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Sliced roasted turkey breast on a plate with fresh herbs.

Buttermilk Brined Turkey Breast

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4.9 from 51 reviews

Buttermilk Brined Turkey Breast is low stress and easy, making for a less hectic prep for your holiday meal. The brine makes the meat moist and tender!

  • Total Time: 5 hours 15 minutes
  • Yield: 12 servings 1x

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • One Turkey Breast (about 6 to 7 pounds on the bone)
  • 1 3/4 cups of Buttermilk
  • 3 Tbsp of Salt
  • 1 large spring of Fresh Rosemary
  • 6 to 8 Fresh Sage Leaves
  • 1 large bunch of Fresh Thyme
  • 1/2 tsp of Black Pepper
  • 1/2 tsp of Paprika
  • 1/2 medium Yellow Onion
  • 3 stalks of Celery

Instructions

  1. The first step is to cut the turkey breast from the bone. To do this, start by removing the turkey breast from its packaging.
  2. Using a chefs knife, start in the center of the breast and make a cut along the breastbone, moving in a downward motion.
  3. Run your knife downward along the bones of the carcass until you reach the bottom of the breast, then cut along the bottom until the meat is removed from the bone (if you prefer not to remove the meat from the bone yourself or you want to cook the meat on the bone, please see Notes). Leave the skin on!
  4. Take a gallon freezer bag and place it inside a large bowl.
  5. Add the 1 3/4 cups buttermilk, 3 Tbsp of salt, the fresh rosemary, sage, and thyme to the buttermilk. Close the bag and use your hands to squish the contents around to combine.
  6. Open the bag and add the turkey breast pieces.
  7. Close the bag and place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or up to 24 hours.
  8. When you are ready to roast the turkey, remove it from the refrigerator and take the meat out of the bag. Pat it dry with paper towels to remove excess brine.
  9. Season the breasts with the 1/2 tsp of pepper and 1/2 tsp of paprika. Place the seasoned turkey on a plate and prepare the baking sheet.
  10. Turn the oven on to 350 degrees. Line your rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil (dull side facing up).
  11. Cut the 1/2 an onion into wedges and place on the baking sheet.
  12. Place the celery stalks on the baking sheet with the onions.
  13. Put the cooling rack on top of the rimmed baking sheet. the rack should fit inside the borders of the baking sheet rim.
  14. Place the seasoned turkey on top of the cooling rack and place n the oven on the center rack.
  15. Roast for 1 to 1/2 hours, until a meat thermometer placed in the thickest part of the breast registers 165 degrees and the juices are clear, not pink.
  16. Remove the meat to a plate or platter and wrap in foil for 10 to 15 minutes to allow the meat to rest. Then slice and serve!

Notes

If you don't want to take the meat off the bone yourself, have the meat counter at the grocery store do this for you.

If you want to cook the turkey breast on the bone:

Follow all of the instructions except that when you put the turkey in the bag to brine, you are doing it with the breast bones still attached. It should still fit in the bag this way if you are using a large bag.

You can roast it on the bone using the baking sheet method, or you can place it in a roasting pan.

On the bone, you will still roast this at 350 degrees, but instead of 1 to 1/2 hours, you will roast for 20 minutes per pound. At that rate, a 6 or 7 pound breast will take around 2 hours or a little more.

To check for doneness, use your meat thermometer in the thickest part of the breast, registering 165 degrees and the juices are running clear.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1
  • Calories: 25
  • Sugar: 2
  • Sodium: 1819
  • Fat: 0
  • Saturated Fat: 0
  • Unsaturated Fat: 0
  • Trans Fat: 0
  • Carbohydrates: 2
  • Fiber: 0
  • Protein: 3
  • Cholesterol: 7

Find it online: https://thecoppertable.com/buttermilk-brined-turkey-breast/