Chef's Table

Allagash Tripel and Tangerine Beer Brined Turkey

Allagash Tripel and Tangerine Beer Brined Turkey: the delicate flavors of a Belgian style Tripel shine with the hint of seasonal tangerine and fennel infusing into the turkey.

CourseChicken, Entrée | Main, Family Style, Fowl, Lunch, Main Dish
CuisineAmerican, Beer Cuisine, Belgian, Thanksgiving Feast
Cooking Beer StyleBelgian Tripel
Pairing Beer StyleBelgian Blonde Ale, Belgian Strong Pale Ale, Belgian Tripel, Belgian Witbier
SeasonalFall Seasonal, Winter Seasonal
Food SectionBeer Brine, Beer Brined Turkey
Cooking MethodBeer Brine
BreweryAllagash Brewing Co., Beer Advocate
KeywordCooking with Beer

Servings	Prep Time
16guests	30minutes

Cook Time	Passive Time
3 1/2hours	2 – 3days

Servings	Prep Time
16guests	30minutes

Cook Time	Passive Time
3 1/2hours	2 – 3days

Ingredients

Beer Brine Ingredients:

2quart waterfiltered
5each tangerines,cut into half
1cup salt, kosherdo not use iodized salt
1/2cup sugar, Belgian Candi Sugar, Clearavailable at Beer, Beer and More Beer or organic sugar
1/2cup honeylocal variety | orange blossom | wild flower
10each bay leavespreferably fresh
1bunch thyme, fresh
1each fennel bulb,white part only, chopped
4pound iceor 2 quarts ice cold water
4bottle Tripel, ice coldsuch as Allagash Tripel, note 1 bottle = 750ml, total 3000ml total

Turkey Ingredients:

16 – 24pound turkeypreferably free range, organic or heritage

Instructions

Beer Brine Directions:

At least two days in advance of Thanksgiving | event | holiday, start the brine. In a large pot, over high heat, add the water, tangerines, salt, sugar, honey, bay leaves, thyme and fennel. Bring the liquid to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes to combine the flavors. Turn off the heat, let the brine cool for 20 minutes, then add in the ice and Allagash Tripel. Mix the ingredients together and take the temperature of the finished brine. A thermometer should read 40°F | 4°C or lower in order to be safe to use. If it is warmer, place the pot into a refrigerator/kegerator until 40°F | 4°C is reached.

Turkey Preparation:

Take the fresh turkey and remove it from its package in a large sink. Remove the neck, gizzards and liver, setting aside (for stock or gravy). Rinse the bird under cold water, turning the bird over a few times, washing any blood from the cavity and under the neck flap. Remove any remaining quills from the skin, if visible. Remove any excess fat from around the inside cavity. Turn off the water and lightly dry the turkey off with paper towels.

Using the Beer Brine Directions:

For brining, have ready a Cambro 22 qt Polypropylene Food Storage Container, large stock | brew pot, a brining bag or Ziploc XL HD Big Bag. Place the turkey into the container of choice, then top off with the chilled brine, submerging the turkey completely. Then place in the cold storage, for example a refrigerator or kegerator.
If cold space is an issue, use a large cooler and sanitize it with a bleach water solution (1 tablespoon of bleach per gallon of water or 200ppm) or Star San (1 ounce of StarSan per 2 gallons of water). Place the cooled beer brine into the now clean cooler and add the turkey. Use several gallon size seal-able bags fill with ice, to keep the bird and brine ice cold, but not diluting the salinity or flavor of the brine. This will also work if you are beer brining multiple turkeys at once and have doubled or tripled the beer brine recipe to fill the cooler size you are using.
If you are using a Ziploc XL HD Big Bag for the liquid and bird, place the sealed bagged turkey in the cooler and surround the bag with ice, to keep the turkey and brine ice cold.
Beer brine the turkey for at least 24 (for a smaller bird 16 pound) to 48 hours (for a larger 22+ pound bird). Keep the turkey and brine cold during this marinating process. Every 12 hours, rotate/flip the turkey in the brine to evenly marinate it.

Preparing the Finished Beer Brined Turkey for Cooking:

Remove the turkey from the brine and dry well with paper towels, both inside and out. Repeat this several times, to get as much of the moisture removed. This will help the browning of the skin, as moisture will steam the skin instead of roast it. Place the turkey, back side down, in a roasting pan fitted with a rack. Place the bunch of sage inside the cavity, as the herbs will release their aroma into the meat as it roasts. Let the turkey sit at room temperature for 2 hours prior to being cooked. This will let the turkey warm up, allowing it to cook more evenly. Discard the brine, as it has done its purpose and not safe to re-use.

Oven Roasting Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 350°F | 177°C, convection roast/bake if this setting is an option. Truss the bird with twine, to help hold its shape and to aid in cooking the turkey evenly. I highly recommend using a temperature probe to make sure the turkey is cooked to a certain temperature (160°F | 71°C) verses a length of time. Insert the probe into the middle of a breast or in one of the thighs. Make sure the tip of the probe isn’t touching a bone, as the temperature reading will be false. If you don’t have a probe thermometer, a 16-20 pound turkey should take between 3 and 3 1/2 hours to fully cook to 160°F | 71°C. Check both the breast and the thigh temperature to make sure the turkey is evenly cooked. Other recipes describe cooking a turkey until the internal temperature reaches 180°F | 82°C and this is one reason for a dry turkey. Turkey is safe to eat after it reaches 165°F | 75°C. It’s fine to remove the turkey from the oven at 160°F | 71°C, as the heat of the oven and the surface temperature is higher than the internal temperature. As the turkey rests, the carryover heat will finish cooking the turkey and bring it to a safe final cooking temperature of 165°F | 75°C.
Let the turkey rest at room temperature for 20 – 30 minutes before carving. This is critical in keeping a moist and juicy turkey. This resting will relax the muscle fibers, helping re-distribute the juices and allow the bird to be easier to handle when carving. Cover the turkey with a large sheet of aluminum foil.

Recipe Notes

allagash-tripel-and-tangerine-beer-brined-turkey-300