If your Thanksgiving table looks anything like mine, there’s usually one platter of turkey and lots and lots of sides. Carving the turkey is sometimes a bigger draw than actually eating it. Instead of roasting a whole turkey, I have found that roasting smaller portioned, roast turkey breasts satisfies all the white meat lovers.
And the method I have found to produce a turkey breast full of big flavor and juicy texture is brining.
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Why brine a turkey breast?
There are two reasons that a brine is the deep dark secret to making a juicy roast turkey breast:
- Moisture. Say buy-bye now to dry white meat and hello to one of the most popular dishes on your Thanksgiving table, besides the family favorite mashed potatoes.
- Flavor. This brine includes a savory mix of herbs and spices that adds tremendous flavor and seasoning.
There are two kinds of brine: wet or dry. I discovered the magic of dry brining when I taught culinary classes at Williams-Sonoma and now won’t use anything else.
The difference between a dry and wet brine
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Other than the fact that a dry brine doesn’t have water, there are some advantages to making a dry brine turkey breast:
Juicy meat with big flavor. A wet brine adds more water to the turkey breast potentially leading to waterlogging, which is the main problem with traditional brining. Dry brining brings all the moisture and also makes a really crispy skin.
Time. Making a dry brine is as simple as stirring some herbs and spices together in a bowl. No boiling and cooling of a brining solution. Time saved!
Ease of preparation. The biggest advantage of a dry brine is you only need a large resealable bag big enough to hold your protein and a sheet pan to set it on. No cooler needed!
2 dry brine ingredient success agents
Kosher salt. The best type of salt for a dry brine is kosher salt. [Note: I have successfully used sea salt before even though it’s not been hailed as the best choice because its texture doesn’t allow the dry brine to be evenly spread over the bird.} See note below about using different types of salt.
Baking powder. I borrowed a brining technique from Chef Kenji Lopéz-Alt that gives a crispy, golden skin to the turkey breast. Adding a bit of baking powder to the dry brine creates a beautiful crackling skin that your guests will fight over.
Salt note
I have used Jacobsen Italian Sea Salt, Morton Kosher and Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt all with great results. However, they are different by weight. Jacobsen and Morton are the same by weight and Diamond is lighter with bigger flakes.
1 cup of Morton Kosher Salt = 1 1/3 cup of Diamond (1.34 conversion)
1 cup of Diamond Crystal = 3/4 cup of Morton (.75 conversion)
Let’s talk turkey breast
First note: don’t use a boneless, rolled turkey breast for this recipe. A boneless rolled turkey breast is essentially parts of turkey pressed together which isn’t what you want here.
Look for a whole fresh turkey breast. It will have bones and are around 8 pounds or so and will feed 6. They are easier to find around the holidays and your local butcher should be able to help as well.
How to dry brine a turkey
How long to cook a bone in turkey breast
The golden rule for cooking a turkey breast is 20 minutes per pound but use a meat thermometer to ensure the bird is cooked to 165°.
Tips for brining success
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Brined Roast Turkey Breast
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Equipment
- roasting rack
- large ziploc bag or plastic wrap
Ingredients
- 5-6 lb bone-in turkey breast, rinsed and dried, giblet bag removed; can use for a whole bird up to 10-12 lbs*
Dry Brine
- ½ cup kosher salt, Morton/Jacobsen (if using Diamond Crystal Kosher salt, see conversion note below)*
- 2 Tablespoons baking powder
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon thyme
Garnish option
- 6 whole fresh sage leaves
Instructions
- Fully pat turkey dry with paper towels.
To dry brine
- Mix brine ingredients in medium mixing bowl until fully blended.½ cup kosher salt, 2 Tablespoons baking powder, 2 Tablespoons brown sugar, 1 ½ teaspoon paprika, 1 ½ teaspoon garlic powder, 1 ½ teaspoon thyme
- Coat the inside and outside of the bird with the dry brine. Use all of it.
- Place inside large ziploc and set on a sheet pan in the fridge.
- Refrigerate overnight until ready to roast. DO NOT RINSE THE TURKEY (see below).
Cook turkey
- Preheat oven to 450°.
- Set the turkey in a roasting rack (or see alternative in notes below) and place on a sheet pan.5-6 lb bone-in turkey breast
- Roast for 15 minutes and then lower oven to 350° until meat thermometer reaches 165° (cooking time is approximately 20 minutes per pound).
- Cover with foil and let rest for 10 – 15 minutes before removing breast from bone and carving into slices.
- Garnish option: before roasting, slide whole sage leaves under skin for a pretty presentation.6 whole fresh sage leaves
4.5 stars. Phone won’t let me rate 5*. Used recipe with 12.5 pound whole locally farmed turkey that we fried. Will definitely do again! Couldn’t get it to “stick” much so was concerned but it apparently did stick enough to give great flavors, even with frying it! Have done a wet brine then fried before and that was just ok. This definitely had more of a crispy crust to the skin which I love.
Thank you so much, Amy! I will have to look into why my site won’t let you give the 5 stars (but THANK YOU!). So glad you enjoyed that crispy crust on the turkey breast and found the dry brine easy to work with😊
This brine was phenomenal!
My daughter told me to use a wet brine and I told her I was using this! She tasted the turkey and said this is so juicy and not too salty, I’m glad you used the dry brine! Thank you!
Thank you so much, Linda! So so glad you all found the dry brine tasty and the turkey juicy. I so appreciate your taking the time to share!😊
Could you make this in a slower cooker? How much time would you recommend on low/high?
Thanks!
Hi Yonnie! Such a good question! I actually haven’t tested this turkey in a slow cooker so I don’t feel confident to give you reliable temperature and times. I definitely wouldn’t want to steer you wrong when it comes to poultry.
For this recipe, I recommend sticking with the oven method as written so you get that crispy skin and juicy meat. If a slow cooker is a must, I’d look for a recipe that was developed specifically for that method and then borrow the flavor/brine ideas from this one. Thank you for your question and I’d love to hear how it turns out if you go that route – happy holidays!
We tried this for the first time this year. We separated the turkey and used
a roaster. When the individual sections reached the proper temperature
we removed them. The smell,color and flavor were fantastic !
We are doing another turkey today( Dec. 7th same routine) for our family coming
home from Florida.
Thank you Lori !
Tim & Beth
Tim and Beth – what a great idea for prepping your turkey – love it! And thank you so much for taking the time to comment and I’m thrilled you loved the brine recipe. Enjoy your next celebration with your family!
I’m so sorry- but I am extremely disappointed- I followed the recipe instructions exactly as written and honestly, the turkey came out so extremely salty, I wanted to cry. I thought the salt measurement seemed high. I should have went with my gut. Cutting the salt in 1/2 (at least) for a 10–12 lb turkey would be a smart move. Luckily thanksgiving had many sides and the dark meat was mostly impacted.
Hi Valerie – thank you so much for your feedback and comment. I really appreciate it! I’m glad we were able to connect via email and troubleshoot. I’ll definitely take your feedback into consideration when I next update the recipe.
*For readers reading the comments, Valerie’s turkey was a fresh farm turkey (assuming it was not pre-brined – something for anyone reading to consider) and it was brined for 22 hours. I did prepare and used the full recipe as written for our 12 lb turkey this year and brined it for 36 hours. Again, something to note that’s in the card is that not all the brine needs to be used.
Happy friday after Thanksgiving, love the dry brine recipe, i used 1.25 recipe for 22lb. turkey. Cooked fast, but held fine, made perfect gravy. Honest i was nervous, seems like a lot of salt. But once again, you are a genius. Thank you Lori :))
So glad you loved it and it worked for you with a whole bird, Crystal! I know- the salt quotient is hefty but it works its magic. We also used it with a whole bird this year. I did a 12 pounder and made just a little over the recipe. We deep fried the bird and it worked great too! Happy holidays, Crystal—thank you so much for taking the time to comment!🤗
Have you ever brimmed with powdered buttermilk?
I have never used powdered buttermilk! Is that something you do? I wonder if it could replace the baking powder possibly. Will have to give it a try!
Love this recipe and will try it (thanks to the person who asked about smoking because I’ll do that with the smaller breast I picked up for a later time.
Do you think it would work for a fried Turkey as well?
Hi Steven! So appreciate the question as I’m doing it with a deep-fried turkey myself as we have an ailing oven in our new house. My plan is to dry brine as usual and pop that baby in the deep fryer. Nothing like putting your feet into the fryer so to speak😂 I anticipate a little more “bubbling” than usual (we usually inject it too) but think it should work just great. Let’s compare notes the next day! Happy Thanksgiving!
How woulx this be for a smoked turkey breast? Any adjustments needed?
Hi Jeanne! While I am not a smoking expert, you can definitely brine per my recipe and then smoke your turkey at 250˚ until it reaches 165˚. My friend, Taryn, at Hot Pan Kitchen does just that with fabulous results. Here is a link to her smoked turkey recipe. Good luck and Happy Thanksgiving!
Can I stuff a dry brined whole turkey?
Hi Carole – I usually don’t recommend stuffing a whole bird after having brined it because you do run the risk of the stuffing being saltier. I have just cooked the dressing in a different pan. A brined bird also makes delicious gravy! Just don’t add any more salt and plenty of turkey broth – I also add some white wine 😊. Happy Thanksgiving!
I dry brined a beef tri-tip roast with kosher salt and just wiped off the brine before cooking and the beef was still way too salty. It seems like the turkey would be the same.
Hi Dean! I have dry brined whole turkeys, bone-in and boneless breasts resulting in browned crispy skin and juicy meat that is loaded with flavor and not salty. It also depends on what kosher salt the recipe calls for and you’re using. For this recipe, (and I’ll add it to the post) I used Jacobsen sea salt which is closely equivalent to Morton’s Kosher salt. One suggestion would be is to use Diamond Crystal Salt. A cup of Diamond salt (which has bigger flakes and is lighter) = 3/4 cup Morton’s salt. The multiplier to convert from Morton’s to Diamond is 1.34 so for every cup of Morton’s, you’d need 1 1/3 cup of Diamond. Conversely, converting from Diamond to Morton is .75. I appreciate your comment – thank you!
I have read that turkey should not be placed in plastic bag when dry brining. Is the plastic bag recommended because of the baking powder?
I have actually done it both ways – with or without the bag. and didn’t see any difference in the skin or flavor. I just prefer it with the bag usually because of everything else in my fridge during the holidays ☺️ thanks for asking! Let me know how it works for you!
Could this recipe be cooked in an air fryer?
Hi Jim! I have never tried using an air fryer but now I want to! If you do, please let me know how it works out.
What about two boneless turkey breasts? How do I adjust cooking both at the same time?
Great question Carla! You can cook them at the same temperature side by side if it works in your oven. Time wise- I’d plan on maybe an extra 15 minutes but let the thermometer be your guide! Let me know how it works for you!
Can you do this for a whole turkey?
You definitely can! Just adjust accordingly using this recipe as the basis for a smaller bird. I’d probably increase it 1.25 times it for more than a 12 lb bird and go from there. Let me know if you try it! Thanks for your question, Cheryl!!
Do it! It’s so easy and no mess with the dry brine!