Pre-brined turkey.


 
Arun L.

Arun L.

TVWBB All-Star
The person that's hosting Thanksgiving this year bought a pre-brined turkey.

I didn't know those existed before.

What are people's thoughts on those?
 
You can get a Butterball or some high end ones. I cooked one vert T day for 30 years, company gave them as gifts.
 
it's not the brine, its the bird. any good quality bird should taste good so long as the brine is also quality. i'd bet a commercial brined bird is injected and not soaked in brine though.
 
Brett-EDH said:
it's not the brine, its the bird. any good quality bird should taste good so long as the brine is also quality. i'd bet a commercial brined bird is injected and not soaked in brine though.
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The host brought the turkey from Whole Foods. Do you think it's soaked or injected?
 
Arun L. said:
The host brought the turkey from Whole Foods. Do you think it's soaked or injected?
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I found this on the WF website ( link below )

edit: The way I read this, it is soaked, however you could call or email WF and ask them.

Q: Aren’t all turkeys sold around town basically the same?

A: No. Whether frozen or fresh, all the turkeys at Whole Foods Market® must meet our strict quality standards including:
  • 5-Step™ Animal Welfare rated
  • No antibiotics, ever
  • No animal by-products in their feed
  • No added solutions or injections*
  • No added growth hormones*
We offer frozen and fresh, including traditional, organic, brined, and heritage. Some stores have kosher birds too.
*Except for pure sea salt solutions for our turkeys labeled "brined." **Federal regulations prohibit the use of hormones in raising turkeys.


Q: What’s the benefit of buying a brined turkey?

A: I’m a big fan of brining. Brining is simply soaking the turkey in a saltwater solution for 4 to 24 hours before roasting. The brine holds in the moisture during roasting giving you a juicy, tender bird. It’s also great to do if you’re smoking the turkey. We have a helpful brining guide in our online Holiday Cheat Sheet.

The problem with doing it yourself is that a big turkey in a big pot of water can get heavy and take up a lot of refrigerator space (which is already in short supply time of year). Instead, pick up one of our hand-brined turkeys. It saves you time and space in the fridge.

www.wholefoodsmarket.com

Get the Best Bird: Turkey Talk with a Butcher | Whole Foods Market

www.wholefoodsmarket.com www.wholefoodsmarket.com
 
Arun L. said:
The host brought the turkey from Whole Foods. Do you think it's soaked or injected?
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i looked on WF website and didn't see any pre-brined whole turkeys listed. i cannot offer an opinion on their product as i know nothing about it.

most commercial food packagers will inject as it's economically efficient, takes up little space and each bird will be consistent. plus food quality/safety means the bird has to be processed and packaged within a specific time limit to avoid contamination or spreading contagions.

meaning, i doubt they'd soak full birds in a jumbo vat as the room for cross contamination is way too high and could create a food product safety issue. injecting each bird would isolate cross contamination and allow for a more controlled process thus reducing the changes of people getting sick.

so i will lean towards the bird being injected per food safety protocols. the only time i've seen a wet brined bird (soaked, not injected), is by home cooks or restaurants where the process is timed and controlled and the bird isn't sitting on a shelf for 10 days.

again, injection doesn't make for a bad bird. and WF tends to sell "better" products, if you subscribe to that theory (i don't shop there, personally and we have one in town).

question, are you concerned for food safety or other issue(s) if the bird is pre-brined? i'm curiuous of your line of questioning.
 
I rarely shop at WF myself. Only if they sell something I can't get anywhere else.

I'm only asking about pre-brining, just for the sake of discussion. I didn't know those existed before, so just wanted to see what people thought about them, or their experience with them. I've since learned, from this thread, that injecting in a brine is a possibility.

In the end, if it comes out great, I want to know what I had, for future knowledge. So if I do the shopping in the future, I can get something similar, or the same thing.
 
I'm also helping the host smoke the turkey, so I'll be hands on this year, even though I'm not hosting.

So everything that happens this time will be good to keep track of. I've only done a turkey once before.
 
Arun L. said:
I rarely shop at WF myself. Only if they sell something I can't get anywhere else.

I'm only asking about pre-brining, just for the sake of discussion. I didn't know those existed before, so just wanted to see what people thought about them, or their experience with them. I've since learned, from this thread, that injecting in a brine is a possibility.

In the end, if it comes out great, I want to know what I had, for future knowledge. So if I do the shopping in the future, I can get something similar, or the same thing.
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makes perfect sense. do keep in mind though that products always change. so from year to year, the same product might vary, change or not exists. i'd recco you ask the host for a pic of the turkey's label/packaging. that should give you the data you seek to have (brine/type/any ingredients/type of bird).
 
Brett-EDH said:
makes perfect sense. do keep in mind though that products always change. so from year to year, the same product might vary, change or not exists. i'd recco you ask the host for a pic of the turkey's label/packaging. that should give you the data you seek to have (brine/type/any ingredients/type of bird).
Click to expand...

That's a good idea, to take a pic of the packaging. Especially since as you said things might change a little. So I'd at least have more info for this reference point. Thanks.
 
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