using brine for more than 1 turkey

Only if you like concentrated salmonella.
Sugar and salt are cheap.

I'd also assume the ratios in the original batch of brine would change based on the osmosis process with the first bird.

That wouldnt be worth a risk to me at all. I think the brine i use cost about $6 to buy all the ingredients I use, and i can probably do 6 birds with that. For $1 a bird, I'll mix a new brine to prevent bacteria spreading...

I'm with everyone else here....I use Williams Sonoma brine, taint cheap but wouldn't consider reusing it.

If you're concerned about saving money, I'd suggest simplifying your brine instead of trying to re-use it. Stick to water, salt and sugar. Heck...I'd recommend keeping it that simple regardless. I'm convinced that the brining process doesn't really impart much flavor anyway so the rest of that stuff folks put in is just wasted.

bover said:

I'm convinced that the brining process doesn't really impart much flavor anyway so the rest of that stuff folks put in is just wasted.

Click to expand...

Couldn't be more wrong about that!

Brining is for moisture and tenderness, not flavor. I would never reuse it.

I'm with Blackened...the brine I use gives wonderful flavor. Been using it for 3 years now and really like it and the bird is so juicy, like none other I've ever made.

Last year I did 3-4 birds at a time in my large cooler. I poured over a more concentrated brine based on the one in the recipe section from poohbah and ice. Left it set over night and it was AWESOME! Making enough brine was a challenge and took my large pot a couple batches to make enough for all the turkeys but it worked out. The solution for this one was sorta on the expensive side since it had a ton of fruit juices and a "tea" to make from boiling fruits. Try it out and you wont be disappointed!

But like everyone said, you will either get a nicely brined bird followed by consecutively less brined birds or you will get a batch of sick birds with the way you are proposing. I'd just do'em all at once. Will your pit accommodate multiple birds?

bover said:

If you're concerned about saving money, I'd suggest simplifying your brine instead of trying to re-use it. Stick to water, salt and sugar. Heck...I'd recommend keeping it that simple regardless. I'm convinced that the brining process doesn't really impart much flavor anyway so the rest of that stuff folks put in is just wasted.

Click to expand...

not gaining up on you, but when you make corned beef its cured in a brine and you can def taste all the pepercorns cloves and what not. osmosis is transfering the liquid. so if the liquid is flavored it should impart some flavor. if the brine did not have time to marinade for a few hours then its kinda a waste of time to add that stuff anyway. wait what were we talkin bout again

Salmonella shouldn't be an issue because of the salt content of the brine. It's high enough to take care of that, but as another poster stated, your salt and whatever else ratio will be low on the second brine because a good part of it will have been absorbed into the first bird.