Wet or Dry Brine for Smoked Turkey

Dry for me. Season a few hours to a day prior to smoking.

Wet brine with 3/4 salt to 1/4 sugar in mine

question. Is there a thread here somewhere that explains brining a turkey for roasting?

I dry brine overnight and inject the breast with vegetable oil.

Brining doesn't impart flavor, it just helps the bird retain it's moisture.

To the OP, dry brining is the way to go.

I wet brine but I'm old and have been doing it for 20 years and don't like change.

1 cup salt, 1 cup sugar per 1 gallon water. Add whatever else..citrus peel, rosemary, sage, bay leaves, peppercorns etc...

Let go for 24 hours, rinse well in cool water and dry well. I then let it sit uncovered in fridge on a raised rack for a couple of days to dry out.

Why would you want a less moist bird?

From the article:

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Adding baking powder to a dry brine can also improves your turkey skin. Not only does the baking powder work to break down some skin proteins, causing them crisp and brown more efficiently, but it also combines with turkey juices, forming microscopic bubbles that add surface area and crunch to your skin as it roasts.

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quote:

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I wet brine but I'm old and have been doing it for 20 years and don't like change.

1 cup salt, 1 cup sugar per 1 gallon water. Add whatever else..citrus peel, rosemary, sage, bay leaves, peppercorns etc...

Let go for 24 hours, rinse well in cool water and dry well. I then let it sit uncovered in fridge on a raised rack for a couple of days to dry out.

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Or you could just never get the bird wet to begin with and dry the surface after the dry brining, Martini.