WHAT IS A BRINE?

You might have heard of a brine but the challenge of creating one might be a little overwhelming. Why would you want to brine a turkey if you can just stick it in the oven until the red thing pops up, right?

Well, for starters, brine is basically salt water, or water saturated or nearly saturated with salt. Brine has historically been used to preserve vegetables, meats, fish, and cheese through a process called brining.

Brining is like marinating in that you soak your (in this case) turkey in the solution, but it's benefit in addition to flavoring is that it's supposed to help cooked meat stay moist. The explanation for why has to do with osmosis and denaturation.....boooring. Let's just say as long as it ain't dry, who cares why.

A simple brine can be made easily with sugar, salt, water, ice, and flavorings like herbs and spices. So now that you know what brining is, and why it might be worth a try, here are some recipes you can use to brine your own turkey this Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, or whenever.