Citrus Herb Thanksgiving Turkey
Are you looking for a little twist on a classic Thanksgiving Turkey that won't send the family over the edge? Try our Citrus Herb Turkey that has all of the traditional flavor with a fresh citrus background!
Citrus Herb Thanksgiving Turkey
Category
Main
Cuisine
American
Servings
10-12
Prep Time
24 hours
Cook Time
3 hours
Get your Gather Thanksgiving Kit with our Citrus Herb Rub & Brine Blend at Ranch Foods Direct or Gather Food Studio!
Cortney Smith
Ingredients
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1 package Gather Brine Blend
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1 carrot, rough chopped
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1 large onion, peeled and rough chopped
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¼ cup celery, rough chopped
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2 bay leaves
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1 – 14-18 lb turkey, thawed
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1 cup chicken stock
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¼ cup olive oil
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2 cloves garlic
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1 teaspoon salt
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¼ cup honey
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3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
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1 sprig fresh rosemary
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1 sprig fresh sage
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1 bay leaf
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1 stick butter, softened or ½ cup olive oil
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1 package Gather Citrus Herb Turkey Rub
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1 apple
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1 orange
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Fresh herbs
For The Brine
For The Injection:
For The Rub
For Stuffing The Cavity
Directions
For the brine (2 days in advance): In a large stockpot, bring 8 cups of water to boil. Add salt and sugar and stir until completely dissolved. Turn off heat. Add 1 ½ gallons (24 cups) of cold water to the concentrated brine. Add the carrot, onion, celery and bay leaves. Make sure brine is fully cooled before moving onto the next step.
Remove giblets from turkey. Add turkey to the cooled brine solution (use brining bags, a bucket or cooler). Refrigerate the turkey in the brine for 1 hour per pound (14-18 hours), then remove from the brine. If desired, rinse turkey under cold water to remove excess salt. Make sure to blot dry to remove as much moisture as possible. While making and cooling the injection sauce (below) let turkey dry, uncovered in the refrigerator.
Optional: Prepare injection sauce by boiling all ingredients together in a saucepan for 3 minutes. Strain and let cool. Inject turkey 2 times per thigh and 3 per breast. Avoid making too many holes in the turkey to preserve moisture.
Mix Gather Citrus Herb Turkey Rub with the butter or oil until you have a paste. Pull skin away from turkey and insert the rub between the meat and the skin. Do this all around the bird and use any left over rub on the outside of the bird.
Stuff cavity with apples, oranges and herbs.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees, truss the turkey, place it on a roasting pan and roast until it starts to brown, about 25 minutes, reduce to 350 degrees and roast for 12 minutes more per pound. When the internal temperature at deepest of the of the leg reaches 170 degrees it is done. (total roasting time will be about 3 hours). If the bird begins to darken too much, cover it loosely with a piece of foil.
Allow the turkey to rest for 20 minutes before carving and serving.