Steve's Awesome Roast Turkey

This recipe comes from our friend Steve Sahlin. Make sure you start with a 14-16 pound turkey that is NOT pre-brined or frozen. You will brine the turkey the day before and then apply a rub before roasting.

Brine 

1 1/2 cups table salt (or 1 cup per 2 gallons of brine)

4 large yellow onions

2 garlic heads (if Russian variety with purple stripes; if white garlic, use 3)

2 navel oranges (use organic, if you can)

1 package poultry herbs (fresh rosemary, thyme, sage)

1 cup honey or maple syrup (grade B is best, if using syrup)

1 1/2 cups sugar (use cane sugar)

14-16 pound turkey (NOT pre-brined and preferably never frozen)

1. Fill a food-grade, 5-gallon plastic bucket (Home Depot orange buckets work) a little less than 2/3 full with water. Add the table salt.
2. Cut onions in half, then in thirds. Cut garlic heads in half and smash (no need to remove skin). Add onions and garlic to water. 
3. Zest the oranges. Reserve 1 1/2 tablespoons zest for rub. Cut oranges in quarters and put in the water.
4. Pull the leaves of the herbs off the stems. Chop the herbs, saving 1/2 of the mixture for the rub. Put the rest in the water.
5. Add the maple and sugar to the water. Stir to mix.
6. Remove the neck and giblets, etc. from the turkey and cut into 2" bits for the gravy. Remove the thermometer, if there is one.
7. Add the turkey to the brine bucket and store in fridge or cool place (40 degrees or less) for 9-12 hours (depending on size of turkey).

Rub

1 stick organic unsalted butter (cut into chunks)

2 or 3 pieces thick peppered bacon (raw and cut into chunks)

herbs (use the other half of the herbs you chopped for the brine)

3 cloves of garlic, peeled

1 teaspoon paprika (Hungarian is best)

salt (optional, 1/4 teaspoon at most)

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons orange zest

1. Place all ingredients into a blender (preferably something like a Vitamix) and blend.
2. To apply the rub: starting at neck cavity, loosen skin from breast and drumsticks by inserting fingers, gently pushing between skin and meat. Rub herb/bacon mixture under loosened skin and into body cavity. Tie ends of legs with cord. Lift wing tips up and over back; tuck under bird.

Roasting the Bird

I'm guessing a little at cooking times. A Cook's Illustrated recipe for an 18-20 pound bird suggested 3 hours roasting (breast down) at 250, flip breast up for another hour at 250, then at 400 for about an hour. I'm using a 13-14 pound turkey this year, so I've adjusted the times for that.

1. Heat oven to 250 degrees. Bring turkey legs together and perform simple truss; by using the center of a five foot length of cooking twine, tie the legs together at the ankles. Run the twine aound the thighs and under the wings on both sides of the bird, pulling tightly. keeping the twine pulled snug, tie a firm knot around the excess flesh at the neck of the bird. Snip off excess twine.
2. Set heavy-duty V-rack, adjusted to widest setting, in pan. Brush entire breast side of turkey with butter, then place turkey, breast side down, on V-rack. Brush entire back side of turkey with butter.
3. Roast 2 hours, basting back side every hour or so. Remove pan from oven (close oven door); baste with butter. With wad of paper toweling in each hand, turn breast side up. Continue to roast 3/4 hour, basting once or twice. With turkey still in oven, increase oven temperature to 400 degrees; roast until skin has browned and internal temperature of legs and breast registers about 165 degrees, about 1/2 to 3/4 hour longer. Transfer turkey to platter; let rest 20 to 30 minutes.