId?hvarTextId=21006&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults

There are some very nice all metal models available from Bass Pro Shops and other sporting goods stores.
http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catalog.TextId?hvarTextId=31038&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults

You can also pick up some decent injecting gear at a farm supply store, just ask for nipple infusion needles.
 
oops..i should of maybe re-worded that. I have an injector...I meant what liquid does he use. :)
 
I personally don't like injecting my turkey/chicken/white meat. When sliced I don't like seeing the color change in the white meat. I do usually brine for 24/48 hours with a pretty heavy salt/sugar bine.
 
Back
Top