"What's for Dinner?!" I'm always thinking about it, thought I'd share.

"What's for Dinner?!" I'm always thinking about it, thought I'd share.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Brined-Roasted Turkey Breast

How many times have you been excited about Thanksgiving's star, the bird, just to be crushed that the white meat turns out to be as dry as the Mohave desert?!  Here's a sure fire way to insure moist delicious breast meat that will have everyone racing back for more and singing your praises.

2 skin-on, bone-in turkey breasts (3 1/2–4 pounds)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper

1 onion, sliced thickly
2 celery stalks
2 carrots, peeled, cut lengthwise
6 sprigs thyme
4 sprigs rosemary
1 head of garlic, cloves peeled, crushed

Brine Turkey Breasts overnight.  (3 qt. water, 1/2 C. Orange juice, 1/2 C. salt, 1/3 C. sugar, 1 tablespoon fennel seeds,1 onion sliced, 1 carrot, peeled, cut on a diagonal, 1/2 fennel bulb sliced, 8 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, 8 sprigs thyme, 2 bay leaves)

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Remove breasts from brine and pat dry. Gently loosen skin from turkey breasts and rub butter under skin and all over outside of breasts; season with salt and pepper.
Place a roasting rack in a rimmed baking sheet and scatter onion slices, celery, carrots, thyme sprigs, rosemary sprigs, and garlic on the rack and arrange turkey breasts, skin side up, on top. Put into oven and roast turkey breasts for 30 minutes, until skin starts to crisp and turn golden brown. Turn down oven to 300°F and loosely tent the breasts with foil.  Continue to cook until done. (20 minutes per lb. or internal temp reaches 155°F.) Transfer turkey breasts to a platter and let rest 20-30 minutes before carving.

Serve turkey breasts with pan drippings alongside.

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