Ingredients
Scale
For the brine: 2 gallons cold water, 1 cup Kosher salt, 1 cup sugar
1 whole 12-15lb turkey
3 sticks salted butter, softened
1 tablespoon Hardcore Carnivore Amplify
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 cup apricot, orange or apple jelly (without pieces)
Instructions
- Start a day ahead by brining. Combine the water, salt and sugar in a large container, immerse the turkey and refrigerate overnight or up to 12 hours. DO NOT brine your turkey if it is already brined, enhanced, or self basting. You can also add herbs, citrus peel and hard whole spices like peppercorn and allspice to your brine.
- Remove the turkey from the brine and discard the mixture. Rinse the turkey under cold running water, then pat very well with paper towel to dry the skin. Place the turkey onto a rack in a roasting pan, and pre-heat oven to 450f. Pout 1-2 cups of water into the bottom of the pan to prevent any burning.
- Combine softened butter, soy sauce and Amplify. Reserve 1/3 of the mixture and set aside. Use your fingers to gently create a gap under the turkey skin, loosening the skin from the flesh. Spread some seasoned butter underneath the skin of the turkey, and the remaining butter across the top of the skin to completely cover it.
- Place the turkey into the oven, then immediately lower the temperature to 350f. Rotate the pan every 30 minutes to promote even cooking. Every 45 minutes, brush the turkey with the reserved softened butter mixture. It’s recommended you remove the turkey completely from the oven for this step to ensure you don’t loose too much heat as you baste it.
- The turkey will take about 15 minutes per lb to cook. Start monitoring the internal temperature at the halfway mark. The final temperature should read 165f at the thickest part of the thigh. If the skin becomes too brown in areas, use foil to make a shield to protect the skin from excessive browning.
- About 10-15 minutes before the turkey is done (so at around 155-160f), combine the jelly with the remaining butter. You may need to melt or microwave the mixture so that the jelly loosens and stirs in. Brush the turkey with the jelly-butter and cook until finished.
- Rest turkey for 20-30 minutes before carving.