Ingredients
- 1 10~12 lb turkey
- 2 cups drinking quality Chinese rice wine
- 10 cups water (separate 6 and 4 cups)
- ¼ sugars
- 2/3 cup kosher sale
- 1 brining or oven bag, or a big container that can
- soak the whole turkey
- 3 Tbsp of softened unsalted butter
- 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
Instructions
Step 1: Take the time to brine In order to keep your turkey moist throughout the cooking process, I recommend brining. Brining before baking helps poultry absorb moisture and retain it as it cooks. As a bonus, brining your bird with Chinese rice wine infuses it with lots of juicy flavor, and the rice wine does tender the meat.
In a large pot over high heat, combine 6 cups water, salt and sugar. Stir until dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool.
Rinse the turkey well and remove anything from the cavity of the bird (internal organs, etc.) Place the bag in the roasting pan and open the bag and pour in the brining liquid. Place the turkey in the bag and pour in the wine over the turkey. Secure the bag tightly around the turkey, forcing the liquid to cover the outside of the bird. Place the pan in the refrigerator. The roasting pan will prevent the possibility of dripping from getting into the refrigerator. Allow turkey to brine at least 12 to 18 hours. When you’re ready to roast your turkey, remove it from the bag and rinse it well. Pat it dry with a paper towel and proceed with your roasting plans. Save the brining liquid for future, see remarks.
Step 2: Give your turkey a rub down Mix the minced garlic with butter. Use your hands to evenly distribute the butter all over the turkey, and smear butter underneath the skin too.
Step 3: Get ready to roast Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Fold a large piece of aluminum foil into a triangular shape that will completely cover the breast meat. Fit this triangle over the breast meat of your bird and then remove it and spray the underside with cooking spray. Set your “turkey shield” aside.
Set the turkey on the v-shaped rack in the roasting pan. Pour 4 cups water and the turkey organs into the pan, this will become premium gravy! Roast it for 30 minutes or until the skin is nicely browned. Remove bird from the oven and reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. If you see any burnt garlic on the top, just discard. Place the shield over the breast meat. Continue to roast for about 2 1/2 hours or until meat thermometer reaches 165 degrees. Remove the bird from the oven, tent it with additional aluminum foil and allow it to rest for at least 30 minutes so that it will retain its juices. Carve and enjoy.
Remarks
I used the 8 years matured wine from www.ChineseRiceWine.com. I love it as it’s a premium drinking quality wine. If you’re going to make a statement of your cooking, don’t use cheap wine otherwise just don’t cook it! Before I serve the turkey, I usually serve the guests with a small glass of the warmed Chinese rice wine to compliment with my deluxe turkey. How divine!
I slowly boiled the remaining juice from the pan with corn starch to make the gravy. You can add more rice wine in it while it’s done.
I showed this recipe to my friends, they all love it and feel like they’re the “fusion” cooking queens. One substituted the garlic with lemon zest, and another girlfriend use minced fresh thyme instead.
Stuffing is very up to you, but remember the cooking time will be a little bit longer. There are many good reasons not to fill the cavity, but one major reason is that the stuffing adds to your work without adding any additional flavor to your turkey.
Save and store the remaining brining liquid into a jar, they’re awesome marinated sauce! I never waste such awesome wine. Use it later for dishes like drunken chicken wings or chicken breast, simply soak the meat into the liquid overnight, then drain, rinse and cook the way you like, such as using bread crumbs to bake or pan fried.
Tags: drunk, thanksgiving, turkey
