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How to marinate a turkey so that it is juicy and tender is very easy with these tricks that I will gladly share with you. Macerating the turkey for Christmas or Thanksgiving is what will give it the delicious flavor that will make that dinner with family or friends remembered for the rest of the year. The most important thing in marinating your turkey is how long you allow the marinade to soak into the poultry. Although don’t worry, if you don’t have time and you have to marinate it immediately before putting it in the oven, I will show you some tricks to increase the flavor.
How to marinate a turkey to make it juicy
- The secret to marinating a turkey to make it juicy begins with the turkey not being frozen, thawed, and refrozen, multiple times. Although you can refreeze a meat that has been thawed, each time it goes through the defrosting process it loses its juices. If it is a turkey that has only been frozen once and you defrost it to prepare it, it is as if you had a fresh turkey.
- One important trick is to keep it moist during cooking. You can achieve this by putting an apple cut into pieces, and a head of garlic cut in half, inside the turkey cavity. The apple helps provide moisture and the garlic produces gases that help flavor and smell the turkey, enhancing the flavor of the marinade.
- I recommend that you prepare the turkey filling separately so that you prioritize keeping the turkey moist with the apple and garlic. Once the turkey is baked you can fill it.
- The cooking time is very important, if you overcook the turkey it will lose its moisture and therefore it will not be a juicy turkey when serving, click here to know the cooking times and temperature to prepare turkey in the oven.
- Thaw your turkey ahead of time so you can have time left to marinate. The turkey can take days to defrost, here I explain how to defrost the turkey with time or how to do it quickly. Click here
How Long Should I Leave A Turkey Marinating Before Putting In The Oven?
Let your turkey marinate for 12 to 24 hours preferably. I have sometimes had to put the turkey in the oven with only a couple of hours of marinating and the truth is that it is delicious anyway, so imagine how it will look if you give more time to perfume the marinade and season the meat. of the bird. Follow my tips on how to marinate a turkey to make it juicy to achieve more flavor and retain moisture if you don’t have time to leave the turkey in the marinade for longer.
How long should a turkey marinate?
The marinade can go from 4 hours to 24. Personally, I like to let it sit with the marinade overnight.
The secret to the best baked turkey marinade is to use a plastic bag or turkey bag. It has worked very well for me to use baking bags, there I leave the turkey marinating, I close it well and every time I open the refrigerator I turn the bag over and in this way I make sure that all the turkey is marinated. I buy the Reynolds brand, you find them in supermarkets in Mexico and the United States, they are inexpensive and very practical, and they also help you to greatly reduce the cooking time of the turkey.
¿Cuál es la Mejor manera de Marinar un Pavo?
When you leave the turkey marinating in a container it is a disaster to have to open the container where you have it marinating, dirty the ladle to spray the marinade and so on. Plus it takes up a lot of space in the refrigerator. I have used turkey bags for years to leave the turkey marinating right there. The truth is that marinating in a baking bag is cool. It does not take up so much space in the fridge and as you close the bag tightly, each time you open the fridge you change position the turkey is marinating evenly without having to bathe with a ladle at all times.
How to marinate a smoked turkey
One question I am frequently asked is how to marinate a smoked turkey. The thing here is that the smoked one could say that it is already a marinade itself. I love the flavor of smoked turkey and it is difficult for once smoked another flavor to penetrate the bird. Not impossible, once the turkey is thawed, prepare one of the marinades that I suggest and let it rest in it for at least 24 hours. I think that definitely for a smoked turkey the marinade of white wine with pineapple or turkey with orange is better. I recommend you prepare a delicious gravy to accompany and put an apple cut into pieces and half a head of garlic when baking. The apple will help you to conserve the humidity of the turkey and the garlic releases natural gases that will help to add more flavor.
Easy and Delicious Baked Turkey Marinade Recipes:
- Pavo a la naranja
- Pavo en vino blanco y jugo de piña
- Adobado Roast Turkey
- Pavo al romero
- Pavo al ajo y mostaza
- Pavo a la BBQ
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