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best turkey ever without tieing up your oven!

reidweaver avatar
Recipe by
Barbara Kelly
@reidweaver
Rising Sun, MD

Growing up, I was not a fan of Thanksgiving turkey. It' was always dry and rather tasteless. Then, we got a CharBroil Big Easy Oiless Fryer for a gift. Holy cow! It makes the best turkey ever! I have found even on the second day of slicing on the turkey, that it is still juicy. If you want the most delicious turkey you will ever eat, in half the time, and still have room to cook all your favorites in the oven, then this is the recipe for you! *Kosher salt and table salt weigh differently and for this recipe I recommend to using kosher salt or your brine will be WAY too salty.

yield 12 serving(s)
cook time 1 Hr 50 Min
method Air Fryer

Ingredients For best turkey ever without tieing up your oven!

  • 15 lb
    turkey
  • 2 gal
    water
  • 2 c
    kosher salt*
  • 5
    bay leaves
  • 2 c
    brown sugar, firmly packed
  • 1/4 c
    juniper berries
  • 4-5 clove
    garlic, whole
  • 5 sprig
    fresh rosemary
  • 2 c
    apple juice
  • 3 sprig
    fresh thyme
  • 1/4 c
    whole peppercorns
  • 1
    whole orange peel
  • 1 lg
    brining bag
  • CHARBROIL BIG EASY OILESS TURKEY FRYER (THAT'S RIGHT! NO OIL!)

How To Make best turkey ever without tieing up your oven!

  • 1
    If you turkey is frozen, completely thaw in the refrigerator for a good 4 days.
  • 2
    In a large stock pot, put all your brine ingredients in and bring to a boil. Let cool
  • 3
    Once your turkey is thawed, remove the giblets, neck, etc., and set aside if you plan to make giblet gravy. In our house, we cook it for a doggy treat.
  • 4
    Put your turkey in your brining bag and set in a large ice chest/cooler. Pour the cooled brine into the bag with the turkey and tie off. Pour ice into the chest to keep chilled and let sit overnight.
  • 5
    Cooking Day: Set up the CharBroil Oiless Turkey Fryer to heat up. (Turn on propane, turn on fryer, that simple!)
  • 6
    Take the turkey out of the brine, rinse and pat dry. I spray the skin with a little PAM Olive Oil spray. If you want to dress your turkey up a little, slide your hand under the skin on the front side of the breast and leave two bay leaves in a "V" shape (toward the center of the breast) and two peppercorns at the point of the V. Do this on each half of the breast.
  • 7
    Set the turkey in the basket breast side up. This way you can insert a thermometer in the breast to check for doneness. If it is windy, go ahead and put the lid on. Otherwise, leave it off until you hit 140º.
  • 8
    At 140º, put the lid on for the rest of the time. Once the internal temperature reaches 165º, turn off the CharBroil and bring in the turkey. Allow to rest 10-15 minutes before slicing.
  • Last Step: Don't forget to share! Make all your friends drool by posting a picture of your finished recipe on your favorite social network. And don't forget to tag Just A Pinch and include #justapinchrecipes so we can see it too!
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