• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Comfy Belly
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Recipe Collections
  • Shopping List
  • Sign In
  • Join
  • About
  • Newsletter
  • Amazon shop

search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • Recipe Collections
  • Shopping List
  • Sign In
  • Join
  • About
  • Newsletter
  • Amazon shop

×
Home » Dairy-Free

Dry Brine

Nov 24, 2009 · 4 Comments

Turkey Dry Rub

If you're thinking about how to prepare your turkey, here's how I season chicken, turkey, and other kinds of poultry. You can apply this technique at the last minute, as well as a few days before, while the turkey waits in the refrigerator. What I get is golden, crunchy skin and moist meat underneath. Roasted chicken is the meal my kids would choose if stranded on a desert island.

For Thanksgiving and other times, I rub the skin, both inside and out, with olive oil and kosher salt (or sea salt), and then I usually add some herbs to the cavity and outer skin. This year, since I grew thyme and rosemary I'm adding them to the dry rub. Sometimes I use butter instead of olive oil, but either are good at keeping the salt and moisture in place while roasting.

Tip Salting the skin generously returns the favor with crunchy, roasted skin (we have intense negotiations over the crunchy pieces).

I think I'm going to grill my turkey this year - I've never done this, but since I don't have an especially large turkey, I'm going to give it a try.

Quite often I cook a whole chicken on the grill. I heat the grill to between 350 and 400 degrees F, place the chicken in an old baking cake pan with a wire rack, and, depending on the weight, cook it for about 1 ½ hours. In general, it takes less time to grill a chicken than to roast it in the oven.

[print_this]

Dry rub for chicken, turkey, and other poultry

  • at least ¼ cup of Kosher salt (or sea salt)
  • about ¼ cup of olive oil
  • rosemary
  • sage
  • thyme
  • any other herbs you like, dried or fresh
  • lemon or orange slices or zest in the cavity and on the skin (optional)

Preparation

  1. When poultry is defrosted, rub olive oil all over, including under the skin. Slide your fingers under the skin to loosen it up enough to get to the thighs.
  2. Once oiled (or buttered), take Kosher salt and spread it in pinches underneath the skin, spreading it out as you go along. Add some herbs as well if you want to.
  3. Next, sprinkle the outside with Kosher salt as well as any herbs you are using.
  4. Optionally, place some lemon zest over the outside skin and the lemon inside the cavity (if you're not stuffing it).
  5. Roast and enjoy!

[/print_this]

  • Facebook

Reader Interactions

Comments

    Leave a reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




  1. Erica says

    April 11, 2010 at 10:29 am

    Ruth, I butterfly thick cuts of meat, but I've never thought to freeze it that way. Great ideas! Love Cook's Illustrated instructions.

    Reply
  2. Ruth Hirsch says

    April 10, 2010 at 6:54 pm

    Hi,
    I love doing this too. For the past few years I have been butterflying chicken. i first read the suggestion on Cook's Illustrated. They are right. This flattens the chicken out, and it cooks more quickly and evenly.
    When I buy more good chicken than I'll cook, I butterfly them a wrap to freeze. Takes much much less freezer space. I have to say they look funny: chickens stacked up in my freezer.
    It takes very little time to butterfly them: use either kitchen shears or a knife to cut the un-cooked chicken along the middle of the breast. Then widen the break, and flatten the poor bird. Sounds awful.
    Cooks Illustrated probably has this illustrated, and other sites may too.

    Reply
  3. Erica says

    November 28, 2009 at 5:18 pm

    Apple, yum! I made a new kind of stuffing this year, using apple, and it came out wonderful.

    Reply
  4. Nickole says

    November 27, 2009 at 7:23 pm

    I love making chicken this way! Another idea is to use apples inside the cavity. I like to make a gravy from the juices when it's finished cooking and the apples give it a nice flavor. Enjoy!

    Reply

Primary Sidebar

Erica in kitchen

Welcome! I'm Erica, a cookbook author and writer. I offer whole food, grain-free, and gluten-free recipes, tips, and more. I'm passionate about food and the human microbiome. Also, I love vegetables.

Learn more

Recent comments

  1. Erica on Thumbprint Cookies {almond & coconut flour}June 22, 2025

    Hi Brooke. I haven't tested it yet, so not sure. I suspect it will work but the cookies may be…

  2. Brooke on Thumbprint Cookies {almond & coconut flour}June 22, 2025

    Hi! Can I use olive oil in place of the butter?

  3. Erica on Date Ketchup {quick & easy}June 18, 2025

    Hi Karin, so great to hear! I agree of course :)

  4. Karin Blanchard on Date Ketchup {quick & easy}June 18, 2025

    This is such an easy and yummy healthy alternative to regular ketchup. My family is scarfing it up! Thank you!

  5. Erica on Orange Sesame Chicken {fast cook}June 8, 2025

    Thanks, Krista! Yes, you can definitely reduce the amount of sweetener and still have a great sauce.

  6. Krista Fenech on Orange Sesame Chicken {fast cook}June 8, 2025

    The mixture of tomatoes and oranges had me very hesitant to try this… however it was DELICIOUS!!!! The taste of…

Footer

Footer

Stay in touch

  • Contact
  • Newsletter
  • About
  • Let's work together

Cookbooks

  • Cooking for the Specific Carbohydrate Diet
  • The Healthy Coconut Flour Cookbook
  • Everyday Keto Baking

Membership

  • Join
  • Account
  • Recipe Collections
  • Shopping List
Copyright © 2025 Comfy Belly | Erica Kerwien. All rights reserved.