Another brine question

[Paul K]

If I want to avoid my turkey getting too dark, would cutting back on the sugar in my brine (sugar, juice, etc.) help accomplish this? Kevin K, I think I remember reading you avoid sugars in most of your brines. Does this cause your poultry to come out lighter? Or could I simple foil the bird after awhile? That would probably soften the skin...

I'm looking for an option that will help with the aesthetics of the finished bird. Presentation is a big part with guests. Suggestions?

Thanks,

Paul

 

[K Kruger]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Paul K:
If I want to avoid my turkey getting too dark, would cutting back on the sugar in my brine (sugar, juice, etc.) help accomplish this? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Yes.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content"> Kevin K, I think I remember reading you avoid sugars in most of your brines. Does this cause your poultry to come out lighter? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Yes, more light-medium golden, generally.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content"> Or could I simple foil the bird after awhile? That would probably soften the skin...

</div></BLOCKQUOTE>Yes, it will, though you can unfoil after a while. This helps color but only somewhat helps texture. You can make very flavorful brines with minimal or no sugar or use some fruit juice, water, no sugar and plenty of aromatics and/or spices/herbs.

 

[Paul K]

Great, that's what I thought. I tried the apple brine recipe and while it had an excellent flavor, it was a little on the dark side. I assumed running the WSM at higher temps would encourage the sugar to darken the skin. Kevin, thanks for your help.

Paul