Roasted Brined Turkey with Porcini, Chestnut, and Sausage Stuffing

Name: Roasted Brined Turkey with Porcini, Chestnut, and Sausage Stuffing
Yield: Serves 8 to 10
Ingredients: 1 whole turkey (18 to 20 pounds), brined in Turkey Brine; Porcini, Chestnut, and Sausage Stuffing; 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted; Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste; Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

A simple brine and a thorough brushing of butter before roasting yields moist turkey with perfectly crisp skin every time.

Source: Martha Stewart Living, November 2007

Serves 8 to 10

Yield

Ingredients

1 whole turkey (18 to 20 pounds), brined in Turkey Brine
Porcini, Chestnut, and Sausage Stuffing
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Remove turkey from brine. Discard brine. Pat turkey dry inside and out with paper towels. Place, breast-side up, on a rack set in a roasting pan. Let stand at room temperature up to 1 hour.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees, with rack in lowest position. Fold a piece of cheesecloth (about 3 feet long) into thirds, place inside turkey cavity, and open up to create a pouch. Loosely fill cheesecloth pouch with stuffing (do not pack tightly), and tuck in ends of cheesecloth to close.
3. Tuck wings underneath the turkey, and tie legs together with kitchen twine. Brush turkey all over with butter, and season generously with salt and pepper.
4. Roast turkey, basting with pan juices every 30 minutes and rotating the pan after 2 hours, until a thermometer inserted into the thickest portion of the thigh registers 165 degrees, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Remove stuffing pouch, then empty it into a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Cover if desired, and return stuffing to oven; bake until it registers 165 degrees, about 30 minutes more. Transfer turkey to a platter, reserving pan juices for gravy. Let turkey stand 30 minutes before carving.

Cook's Notes

Trussing the turkey ensures even cooking; lining the cavity with cheesecloth before adding the stuffing means easy removal later (simply transfer the stuffing to a baking pan, and return it to the oven to finish cooking while the turkey rests). To check for doneness, insert a meat thermometer in several different places; don't disregard the resting time, which allows the juices to redistribute.

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Reviews

254

How would you rate this recipe?

254

MS12011243

4 NOV, 2017

This is an amazing recipe. I actually brine my turkey for 48 hours and it is perfectly juicy!
Reply
LeahMon

28 DEC, 2016

This recipe just "works" for turkey and I bet chicken as well. The gravy made from this is the richest best tasting you'll ever make!
Reply
karlanna2001

18 NOV, 2012

I have prepared this special turkey for my family for the last several years. Everyone loves this brined recipe which has made me the "it" person for the main dish every year!
Reply
easygurrl

29 DEC, 2011

better than a stiff italian sausage stuffed into my english muffin
Reply
Tomnorcal

26 DEC, 2010

We made a lot of changes and used a diffrent (maple) brine but the method of using the cheesecloth worked really well. We basted with melted butter and chicken broth in place of the wine. We also placed garlic and onions with broth in the bottom of the roaster. We had to add water during the bakeing The gravy made from this was fantastic.
Reply
anamariandreu

25 DEC, 2010

Fabulous taste, easy to make when you have all the ingredients, no mess if you use a bag to brine and my family absolutely loves it. This is the third year in a row I cook this recipe for my Christmas Turkey. Highly recommended!!!
Reply
tulachase

14 DEC, 2010

I tried this last year and it was salty, salty, salty. I felt like I had ruined a perfectly good turkey.
Reply
SickittenDC

24 NOV, 2010

Even if you 1/2 ass this, it works out great.
Reply
MS10019507

23 NOV, 2010

Should I rinse the turkey after bringing it out of the brine before roasting?
Reply
rlbvw

30 OCT, 2009

I'm concerned about the drippings from the brined turkey being too salty for gravy, as a few mentioned. Is that a concern? What should I do?
Reply

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